CHAPTER 312

An Act to amend and reenact §§ 6.11, 6.12 and 10.01 of Chapter 9 of the
Acts of Assembly of 1952, Extra Session, approved December 16,
1952, being the Charter of the city of Hampton, the sections relating,
respectively, to budget hearings, adoption of the budget, and the
Director of Public Welfare; to amend said Chapter by adding therein
sections numbered 4.08, 5.05, 5.06, 6.18, 6.18 (a), 6.18 (b), 6.19 and
6.20, the new sections relating, respectively, to absence of the City
Manager, Department of Public Safety, fire and police functions,
Division of Purchases, emergency requirements, purchasing specifi-
cations, penalties for nonpayment of taxes; and to repeal §§ 5.01,
5.02, 5.08 and 5.04 of said chapter, the sections relating, respectively,
to the City Purchasing Agent, centralized purchasing procedures, pro-
cedures for emergency purchases, and purchasing specifications. v8)

Approved March 10, 1956

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §§ 6.11, 6.12 and 10.01 of Chapter 9 of the Acts of Assembly
of 1952, Extra Sesion, approved December 16, 1952, be amended and
reenacted, and that the said Chapter be amended by adding therein
sections numbered 4.03, 5.05, 5.06, 6.18, 6.18 (a), 6.18 :(b), 6.19 and 6.20
as follows:

§ 4.08. To perform the duties of the City Manager in the event of
his temporary absence, disability, death or resignation, the council may,
362 ACTS OF ASSEMBLY [va., 1956

by resolution, appoint an officer of the city or any person other than a
member of council to perform the duties of manager until said manager
returns to duty or his successor is duly appointed.

§ 5.05. There shall be a Department of Public Safety which shall
be under the supervision of the City Manager and shall consist of the
Division of Fire and the Division of Police. _

_ § 5.06. The Department of Public Safety shall consist of the Divt-
sion of Fire and the Division of Police and such other functions and
activities as may be assigned to it by the city council. The department of
public safety shall be under the supervision of the City Manager.

The Division of Police shall consist of such police officers as may be
appointed and shall be under the supervision of a Chief of Police to be
appointed by the City Manager. The Chief of Police and police officers
shall have all the powers and duties of police officers as provided by the
general laws of the Commonwealth, and by ordinances of the city council.

The Division of Fire shall be in charge of a Fire Marshal, to be
appointed by the City Manager. The Division of Fire shall consist of such
persons, who shall perform such duties as may be prescribed by the City
Manager and receive such compensation as may be prescribed by the City
Council in accordance with the provisions of this charter.

6.11. A brief synopsis of the tentative budget shall be published
in a newspaper published and printed and having general circulation in
the city, or if there be none then in some newspaper having general circu-
lation therein; and notice given of one or more public hearings, at least
fifteen days prior to the date set for hearing, at which a citizen or prop-
erty owner of the city shall have the right to attend and state his views
thereon. Such hearing may be adjourned from time to time until completed.

§ 6.12. Following such public hearing, and before the annual tax
levy is made, the Council shall approve its final budget for the next ensuing
fiscal year by means of an annual appropriation ordinance.

(a) The budget shall be adopted by the votes of at least a majority
of all members of the Council. The budget shall be formally adopted not
later than the first day of the last month of the fiscal year. Should the
Council take no final action on or prior to such day, the budget, as sub-
mitted, shall be deemed to have been finally adopted by the Council.

_ § 6.18. There shall be established in the Department of Finance a
Division of Purchases the head of which shall be the City Purchasing
Agent or the Director of Finance. The City Purchasing Agent, pursuant
to rules and regulations established by ordinance, shall contract for, pur-
chase, store and distribute all supplies, materials, and equipment required
by any office, department or agency of the city government. The purchas-
ing agent shall also have power and shall be required to: (a) establish and
enforce specifications with respect to supplies, materials, and equipment
required by the city government; (b) inspect or supervise the inspection
of all deliveries of supplies, materials, and equipment, and determine their
quality, quantity and conformance with specifications; (c) have charge
of such general store rooms and warehouses as the Council may provide
by ordinance; (d) transfer to or between officers, departments or agen-
cies or sell surplus obsolete or unused supplies, material and equipment.
. § 6.18(a) The Purchasing Agent shall prescribe procedures for
immediate purchases for unforeseeable needs by reason of disaster and
other causes preventing anticipation of the need. The mere fact that the
supply of an item is exhausted shall not be deemed an emergency.

§ 6.18(b) Wherever practicable, the Purchasing Agent shall pre-
pare specifications for the quality and/or dimensions of items of materials,
supplies, equipment and other needs for city use.

§ 6.19. The City Collector of Taxes shall have any or all the powers
which are now or which may be hereafter vested in any office of the State
CHS. 312, 313] ACTS OF ASSEMBLY 363

charged with the collection of State taxes and may collect the same in the
same manner in which State taxes are collected by any officer of this
State. No deed of trust or mortgage upon goods and chattels shall prevent
the same from being distrained or sold for taxes assessed thereon, no
matter in whose possession such goods and chattels may be found.
tenant from whom payment of taxes on his landlord’s property shall be
obtained by distress or otherwise shall have credit for the same against
such person on account of his rent, unless by contract the tenant is to pay
such taxes. The Council may require a list of all real estate in the city of
Hampton delinquent for the nonpayment of taxes thereon for the preced-
tg year to be recorded in a book of delinquent taxes to be kept in the office
of the Director of Finance.

., § 6.20. The Council may impose penalties for the nonpayment of
city taxes and levies and for the failure to make any return required by

w for the assessment of taxes, and may cause such penalty as to be
added to the amount of taxes and levies due from taxpayers, as it may
by ordinance or resolution from time to time prescribe; and, af ter such
penalty has been added the city collector shall have the power of distress,
garnishment or action and any other power now possessed or that may
hereafter be given to any person charged with the collection of State taxes
after the penalty for the nonpayment of State taxes have been added.

Should it come to the knowledge of the City Collector of Taxes that
any person, firm or corporation owing taxes or levies to the city is moving
or contemplating moving therefrom prior to the time said penalty must
be added by the Council, he shall have the right to collect taxes by distress,
garnishment, suit or action or otherwise at any time after such bills for
taxes have come into his hands. .

§ 10.01. There shall be a department of public welfare which shall
consist of the director of public welfare and such other Officers and
employees as may be assigned to this department in accordance with the
provisions of this charter. The director of public welfare shall be the
city manager. He shall have charge of the public welfare functions of the
city and such other functions and activities as may be assigned to him in
accordance with the provisions of this charter. When this charter becomes
effective the director of public welfare shall, subject to the provisions of
this charter, act as the local board of public welfare in accordance with
the provisions of general law relating to the administration of public
welfare in cities of the first class. All official acts performed by the
director, superintendent and local boards of public welfare from the
moment of consolidation are hereby confirmed and validated.

However, the council may by ordinance establish a local board of
public welfare to consist of * not less than three nor more than five
citizens of the city which shall, except as otherwise provided in this
charter, have the same powers and functions as local welfare boards in
counties and cities of the second class, or which may be created to serve
in a purely advisory capacity to the director of public welfare.

2. §§ 5.01, 5.02, 5.03 and 5.04 of Chapter 9 of the Acts of Assembly of
1952, Extra Session, approved December 16, 1952, are repealed.

3. An emergency exists and this act is in force from its passage.