996                              LAWS OF MARYLAND                      [CH. 572

papers having general circulation within the municipality. The coun-
cil may insert new items or may increase or decrease the items of
the budget. [Where] If the council [shall] increases the total pro-
posed expenditures it shall also increase the total anticipated rev-
enues in an amount at least equal to [such] the total proposed ex-
penditures. The budget shall be prepared and adopted in the form
of an ordinance. A favorable vote of at least a majority of the total
elected membership of the council [shall be] is necessary for
adoption.

49.    Appropriations.

No public money may be expended without having been appro-
priated by the council. From the effective date of the budget, the
several amounts stated therein as proposed expenditures shall be and
become appropriated to the several objects and purposes named
therein.

50.    Transfer of funds.

Any transfer of funds between major appropriations for different
purposes by the mayor must be approved by the council before be-
coming effective.

51.    Over-expenditure forbidden.

No officer or employee [shall] during any budget year may expend
or contract to expend any money or incur any liability or enter into
any contract which by its terms involves the expenditure of money
for any purpose, in excess of the amounts appropriated for or trans-
ferred to that general classification of expenditure pursuant to this
charter. Any contract, verbal or written, made in violation of this
charter [shall be] is null and void. Nothing in this section contained,
however, [shall] prevents the making of contracts or the spend-
ing of money for capital improvements to be financed in whole
or in part by the issuance of bonds, nor the making of contracts of
lease or for services for a period exceeding the budget year in which
[such] the contract is made, when [such] the contract is permitted
by law.

52.    Appropriations lapse after one year.

All appropriations [shall] lapse at the end of the budget year to
the extent that they are [shall] not [have been] expended or law-
fully encumbered. Any unexpended and unencumbered funds shall
be considered a surplus at the end of the budget year and shall be in-
cluded among the anticipated revenues for the next succeeding
budget year.

53.    Checks.

All checks issued in payment of salaries or other municipal obliga-
tions shall be issued and signed by the clerk-treasurer and shall be
countersigned by the mayor.

54.    Taxable property.

All real property and all tangible personal property within the
corporate limits of the town, or personal property which may have a
situs there by reason of the residence of the owner therein, [shall be]
is subject to taxation for municipal purposes, and the assessment used
shall be the same as that for State and county taxes. No authority
is given by this section to impose taxes on any property which is
exempt from taxation by any Act of the General Assembly.