18. Finance

The Executive Director and Treasurer shall carry on the general banking business of the Branch and shall arrange that all moneys received by the Branch shall be deposited in an account in the name of the Branch in a Canadian Chartered Bank, a Credit Union or trust company, and all disbursements shall be made from such account.
All cheques, drafts and other negotiable instruments shall be signed on behalf of the Branch by any two Branch Table Officers.
An operating reserve, held separate from general reserves, shall be established and maintained at a level not less than six month’s budgeted expenditures, as calculated in accordance with the budget of the current year. There shall be no encroachment upon the capital of the operating reserve unless approved by special resolution of the Executive Committee.
The Branch shall appoint a Certified Professional Accountant during the Annual Meeting who shall conduct a financial review for the forthcoming fiscal year;
The Treasurer shall with the approval of the Executive Committee prepare a budget annually for submission to the Council and upon approval, a copy of such budget shall be filed with the Executive Director of the Association in accordance with the By-Laws of the Association.
The fiscal year of the Branch shall be the same as the fiscal year of the Association.