from the Massachusetts Selectmen Handbook:

Finance Committee (or Advisory or Warrant Committee)
The finance committee—or, in some towns, the advisory or warrant committee—is a town’s official fiscal watchdog. Its primary, statutory responsibility is to advise and make recommendations to town meeting on the budget and other areas of finance. One of the finance committee’s most important functions involves making transfers from the town’s reserve fund (a contingency fund normally created as part of annual budget appropriations) to other line items in the budget for extraordinary or unforeseen occurrences.

While the finance committee plays a vital role, it is within the executive authority of the selectmen,and/or their appointees, to prepare the town’s budget. The selectmen have ultimate responsibility to the residents for this service. The finance committee’s responsibility is to review the budget submitted to them and to make recommendations regarding the budget to the town’s legislative body: the town meeting.

The proposed word changes to town by-law on the warrant for the upcoming special town meeting does not affect this: it cannot because the advisory committee's responsibility to examine and make recommendations on all warrant articles is mandated by state law and town by-law: make recommendations and a written report to town meeting.

The aim for the proposed by-law change is to clearly state who does what so we spend less time on arguing on that and spend more time on the very important subject of how is taxpayer money being spent. 

The proposed by-law change equates to clearly stating the Town Administrator with approval of the selectmen will create the town budget (which already happens as stated in current by-law) and if approved, would then clearly state the town administrator and selectmen would present and defend same to town meeting. (which already happens, it just does not state that in the by-law that was voted on at the 2014 annul town meeting.

2014 Templeton annual town meeting:

ARTICLE 20 CHANGE TO THE TOWN BUDGET PROCESS 

To see if the Town will vote to change Article IV “Advisory Committee,” Section 4 of the Town By-Laws to read: “It shall be duty of the Town Administrator in conjunction with the BOS to consider expenditures and develop a budget for the ensuing fiscal year of the several boards, officers and committees of the town, as prepared by them in such form and detail as prescribed by the Town Administrator.”; or take any other action relative thereto. 

Submitted by the Board of Selectmen 

Advisory Board Recommendation: No Vote: 5-0 AB 

Comments: The Advisory Board fully supports a change to the town budget process, however, the wording and placement of this suggested by-law change ( replacing an article that deals with the Advisory Board with text that relates strictly to the BOS and Town Administrator) does not seem to make sense and therefore the Advisory Board cannot support the article. 

So, will the advisory committee support further clarification of the process?