Chap. 387.—An ACT to authorize the county school board of Scott county to
issue bonds for the purpose of erecting, improving, and furnishing school
buildings in the school districts of the county and to prescribe the arr it

5S B 40-4]
Approved March 20, 1924.

1. Beit enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That whenever
the county school board of the county of Scott shall, by resolution duly
spread upon the minutes of the proceedings of such board, declare that
an additional schoolhouse or schoolhouses or improvements to existing
school houses are necessary to provide additional public school facilities
for the children of school age in any school district of said county and
that the school funds will not be sufficient to provide such additional
school building or buildings or improvements and to furnish the build-
ings, and the statement of facts contained in the resolution of such
school board shall be confirmed and approved by resolution of the board
of supervisors of the county adopted upon motion of the member of
the board of superv:sors from the particu’ar district concerned, the
county school board 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 erecting a school house or school houses
therein and for furnishing the same, or for making such improvements,
and may ssue 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 the county school board at such time after their date as may be speci-
fied in the bonds, and such bonds shall bear interest at a rate not ex-
ceeding 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 under this act on behalf of
any such school district exceed five 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, by resolution spread upon the minutes of the board, may
prescribe, and shall be signed by the chairman and countersigned by the
clerk of the board, and there shall be a lien upon the school property
erected and procured with the proceeds of the sale of any such bonds
for the payment of the principal thereof, and the interest to accrue
thereon; and if it shall be so stated on the face of the bonds, there shall
be a lien on all the school property of the school district for whose benefit
the bonds are issued 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 purpose
than that of erecting, improving and furnishing school buildings.

It is expressly provided that the proceeds derived from any bonds
issued under the provisions of this act for erecting, improving and fur-
nishing school buildings in Estillville school district of the said county
shall be expended in the said school district as follows: not less than
thirty-five thousand dollars shall be expended within the corporate
limits of the town of Gate City; not less than four thousand five hundred
dollars shall be expended within the limits of Big Cut precinct in said
district, and not less than five thousand dollars shall be expended in
Winegar precinct in said district; there shall be expended on Cleveland
high school near Yuma P. O. not less than seven thousand, and not less
than one thousand on Mountain View school and not less than one
thousand on River View school building.

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
district in which the proceeds are proposed to be spent voting at a special
election to be ordered and held as hereinafter provided.

5. When the resolutions of the school board and board of super-
visors shall be certified to the circuit court of the county, or the judge
thereof in vacation together with the location of the schoolhouse or
schoolhouses to be erected or improved, with the estimated cost thereof,
the said court or judge 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 or Judge may prescribe by order entered
in the court’s common law order book, to pass upon the question whether
such bonds shall be issued or not, for the amount recommended by the
school board. And the clerk of the court shall give the notice required
oy the court or judge 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
and the purpose of the proposed issue thereof. 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 the board of
supervisors shall provide all other necessary details for such special
election, and 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 elec-
tions shall apply to such special elections, except as otherwise provided
in this act, and the judges and clerks of the regular elections shall be
the judges and clerks in any such 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 such special elections.

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 re-
quired by law in general elections, and on the second day following such
special election, it shall be the duty of the county clerk, the Common-
wealth’s attorney, and the commissioner of the 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 election,
and to certify the results ascertained by them to the board of super-
visors of the county, which shall spread the same upon the minutes of
the 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 qual-
ified by law to vote in the last. preceding general election shall be quali-
fied to vote in any special election.

9. From the school levies of the school district in which the proceeds
are expended there shall be paid, as it matures, the interest on the bonds
hereby authorized, and there shall be set aside annually, as a sinking
fund, such a sum as will provide for the payment of the principal when
it matures. Such sinking fund shall be invested in the bonds hereby
authorized, or in such other securities as the said board may, with the
approval of the judge of the circuit court of said county, select. The
said school board shall annually report to the board of supervisors of
the county the amount of the debt outstanding and the amount anc
condition of the sinking fund.

10. The erection of any school building under the provisions of thi:
act shall be under the control of a building committee composed of three
qualified voters of the voting precinct in which the said school buildings
is to be erected or improved, who shall also be competent business men
and who shall be appointed and vested with the duties and powers a:
herein specified. The division superintendent of schools of the saic
county and the school trustee from the magisterial district of the count)
in which the building is to be erected or improved, shall be advisory
members of the building committee.

Whenever, and as soon as, it is determined to erect or improve a
school building under this act, it shall be the duty of the school board
of said county to notify the judge of the circuit court of the said county,
and he shall, as soon thereafter as practicable, appoint the members of
the said building committee from those qualified.

The building committee shall determine the plans, specifications and
other questions pertaining to the construction or improvement of the
school building, provided further that all plans for said buildings shall
be prepared by a competent graduate architect, but no plans or specifi-
cations shall be adopted by them that do not comply with those of a
modern school building as approved by the State board of education.

The said committee shall have the authority to employ a competent
building inspector to supervise the work, and fix his compensation not
to exceed seven dollars and fifty cents per day, for each day given to said
work; provided, however, no inspector shall be employed, unless he is,
or has been, a skilled carpenter or house-building contractor.

No contract for the construction or improvement of a school build-
ing, or for building material, furnishing or fixtures, shall be let until bids
for the same have been advertised for in some newspaper having general
circulation in said county, and has received the approval of the said
building committee. Such contracts shall be let to, and purchases
made from the lowest responsible bidder, but the right may be reserved
to reject any and all bids, and no contract shall be let which calls for
the expenditure of a larger amount of money than has been set apart
for the construction or improvement of such school building.

Neither the school trustees nor any member of the building com-
mittee shall become pecuniarily interested, directly or indirectly, in any
contract or in the parts of any contract made by or with any person, firm
or corporation, that may contract for work on, or material or supplies
for any school building erected or improved under this act, and a viola-
tion of this provision shall be a misdemeanor.

Each member of said committee shall receive as his compensation
for performing the duties herein placed upon him, not exceeding three
dollars per day for each day in which he is employed in such work, and
the said per diem shall be paid out of the school funds of the school district
in which the said building is erected or improved, upon a warrant issued
by the school trustee of such district and approved by the school board
and the member of the board of supervisors from the magisterial district
in which the said building is erected or improved; provided further,
however, that before any money can be expended under this act, a
majority of the board of supervisors of Scott county shall approve the
same.

11. An emergency existing, this act shall be in force from its pas-
sage.