Will bailing out Wall Street help Sunwood Ave? Deals and dreams, within the Norman castle, by the Ramp amid nowhere - all things fiscal are impacted, or might be.
The Charter says:
CHAPTER 7
TAXATION AND FINANCES
Section 7.1 Council to Control Finances. The council shall have full authority over the financial affairs of the city except as limited or prohibited by the state constitution, state laws, or this charter. It shall provide for the collection of all revenues and other assets, and the auditing and settlement of accounts. It shall further provide for the safekeeping and disbursement of public moneys.
[...] Section 7.9 Funds. There shall be maintained in the city treasury a general fund and such other funds as may be required by state statutes, resolution or ordinance. The council shall, by resolution or ordinance, create and abolish funds and shall define which funds are eligible for interfund loans as it may deem necessary and appropriate.
Section 7.10 City Indebtedness.
7.10.1 Except as provided in Sections 7.11 and 7.12, no obligation shall be issued to pay current expenses, but the council may issue and sell obligations for any other municipal purpose in accordance with state statutes and within the limitations prescribed by law. Except in the case of obligations for which an election is not required by this charter or state statutes, no such obligation shall be issued and sold without the approval of the majority of the voters voting on the question at a general or special election.
7.10.2 A description of each such proposed issue shall be published in the city
newsletter, but failure to publish such description, or any defect in the description, shall not invalidate the issue. However, corrections shall be published at the earliest practical time.
Section 7.11 Tax Anticipation Certificates. At anytime after January 1, the council may issue tax anticipation certificates in anticipation of state and federal aids and the collection of taxes levied the previous year for any fund and not yet collected. The total amount of certificates issued against any fund for any year together with interest thereon until maturity shall not exceed 90 percent of the total state and federal aids and current taxes due to the fund and uncollected at
the time of issuance. Such certificates shall be issued on such terms and conditions as the council may determine, but they shall become due no later than April 1 of the year following their issuance. The proceeds of the tax levied and such state or federal aids as the governing body may have allocated for the fund against which tax anticipation certificates are issued, and the full faith and credit of the city shall be irrevocably pledged for the redemption of the certificates.
Section 7.12 Emergency Debt Certificates.
7.12.1 If in any year, the receipt from taxes or other sources should, for some unforeseen cause, become insufficient for the ordinary expenses of the city, or if any calamity or other public emergency necessitates the making of extraordinary expenditures, the council may by ordinance issue on such terms and in such manner as the council determines, emergency debt certificates to run not in excess of three years. A tax sufficient to pay principal and interest on such certificates with the margin required by law shall be levied as required by law. The ordinance authorizing the issue of the emergency debt certificates shall state the nature of the emergency and be approved by at least four members of the council. It may be passed by emergency ordinance as defined in Section 3.6 except that the ordinance shall be enacted by a 4/5 vote of the council.
7.12.2 A description of each such proposed certificate shall be published in the city
newsletter, but failure to publish such description, or any defect in the description, shall not invalidate the certificate. However, corrections shall be published at the earliest practical time.
If any council members, council candidates, or city officials read this, it might be wise for City Attorney Goodrich to get the latest word from League of Minnesota Cities on how the "credit crunch" might develop in ways impacting city short term debt practices.