Finance committee presses for earlier council input on mayor's budget white paper; year-end reports not provided

The Westfield Finance Committee on May 27 pressed city administration for earlier council involvement in the mayor’s budget white paper and for missing year-end financial reports from the Clerk Treasurer’s Office.

Committee members said the mayor’s white paper should be reviewed with council input before being distributed to department heads. City administration told the committee the white paper is the mayor’s document but that council budget workshops and one-on-one meetings will provide opportunities for council input later in the process. The administration also said trainings on state legislation referenced as "SB1" are planned for the week of June 16 so council members can understand how that law will affect the next fiscal year’s budget.

Why it matters: Council members said they need timely access to reliable financial reports to assess proposed priorities and to prepare amendments before the administration circulates guidance to departments. The Clerk Treasurer's Office had not provided the 2024 year-end closed report or a 2024 year-end investments performance report to the committee by the meeting date, and committee members expressed disappointment at the Clerk Treasurer's Office's absence.

Key details: Committee members asked for Business Central reporting access (the administration said some access limitations remain) and for automatic posting of monthly financial reports to westfieldin.gov/financialreports. Administration said the budget timeline is roughly a month behind last year because of SB1-related work; the administration expects the audit work and reconciliation schedule to push some deliverables into the fall but aims to be back on schedule next year. Council members said they will request the white paper and related materials directly from Mayor Scott and indicated they expect budget workshops in September and a proposed budget to be adopted by October/late fall.

Discussion vs. decision: The committee debated when council involvement should occur and whether an executive session would be appropriate (administration and committee counsel said a budget overview or white paper review is not an appropriate subject for executive session). Committee members agreed to individually seek meetings with the mayor and to prepare a list of consistent reports they want available for budget review. No formal council action on the budget was taken at the meeting.

The committee closed the discussion and asked administration and the Clerk Treasurer’s Office to provide the requested reports and to enable automatic posting of financial reports to the city website.