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City of Mansfield Annual Budget and Service Program Fiscal Year 2025-2026 Table of Contents

Budget and Financial Policies

The City's Roles and Responsibilities

Every staff member plays a role in budgeting, whether in its formation, implementation, administration, or evaluation.
Ultimately, of course, each department director, through the City Manager, is accountable to the City Council and citizens
for the performance of departmental staff in meeting specific objectives.

Actual budget responsibility can be identified specifically as follows:

The Department Director is responsible for preparing an estimate of remaining cost requirements for the current fiscal
year, projecting base budget requirements for the next fiscal year, and developing other requests that change or revise
the program to make it more effective, efficient, productive, and economical.

The Departmental Administrative Support Staff serves as a vital communication link between the department and the
budget staff. Support staff is responsible for coordinating information, checking to see if forms are completed properly,
making sure necessary supporting documentation is submitted, monitoring the internal review process to meet timelines,
gathering performance measurement information, entering departmental budget data into the City’s financial system,
and serving as the departmental troubleshooter for problems throughout the budget process.

The Strategic Planning Committee is composed of staff from each major department of the City and is responsible for
the planning, development and presentation of the City’s modified capital and operational strategic plan. The Strategic
Planning Committee presents recommendations to the Deputy City Manager/Chief Financial Officer, Assistant City
Managers, and the City Manager for review.

The Department and Division Directors are responsible for reviewing historical performance, anticipating future
problems and opportunities, considering alternative solutions, and modifying and assembling their departmental data
into a cohesive budget information package. Department Directors critically evaluate all division-level requests, prioritize,
and submit a budget plan including only those requests that support City Council priorities, City Manager work plan,
administrative direction and the departmental mission and objectives. Performance measures are evaluated to determine
the effectiveness of individual divisions and departments.

The Chief Financial Officer and Budget Officer are responsible for preparing short- and long-range revenue and
expenditure forecasts, gathering and evaluating performance measures, calculating departmental projected budget
targets, assisting departments, reviewing departmental budgets with department directors or staff, collating, analyzing,
and summarizing departmental requests and preparing budget review materials for the Executive Staff and City Council.

The City Manager and Deputy City Manager’s key role is to translate City Council goals and objectives into
recommended funding decisions.

The City Manager is responsible for reviewing the total financial and operational program, formulating a City-wide
proposed budget, and proposing a balanced budget to the City Council.

The City Council is responsible for the review of the City Manager’s proposed budget, approval of the tax rate and
approval of the final budget. The City charter requires adoption of the final budget no later than September 15 of each
fiscal year.

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