NRS-16874 | Finance Committee reports [Leichhardt Council]

This series consists of volumes containing reports of meetings of the Leichhardt Council Finance Committee. The initial reports are handwritten while later reports are typed. The reports give the names of people attending each meeting and are arranged chronologically by date of meeting. The reports provide an account of what was discussed at each meeting and the recommendations made to council by the committee. Council could reject the recommendation, send the recommendation back to the committee for further discussion, amend the recommendation, or accept the recommendation. The recommendations were not binding upon Council unless, and until, adopted by Council as shown in the minutes of the Council meeting.Matters dealt with by the committee include the checking and verification of Leichhardt Council finances, recommendations to Council regarding: the payment of accounts; tenders and contracts; expenditure on goods, services and salaries; property dealings; and the initiation of or changes to financial policy and procedure.Section 109 of the Municipalities Act of 1867 (Act 31 Vic. No.12), which was assented to on 23 December 1867, allowed municipal councils to appoint either standing committees or occasional (special) committees, composed of councillors, and to delegate to the committees 'any inquiry negotiation or arrangement or power to do any emergent act or to carry out any work which such Council may have ordered agreed to or directed'. However, Committees had to report to the council at the earliest opportunity. The Council minutes of 21 February  1872 (1) record the creation of the Finance Committee stating that the 'Council proceeded to elect Committees for the ensuing municipal year.' The motion was then carried that 'the Committees of Finance, Works, By Laws and General Purposes consist of the whole council.'From 1908 the Finance Committee was the only committee whose role was mandated by the State Government, as shown in both the 1908 Ordinances (clause 65) and the 1920 Ordinances (clause 41). The Finance Committee's role was to watch over and monitor council revenue and expenditure, to inspect account books and receipts to ensure their accuracy and compliance with the Ordinances, and to report to council on any matters affecting council finances, along with any discrepancies or unauthorised expenditure.From 1930 onwards the minutes and reports of each committee meeting were combined into the one document. See the committee minutes series, NRS16874, for the combined minute and report documents.There are letters and memoranda pinned into the back of the first volume in the series.Endnote1. Held by Leichhardt Council.

本档案系列收录莱奇哈特市议会（Leichhardt Council）财务委员会的会议报告。早期报告为手写原稿，后期报告则为打印文稿。报告中列明各次会议的参会人员，并按会议日期先后顺序排列。报告详细记录了各次会议的讨论内容，以及委员会向市议会提出的各项审议建议。市议会可对该类建议作出驳回、退回委员会作进一步审议、修订或采纳等处理。除非经市议会会议纪要所载的正式程序通过后，上述建议方对市议会具有约束力。

委员会负责的工作涵盖莱奇哈特市议会财务的核查与验证，并就以下事项向市议会提出审议建议：账目支付、投标与合同、货物、服务及薪酬开支、资产交易，以及财务政策与规程的制定或修订。

1867年《市自治法》（Act 31 Vic. No.12）第109条于1867年12月23日获得御准，该条款允许市议会任命由议员组成的常设委员会或临时（专项）委员会，并可授权委员会开展任何调查、谈判、协调工作，或行使紧急处置权限，或执行市议会已下令、同意或指示的任何工作。但委员会须尽早向市议会提交报告。

1872年2月21日的市议会会议纪要（标注(1)）记载了财务委员会的设立事宜，其中载明「市议会将为下一市政年度选举组建各委员会」。随后，「财务、工程、附则及总务委员会由全体议员组成」的动议获得通过。

自1908年起，财务委员会成为唯一由州政府法定明确职责的委员会，相关规定见于1908年《条例》第65条及1920年《条例》第41条。财务委员会的职责为监管市议会的各项收支，核查账簿与收据以确保其准确性及合规性，并就任何影响市议会财务的事项、收支差异或未经授权的开支向市议会提交报告。

1930年起，各委员会会议的纪要与报告合并为单一文件。如需查阅合并后的纪要与报告文件，可查阅委员会会议纪要系列档案NRS16874。

本系列第一卷的封底处夹有若干信件与备忘录。

尾注1：本档案由莱奇哈特市议会（Leichhardt Council）收藏。