Diocesan Finance Council

In the Latin Church, every diocese must have a finance council presided over by the diocesan bishop or his delegate. It consists of at least three members of the Christian faithful who are genuinely expert in financial affairs and civil law and outstanding in integrity. The bishop appoints them for renewable five-year terms; his relatives through the fourth degree of consanguinity or affinity are excluded.

The council is distinct from the diocesan finance officer. The council deliberates and gives the advice or consent required by law; the finance officer administers diocesan goods under the bishop's authority according to the council-approved method and reports annually to it.^[1]

The Eastern Code requires the analogous eparchial finance council unless the proper law of the Church sui iuris already provides equivalently. The eparchial bishop presides, the eparchial finance officer belongs to it by law, and its members have a consultative vote unless common law or a foundation document requires consent.^[2]

Following the bishop's directions, the council prepares the annual diocesan budget and examines the year-end account of income and expenditure. Its members must receive the information needed for a responsible judgment and must respect the purposes of ecclesiastical goods, donor intentions, canon law, and applicable civil law.

The bishop remains the diocesan administrator and does not transfer his office to the council. Nevertheless, universal or particular law requires the council's advice for specified acts and its consent for others, including certain alienations and transactions that can worsen a juridic person's patrimonial condition. When consent is required for validity, the bishop cannot validly act against the council's vote or without obtaining it.^[3][4]