Charter review committee weighs changes to Chapter 10 deadlines, budget calendar and audit timing

East Lansing—9s Charter Review Committee spent the bulk of its Jan. 19 meeting reviewing proposed edits to Chapter 10 that would give the city more flexibility in how and when it prepares and publishes its annual budget and financial reports.

The changes, presented by Owen Valley, budget and accounting analyst in the city—9s finance department, would (1) let the city manager publish a yearly budget process calendar, (2) replace the charter—9s current reference to the "first regular meeting of the City Council in April" with a clearer deadline (including a proposed April 15), or (3) let the city manager set the submission deadline in the charter. Valley described those three alternatives during the meeting: "Alternative number 1, the charter could propose that the city manager adopt a budget process calendar annually..." and said the alternatives aim to remove scheduling pressure on departments.

Why it matters: Committee members said the current charter language can force a compressed review process when the council—9s meeting calendar places the first April meeting early in the month. That compression can create last-minute work for departments and make public review more difficult. The committee asked staff to produce draft calendar language that would preserve adequate review time while giving the council and departments predictable dates.

What finance proposed - Budget submission (Section 10.2): Valley said finance considers the charter—9s existing wording 92restrictive92 because council meeting dates shift year to year. Finance offered three alternatives: require an annual budget-process calendar adopted by the city manager (recommended by the city manager based on his prior county experience); set a fixed date such as "no later than April 15"; or replace the sentence with broader language allowing the city manager to set the timing. Valley said, "There is no statutory requirement that it has to be submitted to the City Council for review by April 15th. Really the only requirement from the state of Michigan is that it has to be adopted by the beginning of the next fiscal year." - Budget adoption (Section 10.5): The charter currently requires adoption "not later than the last regular meeting of the city council in May," which finance said predates the state deadline and can be unnecessarily early. Finance suggested replacing the fixed May wording with language such as "at such time and place as the council may direct," while still meeting the state—9s ultimate adoption deadline (the committee and staff discussed the need to confirm the assessor—9s timeline for setting millage and tax-billing deadlines). - Annual report and audit (Section 10.9): The charter now calls for an annual (preliminary) report within 90 days after the fiscal year end and an audited report within 180 days. Finance proposed aligning both items to a single 180-day deadline so the published annual report includes audited numbers: "We would recommend merging these deadlines so that the annual report will always have the most accurate audited information," Valley said.

Questions and committee direction Committee members raised implementation questions: if the council adopted an earlier meeting in April, would that force departments to finish earlier? Valley answered that the city manager would drive the calendar to meet the deadline. Members asked staff to check with the assessor about millage/tax-billing deadlines and whether adoption later in June would interfere with tax-bill production for July 1 collections. The committee also asked staff to confirm how budget documents and preliminary figures are presented on the city website and in meeting packets.

Next steps and assignment Committee members coalesced around asking the city manager and finance department to draft an annual budget-process calendar and to include a deadline not later than April 15 (but tied to the published meeting calendar). The committee asked City Manager Robert Bellman and finance staff to produce a draft calendar and proposed text for Chapter 10 to review at the next meeting.

What the committee did not do No charter amendment was adopted at this meeting. The committee provided direction for staff drafting and asked for follow-up information (assessor timing, draft calendar language, and sample wording). Valley said the item will return to the committee for formal review.

Ending: The committee scheduled follow-up on the Chapter 10 proposals for its next meeting and asked staff to circulate the draft calendar in advance so members and affected departments can comment.