(A) (1) Establishment; appointment. There is hereby established the office of Director of Finance. The Director of Finance shall be appointed by the Mayor, by and with the advice and consent of Council.
(2) Director to have state law powers of Comptroller. To the extent not contrary to or inconsistent with the provisions of this code, all of the powers, duties and obligations conferred upon the office of City Comptroller by state law, including but not limited to ILCS Ch. 65, Act 5, § 3.1-35-100, Ch. 65, Act 5, § 3.1-35-105, Ch. 65, Act 5, § 3.1-35-110 and Ch. 65, Act 5, § 3.1-35-115, shall be conferred upon the office of Director of Finance.
(B) Duties generally.
(1) The Director of Finance shall exercise a general supervision over all the officers of the city charged in any manner with the collection or disbursement of city revenue and the return of revenue to the treasury.
(2) The Director of Finance is the fiscal agent of the city, and as such, shall have charge of all its mortgages, contracts, judgments, notes, bonds, deeds and choses in action belonging to the city, except such as are required by law or ordinance to be deposited elsewhere.
(3) The Director of Finance shall have supervision over the contracts, bonds, obligations, loans and liabilities of the city, the payment of interest and all the property of the city and the purchase, sale or disposition thereof, and he or she shall, generally in subordination to the Mayor and Council, exercise supervision over all interests of the city as in any manner may concern or relate to the city finances, revenues and property.
(4) The Director of Finance shall have charge of all special assessment rolls and warrants and shall keep books of account as may from time to time be required of him or her by Council, showing the status of all Special Assessment Funds.
(5) The Director of Finance shall have charge of the payment of all special assessment bonds and warrants and the keeping of all records of the city regarding Special Assessment Funds. He or she shall make all collections of Special Assessment Funds and shall remit them to the City Treasurer.
(6) On or before January 31 of each year and before the annual appropriations are made in each year, the Director of Finance shall submit to Council a report of his or her estimate of monies necessary to defray the expenses of the city during the current fiscal year. He or she shall, in the report, class the different objects and branches of expenditures, giving the amount required for each, and for the purpose of making the report, may require of any officer a statement of condition and expenses of his or her office or department, with any proposed improvements and the proper expense thereof, all contracts made and unfinished and the amount of any and all unexpected appropriations of the preceding year. The Director of Finance shall, in the report, show the aggregate income of the preceding fiscal year, from all sources, the amount of liabilities outstanding upon which interest is to be paid, the bonds and debts payable during the year, when due and when payable, and shall give other information to Council as deemed necessary, to the end that Council may fully understand the money exigencies and demands upon the city for the current year.
(7) The Director of Finance shall each month check the total amount of expenditures of each office and department with relation to the appropriation or budget for the office or department and may from time to time, at his or her discretion, report to an officer or to Council concerning any excessive expenditures by the officer or his or her department.
(8) Subject to management approval, the Director of Finance shall plan, direct and evaluate financial policies and procedures affecting the collection of bills and fees, the proper recording of financial transactions and the timely production of financial statements and reports.
(9) The Director of Finance shall coordinate the municipal budget process.
(10) The Director of Finance shall supervise municipal insurance.
(11) Subject to management approval, the Director of Finance shall plan, direct, develop and administer all functions of human resources such as employment, compensation, benefits, human resources/payroll processing and systems, employee records, government reporting, special training programs, employee communications, policy development and administration.
(12) The Director of Finance shall perform other and further duties as may be required by law and ordinance.
(C) Payment of tax monies to funds. Within 15 days of the receipt by the Director of Finance from the County Collector of real estate taxes, the Director of Finance shall prepare checks from the city’s funds so received, payable to the appropriate pension funds of the city (such as the Police Pension Fund, the Firefighter’s Pension Fund and the State Municipal Employees Retirement Fund) in each case in the proportion the levy for the particular fund bears to the total real estate tax levy of the city for the year involved.
(D) Authority regarding tax sales. The Director of Finance is hereby authorized, subject to the control and approval of Council, to attend or to appoint an agent to attend all tax sales and bid on all property subject to sale on account of delinquent special assessments in which the city is interested and the Director of Finance or his or her agent may purchase the same for and on behalf of the city in default of other bidders. The Director of Finance is further authorized to make contracts as may be necessary or desirable, subject to the consent and approval of Council, with one or more persons, who shall receive as compensation for their services the fees, commissions or percentage of collections or proceeds as Council may determine and who shall:
(1) Dispose of all tax certificates and tax deeds which the city has or which may hereafter accrue by reason of the tax sales;
(2) Prevent delay and forfeiture of penalties accruing to the city;
(3) Serve notices required by law; and
(4) Secure tax deeds within the statutory period and protect the city’s interests in all matters.
(E) Office; records. The Director of Finance shall maintain an office in the city offices and shall keep all books, papers and records pertaining to any and all matters under his or her jurisdiction in the office.
(F) Books of account. The Director of Finance shall keep books of account, records and documents relating to the finances of the city and the method of transacting the public business of the city, and he or she shall maintain the plan of accounting and auditing as may from time to time be prescribed by Council.
(G) Reports from Treasurer and Collector. The City Treasurer and City Collector shall make reports to the Director of Finance and furnish him or her with information, as he or she may from time to time require.
(H) Assistants.
(1) The Director of Finance shall appoint, according to law, assistants, clerks and other employees in his or her office as Council may authorize and may remove, with the approval of Council, the appointees according to law. The Director of Finance shall be responsible for the fidelity of a person appointed by him or her who has the custody of public money and the Director of Finance may remove any person, at his or her discretion, for any reason he or she deems proper.
(2) The Director of Finance shall require good and sufficient bonds to be given by all assistants, clerks and other employees who receive or have the care, custody or handling of any monies or other valuable things belonging to the city, which bonds shall be approved by the Director of Finance. All assistants, clerks and other employees employed in the office of the Director of Finance are subject to authority and regulations and shall perform duties, as prescribed or required of them by the Director of Finance or an ordinance of the city.
(Ord. passed 1-12-1981; Ord. 01-16, passed 7-10-2001; Ord. 01-23, passed 9-25-2001)