COMMISSIONERS' COURT AGENDA REQUEST
PLEASE FURNISH ONE ORIGINAL AND NINE COPIES OF THI5 REQUEST AND DOCUMENTS TO BE
REVIEWED BY THE COURT.
C~f
MADE BY: H.A. "Buster' Baldwin
MEETING DATE: August 25, 2003
SUBJECT: (PLEASE BE SPECIFIC)
OFFICE: Commissioners' Court
TIlVIE PREFERRED:
Consider and discuss recommendation of the Honorable Carole Keeton Strayhorn,
Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts regarding budgetary matters in our General
Provisions.
E~CUTIVE SESSION REQUESTED: {PLEASE STATE REASON)
NAME OF PERSON ADDRESSING THE COURT:
ESTIMATED LENGTH OF PRESENTATION:
IF PERSONNEL MATTER -NAME OF EMPLOYEE:
Time for submitting this request for Court to assure that the matter is posted in accordance with Title 5, Chapter
551 and 552, Government Code, is as follows:
Meeting scheduled for Mondays:
THIS REQUEST RECEIVED BY:
THIS REQUEST RECEIVED ON:
5:00 P.M. previous Tuesday.

All Agenda Requests will be screened by the County Judge's Office to determine if adequate information has been
prepared for the Court's formal consideration and action at time of Court Meetings. Your cooperation will be
appreciated and contribute towards you request being addressed at the earliest opportunity. See Agenda Request Rules
Adopted by Commissioners' Court.
Comm. Pct. # 1
Gentlemen-
I think this is simply a recommendation of the Honorable Carole
Keeton Strayhorn, Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts.
It was taken from the Budgeting Handbook for Texas Counties and titled
The Standard Financial Management System for Texas Counties.
If you look at the General Provisions sheet in our budget, you will see
very similar language. This has been in our budget for several years.
I don't think we need to adopt anything; we simply need to enforce it.
Thank you for your consideration.
#1
,~ '
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Line Item Transfers and Budget Amendments
No elected Official or department head may expend funds or commit the
expenditure of funds by purchase order from a budget line item unless there are
sufficient funds available. If a budget amendment is necessary to provide
sufficient funds to a line item, the amendment must be approved by the
Commissioners' Court PRIOR to an expenditure or execution of a purchase order.
The elected official or department head must appear before the Commissioners'
Court and the agenda request must be supported by sufficient written
documentation to support the transfer or amendment.
Line Item Transfers and Btcdget Amendmenxs
It is not advisable to amend the budget frequently. Amendments defeat the
purpose of the budget as a tool for planning and control. If budgets are prepared with a
reasonable amount of care, with a sincere desire to follow them, few amendments should
be necessary.
No elected Official or department head may expend funds or commit the
expenditure of funds from a budget line item unless there are sufficient funds
available.
If a budget amendment is necessary, Officials desiring the amendment should
state their case in writing to the commissioners court, and include:
1. Wiurt expenditures are to be increased
2. Haw the increase is to be funded.• by a reduction in estimated year-end
fund balance; by a reduction in other expenditures, or by an increase in
receipts above budgeted amounts
3. Justification for the amendments
4. Course of action if amendment is not approved
The amendment must be approved by the Commissioners 'Court PRIOR to
an expenditure
B~2dgeting Handbook for "Texas C;ounnes , a~~ , ~~
WII~dp0~ 0:~ ST~'E G(74~i~T CARpLE KFEI'o1i STIUYHORN
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Texas Com~roUer of Public Accounts
SERRCH `
Local Government Assistance
Bud~eting Handbook for Texas Counties
October 2001
CHAPTER 13
Amending the Budget
Introduction
The most fundamental way to make a budget a useful management and administrative tool
is to monitor the progress of actual receipts and expenditures against the budgeted figures.
The best way to monitor is to incorporate the budget into the accounting records, and to
report on the status of the budget at least monthly to the commissioners court.
By monitoring the progress of the budget throughout the year, several objectives are
accomplished.
1. The commissioners court knows how its financial plan is working.
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2. Department heads know how their spending is progressing compared to their
departmental budgets.
3. Unspent budget balances may be easily determined.
4. The validity of budget estimating techniques may be checked.
5. Sufficient warning time is available so that the budget can be amended before the
county exceeds its budget.
When to Amend
Texas law clearly states that counties may not spend money except in strict compliance with
their adopted budgets. u This provision means that:
1. Funds may be spent only for items or categories of items that are included in the
adopted budget.
2. A Commissioners court,. by order, may transfer an amount budgeted for one item to
another budgeted item without authorizing an emergency expenditure. u
The budget can be amended, "for county purposes" uand/or as a result of emergencies,
grave public necessities, and unusual and unforeseen conditions that could not reasonably
http:/lwww.window.state.tx.us/Iga/budgetco%h13.htm1 8/14/2003
DUl1~jGLillb' 11culLLUV\.71\ LVl 1 GACW liVUlluGJ 1 4g\. L. va
	have been foreseen when the budget was prepared and adopted. I41 These emergencies and
	unforeseen conditions are generally considered issues of fact to be determined by the county
	commissioners.
	It is not advisable to amend the budget frequently. Amendments defeat the purpose of the
	budget as a tool for planning and control. If budgets are prepared with a reasonable amount
	of care, with a sincere desire to follow them, few amendments should be necessary.
	Among acceptable reasons for amendments are:
	1. inflation runs much higher than anticipated; or a recession more severe than
	anticipated; or any substantial, unanticipated change in economic conditions;
	2. natural disasters;
	3. invalid assumptions underlying budget estimates of receipts and disbursements; or
	4. beginning-of--year fund balances significantly different from balances anticipated.
	
	Officials desiring an amendment should state their case in writing to the commissioners
	court, and include:
	1
Wh
di
i
t
b
d
	.
a
expen
tures are to
ncrease
e
.
	2. How the increase is to be funded: by a reduction in estimated year-end fund balance;
	by a reduction in other expenditures, or by an increase in receipts above budgeted
	amounts.
	
	3. Justification for the amendment.
4. Course of action if amendment is not approved.
The commissioners court should consider the amendment carefully, especially in terms of
how it conforms to its stated spending policies. If the commissioners vote favorably, the
budget may be amended in one of two ways.
	1. If funds are to be transferred from an existing line item to another existing line item, a
	simple order to amend by transferring funds is sufficient. The order must state exactly
	how the funds are to be re-allocated.
	
	2. If a new line is created, then it is necessary for the commissioners court to enter an
	order setting forth how the budget is to be amended; declare an emergency; and find
	that a grave public necessity exists to meet unusual and unforeseen conditions that
	could not, by reasonably diligent thought and attention, have been included in the
	original budget.
	
	Whether an emergency exists justifying a budget amendment is a question of fact and is
	generally left to the discretion of the commissioners court. Their decision is subject to
	judicial review for abuse of discretion. Because courts have rendered budget amendments
	invalid in cases where commissioners courts failed to state the facts justifying an emergency
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DUtI~'Gl,lll~j 1141111UVVli LVl 1G1iiW I.VUliUGJ
amendment, the commissioners court would be wise to formally adopt reasons for the
emergency. I51
Following are examples of formats for the two types of budget amendments:
Line-item Transfer Amendment
DATE:
Honorable Commissioners Court of County:
I submit to you for your consideration the following line-item transfers:
1 0.b'V J Vl ?
FUND DEPT. ACCT. AMT.
From:
To:
Reason:
Department Head
Approved: County Judge for Commissioners Court
Attest: County Clerk
Emergency Budget Amendment
DATE:
Honorable Commissioners Court of County:
I would like to request the following emergency expenditure as an amendment to my
departmental budget:
FUND DEPT. ACCT. AMT.
Reason for grave public necessity or unforeseen condition:
There are no areas in my current budget to reduce in order to fund the above-mentioned
items.
Department Head
http://www.window.state.tx.us/1gaPoudgetco%h13.html 8/14/2003
Budgeting Handbook for Texas t;ounues 1 ~~., ~ ~- .
Approved: County Judge for Commissioners Court
Attest: County Clerk
County Auditor
	Be sure to review other departments within the fund for areas where funds could be used to
	make these amendments. Line-item transfers are always preferred over budget amendments.
	GASB 34 Standards
	Under new GASB 34 standards, governments will be required to continue to provide
	budgetary comparison information in their annual reports. An important change, however, is
	the requirement to add the government's original budget to that comparison. Many
	governments revise their original budgets over the course of the year for a variety of
	reasons. Requiring governments to report their original budget in addifion to their revised
	budget adds a new analytical dimension and increases the usefulness of the budgetary
	comparison.
	Budgetary changes are not, by their nature, undesirable. However, the information will be
	important in the interest of accountability to those who are aware of, and perhaps made
	decisions based on, the original budget. Information will also allow users to assess the
	government's ability to estimate and manage its resources.
	dn
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jtJ V.T.C.A., Local Government Code, §111.010 (b).
1~ V.T.C.A., Local Government Code, §111.010 (d).
11 V.T.C.A., Local Government Code, § 111.011.
j~ V.T.C.A., Local Government Code, § 111.010 (c).
i1 Tex. Att'y Gen. LO-97-051.
Carole Keeton Strayhorn
Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts


http://www.window. state.tx.us/lga/budgetco/ch 13 .htm1
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Contact Us
Privacy and Security Policy
8/14/2003
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PUBLIC PARTICIPATION FORM
FOR
KERR COUNTY COMMISSIONERS' COURT
Instructions: Fill out all appropriate blanks. Please print or write legibly. Present to the County
Clerk prior to the time that the-.nda Item (or Items) you wish to address are discussed.
~. _
~ ~~~~ ..
Name: ~ ~L ~ , ~ t'-171` ~-...) `-r'~ ~'~ ~7.
Address: - ..~ . ~...~ ''~- _~~ +~~ 1 ~' ~ l I ~ T ~-- 1 c -?`~ ~ ~-
Telephone: ~~ ~~;, •~ ~~ ~(^
Place of Employment: ~ ~~;~
Employment Telephone: ~~~'~ ? i_;
Do you represent any particular group or organization? Yes ~ No
If you represent a group or organization, please state the name, address and telephone number of
such group or organization.
Which agenda Item (or Items) do you wish to address?
l~~
In general, are you for or against such Agenda Item (or Items)? For ~ Against
'~
Si ture
NOTE: This Public Participation Form must be presented to the County Clerk prior to the
time the agenda item(s) are discussed.
Once you reach the podium, please state your aame •and who/what you
represent clearly for the court reporter to accurately record who you are