Chap. 161.—An ACT to amend and re-enact an act to provide for the working
and Xeeping in repair the public roads and bridges of the county of Rich-
mon

Approved January 26, 1900.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That the board
of supervisors of the county of Richmond shall annually levy, along
with the county levy, a tax upon the property, real and personal, assessed
for taxation in the several magisterial districts of the county, which
shall be applied to the working and keeping in order, and repairing the
public roads and bridges in such districts, and the compensation of the
commissioners and contractors provided by law and the provisions of
this act. Such tax shall not exceed fifteen cents on every one hundred
dollars of such property, and the same shail be collected, accounted for,
and paid out on the warrant of said board as if it were the county levy,
by the county treasurer, but the tax so levied and collected in each
district shall be kept separate by the treasurer, and be used and applied
exclusively in the district where levied.

2. The county court of Richmond, or the judge thereof in vacation,
shall at the February term of court, or as soon thereafter as practicable,
appoint one commissioner for each magisterial district, who shall be a
qualified voter and Jandowner residing therein, who shall be styled
commissioner of roads, and it shall be their duty to supervise the roads
within their respective districts. The said commissioners shall hold
their office for two years from the first day of March, unless sooner
removed for malfeasance or neglect of duty, and shall receive for their
compensation under this act for every day’s actual work in the discharge
of their duty as such road commissioner the sum of one dollar and
a half each, to be paid out of the road funds of their respective districts.
The sum, however, received by said commissioners shall not, in any one
vear, exceed the sum of thirty-five dollars each. Any vacancy in the
oflice of commissioner shall be filled by said county court or the judge
thereof in vacation, for the unexpired term. Said commissioners before
entering upon the duties of their oflice shall severally take and prescribe
the usual oath of office, which shall be filed with the papers of said
court in the clerk’s office thereof.

3. The commissioners shall each make annual reports to said board,
or oftener, as said board may direct, of all matters required of super-
visors of roads and bridges under section nine hundred and seventy-two,
and of the surveyors thereof under section nine hundred and seventy-
five of chapter forty-three of the code.

4. Said commissioners shall let to contract for the term of one or two
years the road in their respective magisterial districts, in three or more
precincts or sections, as the commissioner in each of said districts mav
deem advisable, to the lowest bidder, having first advertised for sealed
bids, stating clearly in the advertisement the work to be done on said
precincts or sections of roads or bridges therein, in addition to what is
specified and required by section nine hundred and eighty-two of the
code, such advertisement to be posted at three or more public places in
the neighborhood of the work to be done for at least twenty days. Satd
commissioner shall have the right to reject the lowest bid received, if
he deem it too high, and thereafter can receive proposals to do the
work without requiring sealed proposals.

5. The said commissioners shall report to the board of supervisors at
a meeting to be held by them after any letting under this act, the pre-
cinets or sections let and at what prices, together with a contract in
writing, specifying the precincts or sections Ict, the work to be done,
and signed by himself and the contractor, and if no reason appear to the
contrary said board shall confirm said letting, and said contractor shall
thereupon enter into a bond, payable to the said board of supervisors in
a penalty double the amount of his contract, conditioned for the faithful
performance of the same, with or without security, as the board shall
deem proper. Such bond shall be delivered by the clerk of the board
of supervisors to the clerk of the said county court, who shall transcribe
and keep the same among the records of his oftice.

6. If said commissioner fail to let any portion of the public roads to
contract in the manner hereinbefore provided, the commissioner so
failing to let shall keep the same in order by employing hands and
teams and other necessary means at the customary prices in the neigh-
borhood.

%. It shall be the duty of the commissioners to keep themselves in-
formed of the condition of the roads and bridges in the magisterial
district over which they have charge, and whenever the commissioner
shall deem that a road or bridge in his district has not been kept by the
contractor in the condition required by his contract, he shall at once
notify the contractor in writing of the fact, and if he does not, within
ten days from his notice, perform his contract, then said commissioner
shall have said road worked or bridge repaired, according to the terms
of the contract, and the cost of such work, including two dollars per
day for attending to the same, shall be recoverable on the bond of
such contractor, after ten days’ notice, by motion, before the county
court of said county, which shall have jurisdiction to hear and determine
the same, and give judgment, including costs, according to the rights
of the case. Such motions shall be in the name of the board of super-
visors of Richmond county, and the attorney for the commonwealth for
said county shall represent the said board. ‘The recovery in every case
shall go to the road fund of the district in which the road or bridge may
be located.

8. The contractors shall be paid for work done under their contracts,
semi-annually, at such times as said board shall, by its order entered at
its annual meeting in February, or as soon thereafter as practicable,
determine, which payment shall be made by the warrant of said board
on the treasurer, but payment shall be withheld by said board as to any
contractor, if at the time fixed for such payment such contractor’s road
is not in order, until the commissioner supervising the same shall report
it to be in the condition required by his contract.

9. No member of the board of supervisors and no commissioner ap-
pointed under this act shall be interested in any contract under this
act. Any participation therein by any such officer shall vacate the office
of the person so offending, and shall render the contract entered into
with the contractor null and void.

10. The general road law of this state, except so far as it is in con-
flict with this act, shall be in force in the county of Richmond, and all
special road laws for the said county of Richmond, heretofore enacted,
are hereby repealed.

11. This act shall be in force from its passage.