The Arlington Finance Committee (FinCom) is a standing committee of the Town Meeting. Its purpose is to recommend a vote to Town Meeting on the Town budget and all articles that require an appropriation. The FinCom reviews each department's budget in detail and holds hearings on Town Meeting appropriation articles. In conjunction with the Town Manager, the Budget and Revenue Task Force, and other Town offices, the FinCom integrates revenue and expense projections to present a balanced budget to Town Meeting.

The FinCom was established by Town Meeting vote on March 7, 1895. The present-day FinCom has 21 members, one from each precinct, who are appointed under the authority of Section 33 of the Town Manager Act (the Town's "charter") by a committee consisting of the moderator, the chair of the FinCom, and the chair of the Board of Trust Fund Commissioners. Under Section 34 of the Town Manager Act, the FinCom is authorized to have access to all Town accounts, and "officers, boards, and committees" of the Town are directed to cooperate.

The FinCom operates under Title I, Article 7 of the Town's bylaws. This article establishes a 3-year term for each member, defines eligibility, directs the committee to elect its own officers (currently the chair, 3 vice chairs, and a secretary), authorizes a salaried part-time executive secretary, and requires the committee to report to Town Meeting on all appropriation articles. Article 7 Section 5 authorizes the FinCom to approve requests for fund transfers within a department's budget and to approve transfers from the reserve fund to department budgets within the limits set by State law.