Bellevue’s chances of approving a 2010 budget by the end of the year went up in smoke last Friday night when a scheduled public hearing never got off the ground.

Although five members of council were in the room at 6 p.m., when the budget hearing was supposed to start, two refused to participate because they said the borough administration had failed to comply with Bellevue’s home rule charter in terms of the pre-hearing mandated advertising.

Council members Jane Braunlich and Linda Woshner pointed to charter provisions that require that a summary of the budget be published at least 10 days before a public hearing is held. Director of administrative services Connie Flasher never advertised the budget summary, and advertised a notice of the hearing on Dec. 9, nine days before the Dec. 18 hearing.

Neither Flasher nor solicitor Mike Georgalas were present at the hearing. Council president Kathy Coder and members David Gillingham Jr. and Mike Kutschbach were present and willing to participate. Braunlich and Woshner said that they were present to participate in an executive session scheduled to discuss personnel matters that was to be held after the hearing.

That would have given council the quorum necessary to conduct the second meeting, but Gillingham stormed out of the council chambers. Council member Mark Panichella arrived a few minutes later and the executive session was held until Kutschbach decided to leave.

Coder stated that the advertisement placed by Flasher complied with the borough code, a law that has not not applied to Bellevue since the home rule charter was adopted more than 30 years ago.

Coder said in a later interview that she was aware that the charter required publishing a budget summary, and that this would be done, and a hearing rescheduled.

The home rule charter permits the borough to pay only utilities and salaries after Jan. 1 if a budget has not been legally approved. In the past, Bellevue also has needed an approved budget in order to obtain the tax anticipation note that will fund the borough’s operation until tax revenues are received in April.