Chap. 57.—An ACT to provide a new charter for the town of Wise, in the county
of Wise; to validate all contracts heretofore or hereafter made by the present
council and government while in office, not inconsistent with this new charter
or the Constitution and general laws of this State; and to repeal all acts, or
parts of acts, in conflict with this act. [IS B 22]

Approved February 20, 1940

1. Beit enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia, as follows:

Section 1. The Town Corporate.—The inhabitants of the terri-
tory comprised within the present limits of the town of Wise, as such
limitations are now or may be hereafter altered and established by
law, shall constitute and continue a body, politic and corporate, to
be known and designated as the town of Wise, and as such shall have
and may exercise all powers which are now or hereafter may be
conferred upon or delegated to towns under the Constitution and
laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia, as fully and completely as
though such powers were specifically enumerated herein, and no
enumeration of particular powers by this charter shall be held to be
exclusive, and shall have, exercise and enjoy all the rights, immuni-
ties, powers and privileges and be subject to all the duties and obliga-
tions now appertaining to and incumbent on said town as a municipal
corporation, and the said town of Wise, as such, shall have perpetual
succession, may sue and be sued, implead and be impleaded, contract
and be contracted with, and may have a corporate seal which it may
alter, renew, or amend at its pleasure by proper ordinance.

Section 2. That the boundaries of said town shall be as follows:
Beginning at a dogwood on a rock, north seventeen degrees and
thirty minutes west three thousand, seven hundred and thirty-three
and fifty-two hundredths feet from a point in the middle of Main
Street opposite the center of the courthouse as it was in the year
eighteen hundred and ninety-four; thence south sixty-two degrees
and thirty minutes east five thousand, two hundred and eighty
feet to a stake near a maple by Yellow Creek; thence south twenty-
seven degrees and thirty minutes west five thousand, two hundred
and eighty feet to a stake; thence north sixty-two degrees and thirty
minutes west five thousand, two hundred and eighty feet to a stake;
thence north twenty-seven degrees and thirty minutes east five
thousand, two hundred and eighty feet to the beginning.

Section 3. Powers of the Town of Wise.—In addition to the
powers elsewhere mentioned in this charter and the powers conferred
by general law and the Constitution, the said town of Wise shall
have the following powers:

(1) To raise annually, by the levy of taxes and assessments in
the said town, on all such property, real and personal, as is now or
may be subject to taxation by towns by the revenue laws of this
Commonwealth, such sums of money as the council thereof shall
deem necessary for the purpose of said town, in such manner as the
said council shall deem expedient in accordance with the Constitution
of this State and of the United States; provided, however, that it
shall impose no taxes on the bonds of the said town.

(2) To impose special or local assessments for local improve-
ments and to force payment thereof, subject to such limitations pre-
scribed by the Constitution and laws as may be in force at the time
of the imposition of such special or local assessments.

(3) To impose a tax not exceeding one dollar per annum upon
all persons residing in said town above the age of twenty-one years,
not exempt from the payment of State capitation tax.

(4) To contract debts, borrow money and make and issue evi-
dences of indebtedness.

(5) To expend the money of the town for all lawful purposes.

(6) To acquire by purchase, gift, devise, condemnation or other-
wise, property, real or personal, or any estate therein within or with-
out the town, for any of the purposes of the town; and to hold, im-
prove, sell, lease, mortgage, pledge, or otherwise dispose of the same
or any part thereof, including any property now owned by the town.

(7) To establish markets in the town and regulate the same, and
to enforce such regulations in regards to the keeping and sales of
fresh meat, vegetables, eggs and other green groceries and the trade
of hucksters and junk dealers as may be deemed advisable.

(8) To own, operate and maintain water works and to acquire in
any lawful manner in any county of the State, such water, lands,
property rights, and riparian rights as the council of the said town
may deem necessary for the purpose of providing an adequate water
supply to the said town and piping and conducting the same; to lay,
erect and maintain all necessary mains and service lines, either
within or without the corporate limits of the said town, for the dis-
tribution of water to its customers and consumers, both within and
without the corporate limits of the said town and to charge and
collect water rents therefor; to erect and maintain all necessary dams,
pumping stations and other works in connection therewith; to make
reasonable rules and regulations for promoting the purity of its said
water supply and for protecting the same from pollution; and for
this purpose to exercise full police powers and sanitary patrol over
all land comprised within the limits of the water shed, tributary
to any such water supply wherever such lands may be located in this
State; to impose and enforce adequate penalties for the violation of
any such rules and regulations; and to prevent by injunction any
pollution or threatened pollution of such water supply, and any and
all acts likely to impair the purity thereof; and to carry out the
powers herein granted, the said town may exercise within the State
all powers of eminent domain provided by the laws of this State.

(9) To acquire by gift, purchase, exchange or by the exercise of
the power of eminent domain within this State lands, or any interest
or estate in lands, rock quarries, gravel pits, sand pits, water and
water rights and the necessary roadways thereto, either within or
without the town, and acquire and install machinery and equipment,
and build the necessary roads or tramways thereto; and operate the
same for the purpose of producing materials required for any and
all purposes of the town; and to acquire by purchase, exchange or
by the exercise of the power of eminent domain within this State,
lands, machinery and equipment, and build and operate a plant or
plants for the preparation and fixing of materials for any and all
purposes of the said town.

(10) To collect and dispose of sewage, offal, ashes, garbage, car-
casses of dead animals and other refuse, and make reasonable charges
therefor; to acquire and operate reduction or any other plants for
the utilization or destruction of such materials, or any of them; to
contract or regulate the collection and disposal thereof and to require
and regulate the collection and disposal thereof.

(11) To inspect, test, measure and weigh any commodity or
commodities or articles of consumption for use within the town; and
to establish, regulate, license, and inspect weights, meters, measures
and scales.

(12) To license and remulate the holding and location of shows,
circuses, public exhibitions, carnivals, and other similar shows or
fairs, or prohibit the holding of the same, or any of them, within the
town or within one mile thereof.

(13) To require every owner of motor vehicles residing in the
said town, on a date to be designated by the council, to annually
register such motor vehicles and to obtain a license to operate the
same by making application to the treasurer of the said town, or
such other person as may be designated by the council of the said
town, to issue said license, and to require the said owner to pay an
annual license fee therefor to be fixed by the council; provided that
the said license fee shall not exceed the amount charged by the State
on the said machine.

(14) To construct, maintain, regulate and operate public im-
provements of all kinds, including municipal and other buildings,
markets, and all buildings and structures necessary or appropriate
for the use and proper operation of the various departments of the
town; and to acquire by condemnation or otherwise, all lands, riparian
and other rights and easements necessary for such improvements, or
any of them.

(15) To establish, alter, enter, open, widen, extend, grade, im-
prove, construct, maintain and clean public highways, streets, side-
walks, boulevards, parkways, and alleys; to establish and maintain
parks, playgrounds, and public grounds; to keep them lighted and in
good order; to construct, maintain and operate bridges, viaducts,
subways, tunnels, sewers and drains and to regulate the use of all
such highways, parks, public grounds and works; to plant and main-
tain or remove shade trees along the streets and upon such public
grounds; to prevent the obstruction of such streets, alleys, and high-
ways, abolish and prevent grade crossings over the same by railroads
in the manner prescribed by the general law for the elimination of
grade crossings; to require any railroad company operating a rail-
road at a place where any highway or street is crossed within the
town limits to erect and maintain at such crossing any style of gate
deemed proper and keep a man in charge thereof, or keep a flagman
at such crossing during such hours as the council may require in
accordance with the general law of the State, and to regulate the
length of time such crossing may be closed due to any operations of
the railroads; to regulate, except in so far as may be prohibited by
State law, the operation and speed of cars, and vehicles upon said
streets and highways, as well as the speed of all engines, cars, and
trains on railroads within the town; and to do all other things what-
soever adapted to make said streets and highways safe, convenient
and attractive.

(16) Toconstruct in such parks, playgrounds, and public grounds,
as it may maintain, or upon any town property, stadiums, swim-
ming pools, and recreation or amusement buildings, structures, or
inclosures of every character, refreshment stands, restaurants, et
cetera; to charge for admissions, and use of the same, and rent out
or lease the privileges of construction or using such stadiums, swim-
ming pools, recreation or amusement buildings, structures, or in-
closures of every character, refreshment stands, or restaurants, et
cetera.

(17) To establish, impose, and enforce the collection of water
and sewage rates, and rates and charges for public utilities, or other
services, products, or conveniences, operated, rented or furnished by
the town, and to assess, or cause to be assessed, after reasonable
notice to the owner or owners, water and sewage rates and charges
directly against the owner or owners of the buildings or against the
proper tenant or tenants; and in event such rates and charges shall
be assessed against a tenant then the council may by ordinance,
require of such tenant a deposit of such reasonable amount as it may
by such ordinance prescribe before furnishing such service to such
tenant. |

(18) To establish, construct, and maintain sanitary sewers,
sewer lines and systems, and to require the abutting property owners
to connect therewith and to establish, construct, maintain and operate
sewage disposal plants, and to acquire by condemnation or other-
wise, within or without the town, all lands, rights of ways, riparian
and other rights, and easements necessary for the purposes aforesaid,
and to charge, assess, and collect reasonable fees, rentals, assess-
ments or cost of service for connecting with and using the same.

(19) Subject to the provisions of the Constitution and general
laws of Virginia and this charter to grant franchises for public utilities.

(20) To charge and to collect fees for permits to use public
facilities and for public services and privileges. The said town shall
have the power and right to charge a different rate for any service
rendered or convenience furnished to citizens without the corporate
limits from the rates charged for similar service to citizens within the
corporate limits.

(21) To compel the abatement and removal of all nuisances
within the town or upon property owned by the town beyond its
limits at the expense of the person or persons causing the same, or of
the owner or occupant of the ground or premises whereon the same
may be, and to collect said expense by suit or motion or by distress
and sale; to require all lands, lots and other premises within the
town, to be kept clean and sanitary and free from stagnant water,
weeds, filth, and unsightly deposits, or to make them so at the expense
of the owners or occupants thereof, and to collect said expense by
suit or motion or by distress and sale; to regulate, or prevent slaughter
houses or other noisome or offensive business within the said town,
or the exercise of any dangerous or unwholesome business, trade or
employment therein; to regulate the transportation of all articles
through the streets of the town; to compel the abatement of smoke
and dust and prevent unnecessary noise; to regulate the location of
stables and the manner in which they shall be kept and constructed;
to regulate the location, construction, operation and maintenance of
billboards and generally to define, prohibit, abate, suppress and
prevent all things detrimental to the health, morals, aesthetic, safety,
convenience and welfare of the inhabitants of the town; and to re-
quire all owners or occupants of property having sidewalks in front
thereof to keep the same clean and sanitary, and free from all weeds,
filth, unsightly deposits, ice and snow.

~ (22) To extinguish and prevent fires, and to establish, regulate,
and control a fire department or division, to regulate the size, height,
materials and construction of buildings, fences, walls, retaining walls,
and other structures hereafter erected in such manner as the public
safety and conveniences may require; to remove or require to be
removed or reconstructed any building, structure or addition thereto
which by reason of dilapidation, defect of structure, or other causes
may have become dangerous to life or property, or which may be
erected contrary to law; and may enact stringent and efficient laws
for securing the safety of persons from fires in halls and buildings
used for public assemblies, entertainments or amusements.

(23) To direct the location of all buildings for storing explosives
or combustible substances; to regulate the sale and use of gunpowder,
nitro-glycerin, fireworks, kerosene oil or other like materials; to
regulate the exhibition of fireworks, the discharge of firearms, and
the making of bonfires in the streets and yards.

(24) To provide for the preservation of the general health of
the inhabitants of said town, make regulations to secure the same,
inspect all foodstuffs and prevent the introduction and sale in said
town of any articles or thing intended for human consumption,
which is adulterated, impure or otherwise dangerous to health, and
to condemn, seize and destroy or otherwise dispose of any such
article or thing without liability to the owner thereof; to prevent
the introduction or spread of contagious or infectious diseases, and
prevent and suppress disease generally; to provide and regulate
hospitals within or without the town limits, and if necessary to the
suppression of diseases, to enforce the removal of persons afflicted
with contagious or infectious diseases to hospitals provided for them;
to provide for the organization of a department or bureau of health,
to have the powers of a board of health for said town, with the au-
thority necessary for the prompt and efficient performance of its
duties, with the power to invest any or all of the officials or em-
ployees of such department of health with such powers as the police
officers of the town have, to establish quarantine ground within or
without the town, and establish such quarantine regulations against
infectious and contagious diseases as the council may see fit, subject
to the laws of the State and of the United States. _

(25) To provide for the care, support and maintenance of chil-
dren and of sick, aged, insane or poor persons and paupers.

(26) To prevent the riding or driving of horses or other animals
at an improper speed; to prevent the throwing of stones, or engaging
in any sort of employment in the public streets which is dangerous
or annoying to passersby, and to prohibit and punish the abuse of
animals.

(27) In-so far as not prohibited by the general law of the States;
to control, regulate, limit and restrict the operation of motor vehicles
carrying passengers for hire upon the streets or alleys of the town; to
regulate the use of automobiles and other automotive vehicles upon
the streets; to regulate the routes in and through the town to be
used by motor vehicle carriers operating in and through said town
and to prescribe different routes for different carriers; to prohibit
the use of certain streets by motor trucks; and generally to prescribe
such regulations respecting motor traffic therein as may be necessary
for the general welfare.

(28) To acquire in any lawful manner, for the purpose of en-
couraging commerce and manufacture, lands within or without the
town not exceeding at any one time five hundred acres in the aggre-
gate, and from time to time to sell or lease the same or any part
thereof for industrial or commercial uses and purposes.

(29) To provide in or near the town, lands to be used as burial
places for the dead; to improve and care for the same and the ap-
proaches thereto, and to charge for and regulate the use of the ground
therein, to co-operate with any non-profit corporation in the improve-
ment and care of burial places and approaches thereto; and to provide
for the perpetual upkeep and care of any plot or burial lot therein,
the town is authorized to take and receive sums of money by gift,
bequest, or otherwise to be kept invested, and the income thereof
used in and about the perpetual upkeep and care of the said lot or
plot, for which the said donation, gift, or bequest shall have been
made.

(30) To prevent any person having no visible means of support,
paupers, and persons who may be dangerous to the peace and safety
of the town, from coming to said town from without the same; and
also to expel therefrom any such person who has been in said town
less than twelve months.

(31) To exercise full police powers and establish and maintain
a department or division of police.

(32) To restrain and punish drunkards, vagrants and street
beggars, to prevent and quell riots, disturbances and disorderly
assemblages; to suppress houses of ill-fame and gambling houses; to
prevent and punish lewd, indecent and disorderly exhibitions in said
town; and to expel therefrom persons guilty of such conduct who have
not resided therein as much as one year.

(33) To make and enforce ordinances, not inconsistent with the
laws of this State.

(34) To prohibit and punish mischievous, wanton, or malicious
damage to school and public property, as well as private property.

(35) To prohibit and punish minors from frequenting, playing in
or loitering in any public poolroom, billiard parlor, or bowling alley,
and to punish any proprietor or agent thereof for permitting same.

(36) To compel persons sentenced to confinement in the jail of
the town for any misdemeanor or other violation of the laws or ordi-
nances of the said town to work on the public streets, parks or other
public works of the town; and on the requisition of the mayor, or
other person acting as judge of the municipal court, it shall be the
duty of the sergeant of the town to deliver such person to the duly
authorized agent of the town for such purposes from day to day as
he may be required. For the purpose of carrying into effect the
police regulations of said town, the town shall be allowed the use of
the county jail of Wise County, for the safe keeping and confinement
of all persons who shall be sentenced to imprisonment under the
ordinances of said town.

(37) To offer and pay rewards for the apprehension and con-
viction of criminals.

(38) To give names to or alter the names of the streets.
(39) To enjoin and restrain the violation of any town ordinance
or ordinances, although a penalty is provided upon conviction of such
violation.

(40) To pass and enforce all by-laws, rules, regulations and or-
dinances which it may deem necessary for the good order and gov-
ernment of the town, the management of its property, the conduct
of its affairs, the peace, comfort, convenience, order, morals, health
and protection of its citizens and their property and to do such other
things and pass such other laws as may be necessary or proper to
carry into full effect, all powers, authority, capacity, or jurisdiction,
which is or shall be granted to or vested in said town, or in the council,
court, or officers thereof, or which may be necessarily incident to a
municipal corporation.

(41) Todo all things whatsoever necessary or expedient and law-
ful to be done for promoting or maintaining the general welfare,
comfort, education, morals, peace, government, health, trade, com-
merce, or industries of the town, or its inhabitants.

(42) To prescribe any reasonable penalties for the violation of
any town ordinance, rule, or regulation or of any provision of this
charter, not exceeding penalties prescribed by the general laws of the
State of Virginia.

(43) To make and adopt a comprehensive plan for the town,
and to that end all plats and re-plats hereafter made subdividing any
land within the town into streets, alleys, roads, and lots or tracts
shall be submitted to and approved by the council before such plats
or re-plats are filed for record or recorded in the office of the clerk of
Wise County, Virginia.

(44) To own, operate and maintain electric light and gas works,
either within or without the corporate limits of the town and to sup-
ply electricity and gas whether the same be generated or purchased
by said town, to its customers and consumers both without and
within the corporate limits of the said town, at such price and upon
such terms as it may prescribe, and to that end it may contract and
purchase electricity and gas from the owners thereof upon such
terms as it may deem expedient.

(45) To provide by ordinance for a system of meat and milk
inspection, and appoint milk and meat inspectors, agents, or officers
to carry the same into effect, license, regulate, control and locate
slaughter houses within or without the corporate limits of the town,
and for such services of inspection to make reasonable charges there-
for; and to provide such reasonable penalties for the violation of such
ordinances.

(46) To regulate, permit or prohibit poles and wires for electric,
telephone and telegraph purposes to be erected and gas pipes to be
laid in the streets and alleys, and to prescribe and collect annual
charge for such privileges, heretofore or hereafter granted; to require
the owner or lessee of an electric light, telephone or telegraph pole,
or poles, or wires, now in use or hereafter erected, to change the
location or move the same; to require all telephone and telegraph
wires and all wires and cables carrying electricity, now in use or
hereafter used, to be placed in conduits underground and prescribe
rules and regulations for the construction and use of such conduits.

Section 4. Administration and Government.—The administra-
tion and government of the town of Wise shall be vested in one body
to be called the council of the town of Wise, which shall consist of
five (5) members, four (4) of whom shall be known as councilmen
and one to be known as mayor, all of whom shall be residents and
qualified voters of the said town. On the first day of September
nineteen hundred forty-one, following the regular municipal election,
at the first organization meeting, or as soon thereafter as practicable,
the five members elected to the council shall elect one of their mem-
bers as mayor to serve for the following two years. A majority vote
of the council shall be sufficient to elect said mayor. The council of
the said town shall have power to elect or appoint such other officers
as it may deem necessary, and to define their duties. The council
may create, appoint, or elect such other departments, bodies, boards,
and other officers as are hereinafter provided for, or as are permitted,
or required by law to be appointed by the council.

Section 5. The Mayor.—The mayor shall preside over the de-
liberations of the council and shall have the same powers and rights
of voting as other members of the council, but he shall have no right
of veto; he shall be the chief executive officer of the town and shall
perform such other duties consistent with his office as may be im-
posed by the council; he shall take care and see that the by-laws,
ordinances, acts and resolutions of the council are faithfully executed;
he shall have and exercise all power and authority conferred by
general law on mayors of towns not inconsistent with this charter;
he shall be ex-officio a conservator of the peace within the town and
within one mile of the corporate limits thereof, and shall, unless
otherwise provided by the council, have jurisdiction to try all vio-
lations of the town ordinances, subject to an appeal to the circuit
court of Wise County, and inflict such punishment and impose such
fines as may be prescribed for a violation of the same and he shall
have power to issue executions for all fines and costs imposed by
him, or he may require an immediate payment thereof, and in default
of such payments he may commit the party in default to the town
jail or the jail of Wise County until the fine and cost shall be paid, but
the time of imprisonment in such case shall not exceed twelve months;
he shall possess all the jurisdiction and exercise all power and authority
of a justice of the peace in civil and criminal cases within the said
limits; he shall see that peace and order are preserved and that per-
sons and property within the town are protected; he shall authenti-
cate by his signature such documents and instruments as the council,
this charter, or the laws of this Commonwealth require; and he shall
from time to time recommend to the council such measures as he
may deem needful for the welfare of the town; provided, however,
that the council may appoint a police justice for the town, who shall
be a qualified voter of the town, and shall serve during the pleasure
of the council. He shall, during such time as he shall serve, have
exclusive jurisdiction to try all violations of town ordinances, and
the same jurisdiction in criminal cases as is conferred by law on
police justices of cities, and shall, before entering upon the discharge
of his duties, qualify as such police justices are required to qualify,
and he shall receive such compensation as may be provided by the
council.

Section 6. The Powers of the Council.—The council hereinbefore
created shall have full power and authority, except as herein other-
wise specifically provided, to exercise herein all of the powers con-
ferred upon the town, and pass all laws and ordinances relating to its
municipal affairs, subject to the Constitution and general laws of
the State and of this charter, and shall have full and complete con-
trol of all fiscal and municipal affairs of the said town and all of its
real and personal properties, and may from time to time amend,
re-amend and/or repeal any or all of the said ordinances, for the proper
regulation, management and government of the said town and may
impose fines and penalties for’ the violation or non-observance thereof.

Section 7. Composition of the Council; Vacancies.—The said
five (5) councilmen shall be elected at large by the qualified voters
of the town; and shall be elected at the regular time in June, nineteen
hundred and forty-one, fixed by law for the holding of municipal
elections, and each two years thereafter and shall serve a term of
two years from the first day of September next following the day of
their election and until their successors shall have been elected and
qualified. The members who now constitute the said council, as
well as all other elected officers, shall continue in office until Septem-
ber the first, nineteen hundred and forty-one, and thereafter until
their successors have been elected and qualified. The council shall
be a continuing body, and no measure pending before such body
shall abate or be discontinued by reason of expiration of the term of
office or removal of the members of said body or any of them. Vacan-
cies in the council shall be filled within thirty days after such vacancy
occurs for the unexpired term by a majority vote of the remaining
members, except where otherwise inconsistent with the provisions of
this charter.

Section 8. Salaries——The salary of the mayor of the town, as
now constituted or hereafter elected, if any be allowed by the council,
shall be fixed by the council, but in no event to exceed six hundred
dollars per annum. The four (4) councilmen, as now constituted or
hereafter elected, may receive a salary to be fixed by the said council,
not to exceed fifty dollars per annum for each councilman. The
salary of the mayor and councilmen, if any, when fixed shall so con-
tinue until changed by the council, and shall be payable out of the
treasury of the town in monthly installments. The council shall fix
the salary of its clerk, and such other officers, agents, and employees
as it may deem appropriate; provided, no salary shall be fixed for a
period to exceed one year.

Section 9. The Meetings of the Council.—The council shall by
ordinance adopt such rules as it might deem proper for the regulation
of its proceedings and shall meet at such times as may be prescribed
by ordinance, provided, however, that it shall hold at least one
regular meeting each month. A majority of the council shall con-
stitute a quorum for the transaction of business, but no ordinance
or resolution shall be adopted having for its object the levying of
taxes or contracting a debt except by a vote of three-fifths of the
council. The mayor, or any other two members of the council, may
call a special meeting of the council upon at least twelve hours written
notice of the time, place and purpose to each member served per-
sonally or left at his usual place of business or residence by the town
sergeant, and no business shall be transacted by the council in such
special meeting which has not been stated in the notice, provided,
however, that these regulations shall not.apply when all members of
the council attend such meeting or waive notice thereof, nor shall it
apply to an adjourned session from a regular meeting. No ordinance
or resolution appropriating money exceeding the sum of five hundred
dollars, imposing taxes, or authorizing the borrowing of money, shall
be passed by the council on the same day on which it is introduced, nor
shall any such ordinance or resolution be valid until at least three
days intervene between its introduction and the date of passage. No
ordinance or resolution appropriating money exceeding the sum of
one hundred dollars, imposing taxes or authorizing the borrowing of
money, shall be passed except by the recorded affirmative vote of a
majority of all members elected to the council. The meetings of the
council shall be public, unless the council by a recorded affirmative
vote of three-fifths of its members shall declare that the public wel-
fare demands an executive session of the council; and citizens may
have access to the minutes and records of the council at any reason-
able time.

Section 10. Council; Chairman Pro Tem.—The council shall, as
soon as this act takes effect, elect from its membership a chairman pro
tem who shall in the absence or inability of the mayor to act, have
all the powers and duties of the mayor, and shall perform all of his
functions; and at the first meeting of each new and succeeding council
elected hereunder such chairman pro tem shall be elected.

Section 11. Elections.—The time of holding and the method of
conducting municipal elections shall conform to the general laws of
the State of Virginia. The next election is to be held on the second
Tuesday in June, nineteen hundred and forty-one, and every two
years thereafter.

Section 12. Bond.—All officers, elected or appointed under the
provisions of this charter, shall, unless otherwise provided under
general law or by this charter, or by ordinance of the council, execute
such bond, with such approved corporate security as may be required
by general law, by this charter, or by ordinance or resolution of the
council, and file the same with the town clerk before entering upon
the discharge of their duties; and in event of default on the part of
any bonded municipal officer, the town shall have the same remedies
against him and his sureties as are provided for the State in en-
forcing the penalty of any official bond given to it.

Section 13. Oaths.—All officers elected or appointed under the
provisions of this charter shall take the oath of office required by
general law before entering upon the discharge of his duties, and if
these requirements have not been complied with within thirty days
after the term of office shall have begun or after his appointment to
fill a vacancy, then such office shall be considered vacant.

Section 14. The Town Clerk.—The town clerk shall be appointed
by the council, and shall attend the meetings of the council and shall
keep permanent records of its proceedings; he shall be custodian of
the town seal and shall affix it to all documents and instruments
requiring the seal, and shall attest the same; he shall keep all papers,
documents, and records pertaining to the town, the custody of which
is not otherwise provided for in this charter; he shall give notice to
all parties, presenting petitions or communications to the council of
the final action of the council on such communications or petitions;
he shall give to the proper department or officials ample notice of
the expiration or termination of any franchise, contract or agree-
ments; he shall publish such reports and ordinances as the council
is required to publish, and such other records and ordinances as it
may direct; he shall upon final passage transmit to the proper de-
partments or officials copies of all ordinances or resolutions of the
council relating in any way to such departments or to the duties of
such officials, and he shall perform such other acts and duties as the
council may, from time to time, allow or require.

Section 15. The Town Treasurer.—There shall be appointed by
the council one town treasurer who shall hold office during the pleasure
of the council; but the present treasurer of the town shall continue to
discharge the duties of the office until removed by the council or until
his successor shall have qualified. Any vacancy in this office shall
be promptly filled by the council. The said treasurer shall be the
disbursing agent of the town and have the custody of all money
and all evidences of value belonging to the town or held in trust by
the town. He shall receive all money belonging to and received by
the town and keep correct accounts of all receipts from all sources
and of all expenditures of all departments. He shall collect all taxes
and assessments, water rents, and other charges belonging to and pay-
able to the town, and for that purpose be is hereby vested with pow-
ers similar to those which are now or may hereafter be vested in
county and city treasurers for the collection of county, city, and
State taxes under the general law; he shall keep, disburse and deposit
all money or funds in such manner and in such places as may be
determined by ordinance or the provisions of the law applicable
thereto; he shall pay no money out of the treasury, except in the
manner prescribed by this charter or by ordinance or the general
law; he shall perform such duties as are usually incident to the office
of commissioner of revenue in relation to the assessment of property
for town taxation and town license taxes and shall have power to
administer oaths in the performance of his official duties; and shall
make such reports and perform such other duties not inconsistent
with the office as may be required by this charter or by ordinance or
resolution of the council. The treasurer shall not be entitled to any
commission for handling the funds of the town but shall be paid
such salary as may be provided by the council, and before entering
upon the duties of his office shall execute a bond in such amount and
with such security as the council by ordinance may prescribe. The
council may, in its discretion, and if it deems it necessary or con-
venient, appoint some person or persons from the electors of the town
to assist the town treasurer in the collection of all taxes and assess-
ments, water rents, and other charges belonging to and payable tc
the town, which person may be the town sergeant, or superintendent
of water works, but before entering upon the discharge of his duties,
such person shall execute a bond in such amount and with such
security as the council by ordinance, may prescribe. The treasurer
shall be subject to the supervision of the council of the town of Wise
and shall perform such other duties not inconsistent with his office
as may be required of him by the town council; and he shall make all
such reports as may be required by the council. The said treasurer
and sergeant may be one and the same person if the council may deem
it more expedient.

Section 16. Town Sergeant——There shall be appointed by the
council a town sergeant who shall qualify and give bond in such
amount as the council may require. He shall be vested with powers
of a conservator of the peace, and shall have the same powers and
discharge the same duties as a constable within the corporate limits
of the town and to a distance of one mile beyond the same, and shall
perform such other duties as may be from time to time prescribed
by the council.

Section 16A—Who Shall Be Eligible to Appointment as Town
Treasurer, Town Sergeant, and Town Clerk—No member of the
town council, or one who is elected to such office of town council,
shall be eligible to appointment or election to the office of town
treasurer, town sergeant, or town clerk, during the period for which
he has been elected. Such appointments must be made from resi-
dents of the town, who have been residents for at least one year
prior to such appointments.

Section 17. Tax Lien on Real Estate.—A lien shall exist on all
real estate within the corporate limits for taxes, levies and assess-
ments in favor of the town, assessed thereon from the commencement
of the year for which the same were assessed and the procedure for
collecting the said taxes, for selling real estate for town taxes and for
the redemption of real estate sold for town taxes shall be the same
as provided in the general law of the State to the same extent as if
the provisions of said general law were herein set out at length. The
said town and its treasurer shall have the benefit of all other and
additional remedies for the collection of town taxes which are now
or hereafter may be granted or permitted under the general law.

Section 18. Tax Remedies; Personal Property.—All goods and
chattels wheresoever found may be distrained and sold for taxes and
icenses assessed and due thereon; and no deed of trust or mortgage
ipon goods and chattels shall prevent the same from being distrained
and sold for taxes and licenses assessed against the grantor in such
Jeed while such goods and chattels remain in the grantor’s possession.
Section 19. License Taxes.—License taxes may be imposed by
srdinance on business, trades, professions or callings and upon the
yerson, firms, associations and corporations engaged therein, and the
ents thereof, except in cases where taxation by the localities is or
shall be prohibited by the general law of the State, and nothing
ierein shall be construed to repeal or amend any general law with
‘espect to taxation. The council may subject any person, who,
vithout having obtained a license therefor, shall do any act or follow
any business, occupation, vocation, pursuit, or calling in the town
‘or which a license may be required by ordinance, to such fine or
penalty as it has authority to impose for any violation of its laws.

Section 20. Audit of Accounts.—Upon the death, resignation,
removal or expiration of the term of any officer of the town, the council
shall order an audit and investigation to be made of the accounts of
such officer and a report to be made to the council as soon as prac-
ticable. After the close of each fiscal year an annual audit shall be
made of the accounts of all town officers; said audit shall be made by
a qualified accountant selected by the council, who shall have no
personal interest, direct or indirect, in the financial affairs of the
town or any of its officers or employees. The council may at any time
provide for an examination or audit of the accounts of any officer or
department of the town government.

Section 21. Subdividing Lands, Dedication of Streets, Recording
Plats.—Every owner or proprietor of any tract of land who may
hereafter subdivide the same into three or more parts for the purpose
of creating a subdivision shall conform to the general laws of the
State of Virginia, in the preparation of the plat, laying out and dedica-
tion of streets, alleys, and lanes, and recordation thereof, except as
herein otherwise provided, but in no event shall the town of Wise be
held responsible for the upkeep of any street, alley or lane, or be held
liable for any accidents which may occur upon such streets, alleys or
lanes until after the dedication of such streets, alleys or lanes shall
have been accepted by or declared by ordinance of the town council.

Section 22. Municipal Securities.—Bonds, notes and other evi-
dences of indebtedness may be issued by the town for such purposes
and in such manner as are prescribed by chapter one hundred and
twenty-two of the Code of Virginia, the Constitution, or any other
general statute on the subject of bond issues by towns or the issue
of other municipal securities, except that before the council may act
under the general laws upon the question of a bond issue there shal.
be presented to the said council a petition signed by a majority o!
the holders of real estate in said town as shown by the last assessment
for taxation purposes, which shall request that the council proceec
in the matter of issuing bonds in accordance with the provisions 0
law; but provided that the aforesaid exception shall not apply to cer
tificates of indebtedness, revenue bonds or other obligations issuec
in anticipation of the collection of the revenue of the town for th
then current year. if such certificates, bonds or other obligation:
mature within one year from the date of their issue, and be not pas
due, and do not exceed the revenue for such vear.
Section 23. Sinking Fund Provision.—(a) There shall be set
apart annually from the revenues of the town a sinking fund sufficient
in amount, to be invested as hereinafter set forth, to pay the out-
standing indebtedness of the town as it matures and which by its
terms is not payable in one year, and the council may in its discretion
annually from time to time, set aside such additional sinking funds
as may be deemed proper. (b) When taxes on real and personal
property are collected for the year the town treasurer shall take
therefrom the necessary amount of any additional sum, if any, so set
apart, and deposit the same in a separate account to the credit of
the sinking fund in such bank or banks as the council may designate;
and the said council may, if it shall so elect, cause its sinking fund
to be loaned on improved real estate situated in the town of Wise,
secured by first mortgage liens thereon, provided such funds shall
not be loaned to a greater amount than fifty per centum of the fair
market value of the property, and fire insurance shall be carried on
the property during the loan in an amount at least equal to the face
amount of the loan, which money shall be loaned at the rate of six
per centum per annum, payable semi-annually and for no longer
than five years at any one time. (c) All sinking funds shall be used
exclusively in the payment or purchase and redemption of the out-
standing bonds of the town, and when such sinking funds are not
required or may not within a reasonable time be required for payment
of any bond of the town, or cannot be used to advantage in the pur-
chase and redemption of any bonds of the town, which may be out-
standing, the same shall be securely invested in interest bearing
municipal, State or government bonds or loaned upon otherwise un-
encumbered real estate, within the town of Wise upon the basis
hereinbefore provided, or invested in any securities approved by the
general laws of the State for the investment of such funds, or de-
posited in a bank on a reasonable rate of interest. Such sinking
fund may be used in the payment or purchase and redemption of all
bonds of the town at the discretion of the council. (d) The town
council shall act as the sinking fund commission and shall provide
for the investment, deposit and application of the funds in conformity
to the provisions of this charter; and it may require of any bank or
banks receiving on deposit its revenues or any of its sinking fund a
fidelity bond.

Section 24. Acquisition of Property; Condemnation.—The town
shall not take or use any private property for streets, highways or
any other public purposes without making just compensation for
the same, but where the town cannot obtain the title to property
necessary for such purposes, it may proceed to condemn the same in
the mode prescribed by the Constitution and general laws of ‘the
State.

Section 25. Actions Against Town; Damages.—(a) No action
shall be maintained against the town for damages for any injury to
any person or property alleged to have been sustained by reason of
the negligence of the town or any officer, agent, or employee thereof,
unless a written statement, verified by the oath of the claimant, his
agent or attorney, or the personal representative of any decedent
whose death is a result of the alleged negligence of the town, its
officers, agents or employees, of the nature of the claim and the time
and place at which the injury is alleged to have occurred or to have
been received, shall have been filed with the mayor or an attorney
appointed by the council for this purpose within sixty days after
such cause of action shall have accrued, except where the claimant
is an infant or non compos mentis, or the injured party dies within
such sixty days, such statement may be filed within one hundred and
twenty days. And no officers, agents or employees of the town shall
have authority to waive such conditions precedent or any of them.
(b) In any action against the town to recover damages against it for
any negligence in the construction or maintenance of its streets,
alleys, lanes, parks, public places, sewers, reservoirs or water mains,
where any person or corporation is liable with the town for such
negligence, every such person or corporation shall be joined as de-
fendant with the town in any action brought to recover damages
for such negligence, and where there is judgment or verdict against
the town, as well as the other defendant, it shall be ascertained by
the court or jury which of the defendants is primarily liable for the
damages assessed. (c) If it be ascertained by the judgment of the
court that some person or corporation other than the town is pri-
marily liable, there shall be a stay of execution against the town until
execution against such person or persons or other corporation or
corporations, shall have been returned without realizing the full
amount of such judgment. (d) If the town, where not primarily
liable, shall pay the said judgment in whole or in part, the plaintiff
shall, to the extent that said judgment is paid by the town, assign
the said judgment to the town without recourse on the plaintiff,
and the town shall be entitled to have execution issued for its benefit
against the other defendant or defendants who have been ascertained
to be primarily liable, or may institute any suit in equity to enforce
the said judgment, or an action at law, or scire facias to revive or
enforce said judgment. (c) No order shall be made, and no injunction
shall be awarded, by any court or judge, to stay the proceedings of
the town in the prosecution of their works, unless it be manifest that
they, their officers, agents or servants are transcending the authority
given them by this act, and that the interposition of the court is
necessary to prevent injury that cannot be adequately compensated
in damages.

Section 26. Investigations—The council, the mayor, and any
officer, board or commission authorized by them or either of them,
shall have power to make investigations within their respective
powers and duties, and for that purpose to subpoena witnesses,
administer oaths, and compel the production of books and papers,
and any person refusing or failing to attend, or to testify or to produce
such books and papers, may by summons issued by such board or
officer be summoned before the mayor of said town, and upon his
failure to give satisfactory explanation of such failure or refusal may
be fined by the mayor for contempt, and any person giving false
testimony may be proceeded against for perjury.

Section 27. Books, Records, Et Cetera.—All books, records and
documents used by any town officer in his office or pertaining to his
duties shall be deemed the property of said town, and the chief officer
in charge of such office shall be responsible therefor. Any such
officer or person made by this section responsible for the keeping of
such books, records, and documents shall, within five days after the
end of his term of office or within five days after the date of his resigna-
tion or removal from office, as the case may be, deliver to the town
clerk all such records and documents. Any such officer or person
failing to deliver such books, records, or documents, as required by
this section, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon
conviction thereof shall be punished as the council may have by
ordinance provided.

Section 28. Validation of Contracts.—All contracts and obliga-
tions heretofore or hereafter made by the council of the town of Wise,
while in office, not inconsistent with this charter, or the Constitution,
or the general laws of this State shall be, and are hereby declared to
be valid and legal.

Section 29. Ordinances to Continue in Force.—All ordinances
now in force in the town of Wise, not inconsistent with this charter
shall be and remain in force until altered, amended or repealed by
the council of the said town.

Section 30. Partial Invalidity.—If any clause, sentence, para-
graph, or part of this act, shall for any reason be adjudged by any
court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment shall
not affect, impair or invalidate the remainder of the said act, but
shall be confined in its operations to the clause, sentence, paragraph
or part thereof directly involved in the controversy in which said
judgment shall have been rendered.

Section 31. Repealing Clause.—All acts or parts of acts in con-
flict with this charter, in so far as they affect the provisions of this
charter, and all former, charters and amendments thereto for the
town of Wise, Virginia, are hereby repealed.

Section 32. Citation of Act.—This act may for all purposes be
referred to or cited as the Wise charter of nineteen hundred and forty.

Section 33. Nothing herein contained shall in any way affect the
respective terms of office to which the present mayor, members of
the town council, sergeant and recorder have been elected. The said
officers shall continue in office to the end of their present terms to
which they have already been elected at the election held on the
second Tuesday in June, nineteen hundred and thirty-nine, or until
their successors have been elected and qualified.

2. An emergency is hereby declared to exist, and this act shall
be in force and effect from its passage.