Finance Committee
The Finance Committee is the citizens' committee that reviews every money article in the warrant for Town Meeting and makes recommendations on the town budget. Its members are appointed by the Town Moderator, not elected.
Before 1910. Through the nineteenth century the Select Board printed their own recommended appropriations in the annual report (for example "Appropriations Recommended by the Selectmen for 1895"). Town meeting sometimes named ad hoc committees on money questions; the 1895 annual report records an article on paying the town's bills and adopting a ledger system of accounts that was "Recommended by the Appropriation Committee." No standing finance or appropriations committee appears in the town reports before 1910.
Creation, 1910. Under Article 25 of the warrant for the March 1910 annual meeting, the town amended Section 3 of Article 1 of its by-laws to read: "After the annual election of town officers, the Moderator shall appoint forthwith twelve citizens to act together with the Moderator, the Selectmen, the Town Treasurer, and the Town Clerk for the term of one year as a Finance Committee." A companion section required the Town Clerk to mail each member a call to meet whenever a warrant was drawn, and directed the committee to "carefully consider all articles in the warrant for the annual town meeting and their effect upon the tax rate" and to print a report, with a minority report allowed. The first committee, chaired by Frederic S. Clark, reported to a special town meeting on June 30, 1910 and again on August 2, 1910 (Annual Report 1911). An amendment adopted under Article 21 at the annual meeting of February 12, 1916 had the committee meet on the second Monday of March, June and October to hear its sub-committees and opened the books of all departments to it.
1929 reorganization. Under Article 50 at the 1929 annual meeting the by-law was rewritten: "the moderator shall appoint forthwith eleven citizens who are not Town officers for the term of one year as a finance committee. No citizen shall serve as a member of this committee for more than 3 years consecutively." This ended ex officio membership of the Moderator, Selectmen, Town Treasurer and Clerk. A 1933 article to have town meeting itself elect the committee was dismissed.
Three-year terms. Under Article 34 at the annual meeting of March 12, 1960 the committee became eleven citizens who are not town officers, first appointed for staggered terms of one, two and three years and thereafter for three-year terms, with the Moderator filling vacancies. From the 1970s the Town Accountant sat with the committee as a non-voting member ex officio. The Home Rule Charter of 1979 (Section 8-4(k)) continued "a Finance Committee to consist of eleven members, to be appointed by the Town Moderator for terms of three years each," staggered so that about equal numbers expire each year; terms now run to June 30. From the late 1980s the Moderator has also appointed associate (alternate) members. Besides its reports to town meeting, the committee votes transfers from the town's Reserve Fund, which the annual reports list as "Transferred from the Reserve Fund by the Finance Committee."
About this roster. Rows cover the appointed citizen members only. The ex officio members of 1910-1928, the ex officio Town Accountant, and associate or alternate members are not listed. Years are the years a member appears in the committee lists of the annual town reports. Lists are missing for 1911-1913, 1916, 1951-1953 and 2007 (only partial names survive for 1914 and 1915), so some start and end years in those periods are approximate.
Sources: Annual Reports of the Town of Billerica 1895, 1910, 1911, 1914-1950, 1954-2006, 2008-2019, FY2020-FY2022, 2023-2025; town report memorials (1974-2008).