Who Can Serve on a Budget Committee?

Date Posted: Friday, November 1, 2024
Posted In: Legal Notes, Legal Notes - Featured

(Updated from the June 2013 Legal Notes)

Question: Can municipal officers (select board member or councilor), municipal employees or other local officials serve on a municipal budget committee? If so, can they vote on recommendations concerning their own program?

Answer: Membership on municipal budget committees is not governed by state law. Whether a municipality has a budget committee, and if so, its composition and its duties depend entirely on the charter provision, ordinance or town meeting vote that created it.

Unless an appropriate local enactment addresses the composition of the committee, neither municipal officers nor other local officials or employees are disqualified from serving on a budget committee under state law.

It is sometimes argued that having a municipal officer or other local official or employee on a budget committee is a “conflict of interest” or an “incompatible office,” but no statute or legal theory supports this view. This is because budget committees in almost all instances are strictly advisory – they have no final decision-making authority. It is the municipal legislative body (town meeting or council) that actually adopts the budget.

Similarly, because budget committees produce nonbinding recommendations, there is no conflict of interest under state law for a budget committee member who happens to be a municipal employee or official to discuss or vote upon recommendations for that person’s own program budget or for the budget of a spouse or family member. A local charter, ordinance or ethics policy, however, could prohibit the committee member’s involvement in that situation, or the member may choose to abstain to avoid an appearance of bias in the eyes of the public.

On a practical level, it may be advantageous to include municipal officials or employees on a budget committee because they may bring special knowledge and expertise to the table. Also, having a municipal officer on the committee provides a liaison to the select board or council, which could prove helpful as that board prepares the budget. Still, if this is deemed inappropriate, the charter provision, ordinance or town meeting vote creating the budget committee could designate a municipal officer to serve ex officio and without a vote.

Finally, as noted above, state statutes do not even mention municipal budget committees except in one context. For those municipalities governed by 30-A M.R.S. § 2528(5), that statute requires that if a budget committee has been established, its recommendation must appear on the warrant and the ballot for any secret ballot referendum vote on an appropriation of money (along with that of the municipal officers and in some cases, that of the school committee).

For more on budget committees, see our “Information Packet” on the subject, available in the “Legal” section of MMA’s website. (By S.F.P.)