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.