Chap. 35.—An ACT to provide for the working and keeping in repair the public
roads and bridges of Craig county.

Approved January 8, 1898.

1. Beit enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That on and
after the first day of July, eighteen hundred and ninety-ci; ht, or as soon
thereafter as they may dcem best, the board of supervisors of the county
of Craig shall take charge of and have worked and kept in repair all
public roads and bridges heretofore or hereafter established within the
limits of said county, and for this purpose the said board of supervisors
is authorized and empowered to levy a road tax on all real and personal
property, not to exceed in any year twenty cents upon the one hundred
dollars of assessed taxable values in said county and to adopt such regu-
lations as may be necessary to secure the proper working of roads and
keeping in repair the bridges in said county.

2. The said board of supervisors shall, on the first day of J uly, eigh-
teen hundred and ninety-eight, or as soon thereafter as they may deem
best, appoint one commissioner of roads for each magisterial district,
which commissioner shall reside in the respective district for which they
are appointed, and it shall be their duty to supervise the roads within
the respective magisterial districts assigned them by said board of super-
Visors. Canale
The said commissioners shall hold their office for one year from the
first of July, eighteen hundred and ninetv-eight, unless sooner removed
by said board for neglect of duty or malfeasance in office, and succeed-
ing terms shall be filled by the board of supervisors at their meeting
next preceding the first of July of each vear. The said commissioners
shall receive such compensation for their services as said) board shall al-
low, not to exceed two dollars per day, and not to exceed one hundred
dollars for any one vear, to be paid to them at such times and in such
amounts, by warrants drawn by said board on the treasury as said board
may, by its order entered on its minutes, determine.

Any vacancy in the office of Commissioner shall be filled for the un-
expired term by said board. Said commissioners, before entering upon
the duty of their office shall severally take an oath faithtully to perform
the duties of their office as commissioner, Which oath shall be filed with
the papers of said board.

Each commissioner of roads and bridges shall, as soon as practicable
after his qualification, carefully examine all the public roads of his dis-
trict, and he shall lay oft and divide said roads into sections of from
one to three miles, no single section to be more than three miles in
length.

3. Said commissioners of each magisterial district shall let to contract
by the year for the term of two or more years, but not to exceed three
years, In the discretion of the board of nperT ia, in one or more sec-
tions ‘(the sections having been numbered) to the lowest suitable bidder,
having first advertised the said letting for twenty days prior thereto,
stating clearly in the advertisement the work to be done on said section
of roads or bridges therein, in addition to what is specified and required
by section nine hundred and eighty-two of the code of Virginia, notice
of which letting to contract shall be posted not less than twenty days at

ach postottice and other pubhe places in the district.

The commissioner shall deliver to the board of supervisors for their
examination and approval or rejection at their first meeting thereafter.

Each contractor shall be required to execute a bond to the county,
with good security, in the penalty of at least double the amount of his
bid for the faithful performance of his contract, and a recovery may be
had for any breach of said contract in the name of the county for the
benefit of the said fund in the county court by a motion after ten days’
notice to the contractor and his securities, and in case of recovery on
said motion, the same costs shall be taxed in said judgment as if the
motion was in favor of the commonwealth, and any such Judgment may
he deducted by said board of supervisors from the amount due said
¢eontractor on his contract.

The attorney for the commonwealth shall institute and prosecute such
motion.

The said contracts and bonds shall be filed with the clerk of the
board of supervisors.

4. The board of supervisors may make such regulation as to time and
place in each district for commissioner letting said roads and bridges to
contract.

5. Should there be any section or sections of roads upon which there
is no bid, the road commissioner may receive a proposal to contract for
said section or seeHons. 7 _
6. If any section or sections of road remain unlet to contract from
auv reason, the commissioner of roads and bridges shall appoint or em-
ploy an overseer for such road or section of road, such overseer to be
paid such compensation per day as may be agreed upon by the board
of supervisors; said overseer shall employ such hands as may be neces-
sary to keep up such roads in repair, paying such prices as are cus-
tomary in the community.

An itemized account of all work dune by overseer shall be kept,
and said overseer shall make off and qualify to said accounts and sub-
mit the same to commissioner of roads, and upon his approval said
accounts shall be presented to the board of supervisors, and if found to
be correct said board shall draw their warrant upon the county treasurer
for the amount.

8. It shall be the duty of the commissioner of roads to give personal
supervision to all the roads and bridges in their respective districts, to
see that the contractor is faithfully performing his contract, and for anv
failure in carrying it out the commissioner of the district shall at once
institute, through the prosecuting attorney, proceedings for the recovery
of damages for the breach of said contract.

9. Overseers appointed or employed under this act shall be subjected
to the same requirements under section nine hundred and eighty-two of
the code as are contractors.

10. The contractors shall be paid for work done under their contracts
semi-annually, or oftener, as the board of supervisors at their annual
meeting may determine, which payment shall be made by the warrant
of said board upon the county treasurer; but payment shall be withheld
lbw said board if, at the time fixed for such payment, said 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.

11. No person in Craig county shall be hereafter compelled to work on
the public roads without compensation.

12. The county treasurer shall keep the road funds separate from other
tax funds, and the entire fund shall be placed to the credit of the road fund.

13. The county treasurer shall hereafter pay out no money collected
from road taxes and levies except on the warrant of the board of super-
V1SOTS.

14. No member of the board of supervisors or commissioner of roads
shall be directly or indirectly interested in any contract made under
this act, and any participation therein by either shall render the contract
null and void.

15. The board of supervisors shall have power at any time, for good
cause, to revoke the appointment of a commissioner of roads and bridges,
and to appoint his successor to fill his unexpired term, and in case of
removal, there shall be no appeal from the decision of the board of
supervisors, but such decision shall be final. Said board shall fix the
compensation of commissioner of roads and bridges, and have all other
powers necessary to be employed in executing this act, and for the
additional services required by this act the supervisors shall receive the
usual per diem allowed for the regular duties of. their-office, but-in no
ease shall any supervisor receive more than fifteen dollats- for services
connected with: roads and bridges during any one years. |

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16. The county treasurer shall furnish the board of supervisors at
their meetings for road purposes a statement of all funds in his hands
to the credit of the road fund, and the said treasurer shall be liable on
his official bond for all moneys coming to his hands as such for road
purposes.

17. The duties of the present road officials of Craig county shall cease
and determine when the provisions of this act are complied with by the
board of supervisors, on the first day of July, eighteen hundred and
ninety-elght, or thereafter, and all road officials shall settle at once their
road accounts with the board of examiners, and account to said hoard
for road tools and other county property in their custody and deliver
the same to said board, taking their receipt therefor.

18. The board of supervisors mav sell and dispose of any tools and
implements which may he delivered by the present road officials, or they
may have the same used upon the roads of the county, as in their dis-
cretion may appear best for the mterests of the county. For any act
required to be done by said board of supervisors under and by virtue of
this act may be done at any meeting thereof, either general or special.

19. The general road law of the state, except so far as the same is in
conflict with this act, shall be enforced in Craig county.

20. All acts and parts of acts inconsistent with this act are hereby
repealed.

21. This act shall be in force from and after the first day of July,
eighteen hundred and ninety-eight.