Taxes and water-rents, or rates, in cities of the second class, shall be levied and assessed annually, and all appropriations shall be made annually, by general ordinance, prior to the first day of December of each year, which shall fix and determine the same for the ensuing fiscal year commencing January first.

It shall be the duty of all the departments of the city government to make reports of the receipts and expenditures of their various departments, and also estimates of the probable revenues to be collected by, and of the probable amounts required by, the respective departments, for the ensuing fiscal year, to the mayor, to be transmitted to the council at such time, prior to December first of each year, as may be fixed by the mayor and council. Said reports, together with the report of the city controller of the total amounts received by the city from taxes and other revenues in prior years, and also an estimate by the city controller of the probable revenues of the ensuing fiscal year, shall be submitted to council, for the purpose of enabling the council to determine the amount of taxes and other revenues reasonably to be anticipated for the ensuing fiscal year, and to determine the rate of taxes or millage to be fixed to meet the current expenses of the city for the ensuing fiscal year.