FAIRHOPE, Ala. — A City Council study group had its first public presentation at the work session prior to the Feb. 9 council meeting.

The presentation was described on the work session agenda as “Finance Committee — Stan Grubin — Budget Process.”

But Councilman Lonnie Mixon, who is chair of the council’s Finance Committee, introduced Grubin as a member of a “budget process study group.”

That study group, and three others, were established by Council President Debbie Quinn during the new council’s first meeting on Nov. 3. Quinn appointed Mixon to chair what was then described as the Finance Study Group.

Mixon said the group has met several times since the group was established. However, the group has not provided advance notice of its meetings or provided minutes of its meetings to the council, according to city records.

During a Nov. 10 council meeting, the council appointed several members to the Growth and Sustainability Issues Study Group, upon Quinn’s recommendation. Quinn, who chairs that committee, said that without appointing a committee by that procedure, the committee would not be subject to the state Open Meetings Act.

“We formed a Budget Process Study Group of Fairhope citizens with business and accounting experience to look into the budget process,” Mixon said recently. “The Governmental Structure Committee recommended that the budget process for the city be updated. We hope to have (a new system) in place starting in August as we prepare for the (next fiscal year).”

During the work session, Grubin presented a plan to the council for how the budget process could be improved, handing out several forms that he said will be proposed as ways for enhancing the process.

After the meeting, Mixon described the proposed process.

“We have budget templates that are prepared for each department to ‘plug-in’ expected month-by-month forecasts of revenue and expenditures,” he said. “It is a system of ‘bottom-up’ forecasting, starting with the department heads of each city organization. This will give the department heads a greater sense of financial results ‘ownership.’”

Mixon said the study group consists of the following members with their professional backgrounds: Dick Bensman (business), Grubin (business) Dick Kwapil (Certified Public Accountant), Mac MacCauley (CPA), Ron Muschel (business), and Marvin Wilder (CPA and attorney).

According to county campaign finance records, Grubin served as Mixon’s campaign treasurer in last year’s municipal elections, when Mixon was elected to his first four-year term.

“It’s a good start,” Quinn said after the presentation. “I’ve shown it to the mayor, and he’s happy with the system.”

Mayor Tim Kant agreed.

“The budget is supposed to be a living working document,” he said. “This is a good thing. If everyone is involved with it, they will have ownership as we move along.”

Mixson said he is working with the mayor and his staff to have an update of the fiscal ‘09 budget that was approved last October.

“We should have this ready to present to the Finance Committee on March 16,” Mixson said.