CHAPTER 160

An Act to amend and reenact § 148(a) of Chapter 84 of the Acts of the
General Assembly of 1918, approved February 7, 1918, as amended,
which provided a charter and special form of government for the city
of Norfolk, which section relates to the power of the city to establish
and maintain a system of pensions, retirement allowances and death
benefits for certain officers and employees so as to provide for the in-
clusion of certain persons under certain conditions. 5 168

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Approved March 15, 1966

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia: |
1. That § 148(a) of Chapter 34 of the Acts of the General Assembly of
1918, approved February 7, 1918, as amended, which provided a charter
and special form of government for the city of Norfolk, be and the same
is hereby amended and reenacted so as to read as follows:

§ 148(a). Pension funds—generally.

In addition to the other powers conferred by law, the council of said
city shall have the right and power to establish and maintain, in such
manner and to such extent and in such combination thereof as said council
may deem desirable, a system or systems of pensions and retirement allow-
ances for, and death benefits for the designated beneficiaries of, the officers
and employees of said city, including policemen and firemen and such
other officers and employees whose entire compensation is paid directly
by said city, but not to include officials elected by the people or the General
Assembly, except that the council of said city may, in its discretion, include
therein the city treasurer and the employees in his office, the commissioner
of the revenue and the employees in his office, the city sergeant and the
employees in his office, the clerks of the courts of record of the city anc
the employees in their respective offices, the Commonwealth’s attorney;
of the city and the employees in his office, the civil justice of the city, the
judge of the juvenile and domestic relations court of the city, * the em
ployees in the welfare department of the city, and any person who become:
a State employee by virtue of an agreement between the city and the state
or any department, board or agency thereof, affiliating the city’s depart
ment of public health with the State health department, provided sucl
person was a city employee and a member of the employees’ retiremen
system of the city on the effective date of any such agreement and doe:
not elect, in writing, and within sixty days after the effective date of ant
such agreement, to become a member of the State’s retirement system, 01
any of them, and to that end, shall have authority to establish a fund o.
funds for the payment of such pensions, retirement allowances and deat!
benefits by making appropriations out of the treasury of said city, by
requiring contributions from time to time from those participating in any
such system, or by any other mode not prohibited by law, or by any com
bination of said methods, to make rules and regulations for the manage
ment, investment and administration of such fund or funds, and the pay:
ment of such pensions, retirement allowances and death benefits, and t
do all such other things that may be deemed necessary or advisable t
carry into effect the provisions of any such system or systems.

The pensions accruing and to accrue to any such officer or employee 01
to the beneficiary thereof, under any such system, and the accumulatec
contributions, securities, moneys and assets of any such fund, are hereby}
exempted from State, county and municipal taxation, and shall not be
subject to execution, attachment or garnishment, or any other proces:
whatsoever, and shall be unassignable except as provided by a regulatior
of su

The council shal] have the continuing right and power to amend at
any time any ordinance adopted pursuant to the provisions hereof, whick
right and power is expressly reserved to them, but no such amendment
shall be adopted which will reduce the then accrued benefits of such officer:
and employees and beneficiaries covered by any such system or system:
below the extent they may be then covered by accumulative reserves in any
such fund or funds, which shall constitute a trust fund or funds for the
payment of such benefits.

The inclusion in the system of pensions, retirement allowances anc
death benefits heretofore established by the city of any of the officers 01
employees embraced within the provisions of this section as above amended
but not embraced within the provisions thereof prior to the above amend.
ment, by an ordinance effective January one, nineteen hundred fifty-four
are hereby authorized, ratified and confirmed, and said ordinance shal
have the same force and effect as if this act had become effective o1
January one, nineteen hundred fifty-four. .

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