(1) For each office, board, commission and department, including public utilities operated within the general fund, and special budget accounts and cash accounts, of counties, cities and towns, the items of appropriation shall, unless otherwise provided by law, be as follows: "personal services," "maintenance and operation," and "capital outlay," applied as enumerated and defined in the preceding section. Provided, that public utilities owned or controlled and managed by the city may be operated within the budget as a department within the general fund or may be separately operated as a private enterprise, not controlled by general taxation statutes, and expenditures for operating expenses, replacements and extensions may be made from the income derived from the operation of such utility without appropriation. Nothing herein contained shall operate to prevent the governing board from transferring any surplus, not needed for the operation of such public utilities, to the general fund or sinking fund of the municipality.

(2) The board of trustees of a town (not a city) having a population less than that required by law to become a city, may at its option submit its estimate of needs in short form, not departmentalized, showing in separate items the amounts of funds estimated and appropriated for the functions and purposes thereof, but defined as follows: "personal services," "maintenance and operation" and "capital outlay" as enumerated and defined in the preceding section. Small utilities managed directly by such board of town trustees may be operated within such budget or separately operated and reported as are city utilities separately operated; but if within the budget and as separate department, the departmentalized budget form shall be used.

Laws 1965, c. 501, § 2. Renumbered from § 2491 by Laws 1988, c. 162, § 163, eff. Jan. 1, 1992 and Laws 1991, c. 249, § 3, eff. Jan. 1, 1992.