When any item costing not more than five dollars ($5) is purchased by the department of supplies, the director of the department, or his assistant, may at once draw upon such special fund so deposited, without prior approval of his purchase by any other official of the city. All items so purchased by him shall be reported at monthly intervals to the city controller and the finance committee of council. Whenever said purchases shall thereafter have been approved by the city controller, he shall so certify to the city treasurer, who shall then draw, from the money appropriated for that purpose, a sum equal to the amount of such approved purchases and deposit the same in said special fund, limited, however, to the amount of money at any time remaining of the appropriation made by council.
In addition to the reports required herein, the director of the department of supplies shall, at the request of the city controller or the finance committee of council, render additional reports; and the books and accounts shall be subject, at any time, to inspection by the city controller or the finance committee of council.
53 P.S. § 22724