Chap. 175.—An ACT to provide for the holding of an election in the school
districts of Arlington county, Virginia, on the question of issuing bonds for
the purpose of sites and erection and furnishing of school buildings in such
districts; to provide for the issuing and sale of said bonds in accordance
with the said election; and to provide for the levying of tax upon the taxable
property in such school districts for the purpose of creating a sinking fund
for the payment of the principal and interest on said bonds. [H B 328]

Approved March 15, 1922.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That when-
ever the school board of any school district of Arlington county
shall, by resolution duly spread upon the minutes of the proceedings
of such board, declare that an additional school house or school
houses are necessary to provide additional public school facilities
for the children of school age in such district, and the school funds
of such district will not be sufficient to provide such additional schooi
building or buildings, and to furnish the same, the school board of
any such district may, when authorized by a vote of a majority of the
qualified voters of any such district voting, as hereinafter provided,
borrow money for the purpose of purchasing a site or sites and of
erecting a school house or houses therein and for furnishing the
same and may issue either registered or coupon bonds for the sums of
money so borrowed; the said bonds to be payable at a period not
exceeding thirty years after their date, and to be made redeemable
at the option of any such school board at such time after their date
as may be specified in the bonds, and such bonds shall bear interest
at a rate not exceeding six per centum per annum, payable either
annually or semi-annually, as the school board may prescribe; but no
such bonds shall be sold for less than their par value, and at no time
shall the aggregate amount of bonds issued and outstanding in any
school district exceed seventeen per centum of the aggregate assessed
value of the real estate located in such school district.

2. The said bonds shall be of such form and denomination as the
school board of any such school district, by resolution spread upon
the minutes of the board, may prescribe, and shall be signed by the
chairman and attested by the secretary of the board, and they shall
be a lien upon all the taxable property in such district for the payment
of the principal thereof, and the interest to accrue thereon.

3. The proceeds realized from the sale of any such bonds issued
under the provisions of this act shall not be used for any other pur-
pose than that of purchasing sites and erecting such school buildings
and furnishing the same as may be set forth in the petition for
the election.

4. No bonds shall be issued under the provisions of this act
unless authorized by a vote of the majority of the qualified voters
of the school districts proposing to issue the same, voting at a special
election to be ordered and held as hereinafter. provided.

5. When the resolution of the school board shall be certified to the
circuit court of the county, or the judge thereof in vacation, or upon
a petition of one-fourth of the duly qualified voters of such school
district requesting such bond issue, together with the location of
the school house or houses to be erected, with the general plans,
specifications, and estimated cost thereof, approved by the division
school superintendent and the superintendent of public instruction,
the said court, or judge thereof in vacation, shall order a special
election to be held in any such district at such time and after such
notice (which shall not be less than two weeks), as the court may
prescribe by order entered upon its minutes, to pass upon the question
whether such bonds shall be issued or not, for the amount recom-
mended by the school board of such district, or requested in such
petition. And the clerk of the court shall give the notice required
by the court of such special election by publication in some newspaper
of the county, and by having the same posted by the sheriff of the
county in at least ten conspicuous points in any such school district,
which said notice shall state the amount of bonds to be issued, the
purpose of the proposed issue thereof, and the estimated cost of the
school building or buildings. The clerk and sheriff of the county
shall each receive for their services hereunder two dollars, to be paid
out of the county treasury.

6. The electoral board shall prepare the tickets and shall provide
all other necessary details for such special election, and the board of
supervisors shall pay the expenses thereof out of the funds of the
county, and any such election shall be conducted and held in like
manner as regular elections, and the laws of the State applying to
general elections shall apply to. such special election, except as other-
wise provided in this act, and the judges and clerks of the regular
elections in said district shall be the judges and clerks in any special
election, and shall receive the same compensation; and the voting
precincts in any such district for general elections shall also be the
same for any Special elections. At such election each qualified voter
who shall approve such issue of bonds shall deposit a ticket or ballot
on which shall be written the words, “For bond issue,” and each
qualified voter who shall oppose such issue of bonds shall deposit a
ticket or ballot on which shall be wnitten the words, “Against bond
issue.”

7. The judges and clerks of such special elections shall canvass
the vote and certify the same to the county clerk in the same manner
as required by law in general elections, and on the second day follow-
ing such special elections, it shall be the duty of the county clerk, the
Commonwealth’s attorney, and the commissioner of revenue, who are
hereby constituted a board of canvassers for that purpose, to meet
in the clerk’s office of said county and.to canvass the returns of such
special elections, and to certify the results ascertained by them to the
judge of the circuit court of said county, who shall have the same
spread upon the common law order book of his court, and to the school
board of such district, who shall spread the same upon the minutes of
said board, and when this shall have been done, if no notice of contest
of said election shall have been filed within ten days after said election,
the certificates of the canvassing board, hereby created, shall be con-
clusive of the legality and regularity of said special election and of
the result thereof.

8. All registered voters of any such school district who were
qualified by law to vote in the last preceding general election shall
be qualified to vote in any such special election.

9. The said bonds shall have written or printed o on them the fol-
lowing sentences: ..

“These bonds-are issued for school improvements in __._.-_--_-=
school district, but the full faith and credit of the entire county of
Arlington is hereby pledged for their payment, and a tax is to be
levied upon the property in said district to pay the interest on them
and to create a sinking fund sufficient in amount to pay them upon
maturity.” The board of supervisors shall annually levy a special
tax not to exceed fifty cents on each one hundred dollars assessed
valuation on all the taxable property in such district sufficient to pay
the interest on the bonds so authorized and to create a sinking fund
for the payment of the principal at maturity. Such sinking fund
shall be invested in the bonds hereby authorized, or in such other

securities. as the said school board may, with the approval of the
division superintendent of schools for said county, select. The said
school -board shall annually report to. the board of supervisors of
the county the amount and condition of the sinking -fund.

10. No election under this act shall be held mater than once
in one year.

11. In the event of the passage of an act or acts constituting
the county the unit of operation for the public free school system,

instead of the district, as is the case under the law now existing, the
sag vt tres ve ‘
powers conferred and the duties imposed by this act upon distr
school boards shall be exercised and performed by the county schc
board of Arlington county for and on behalf of the districts mention