CHAP. 361.—An ACT to provide for the working of the public roads in
the county of Charlotte, for the creation of district road boards in
said county, and for the repeal of all acts in conflict therewith.

(H. B. 422.)
Approved March 20, 1916.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That
for each magisterial district in the county of Charlotte there is
hereby created and established a road board, consisting of the
supervisor (who shall be chairman of said board), a commis-
sioner of roads, and one other person, who shall be clerk of said
road board, which board shall have exclusive control of the roads
and bridges of said district.

2. That the commissioner of roads and the clerk of the road
board hereunder shall be appointed by the supervisors upon the
recommendation of the supervisor of each respective district
in said county, and shall hold office for two years beginning on
the first day of January, nineteen hundred and seventeen; said
appointment to be confirmed by the board of supervisors not
later than at its November meeting of the year preceding. They
shall reside in the district from which they are appointed. Each
commissioner of roads and each clerk of the road board thus
appointed shall qualify before the clerk of the circuit court, and
shall, at the time of qualification, give bond, with good security,
in the penalty of not less than one thousand dollars.

3. The said commissioner of roads shall receive such com-
pensation for his services as the board of supervisors shall allow,
not to exceed two dollars ($2.00) per day, and not to exceed
sixty dollars per annum; and the clerk of the road board shall
receive for his services thirty dollars per annum, to be paid to
him at such times and in such amounts, by warrants drawn by
said board on the treasurer of said county, as said road board
may, by its order entered on its minutes, determine. Any vacancy
in the office of commissioner or clerk of the road board shall be
filled for the unexpired term by the board of supervisors. The
said commissioner and clerk of the road board, before entering
unon the duties of their offices, shall severally take oath to faith-
fully perform the duties of their offices, which oath shall be filed
by the board of supervisors, before the clerk of the circuit court.

4. Each road board shall, as soon as practicable after their
qualification, carefully examine all the public roads of their
district and if they shall deem best for the more convenient
working of same, lay off and divide them into sections of from
one to five miles, no single section to be more than five miles in
length.

5. The road board of each magisterial district may, in its
discretion, let to contract by the year for a term of one to three
years any or all sections of its roads to the lowest suitable bid-
der, having first advertised for sealed bids, stating clearly in
the advertisement the work to be done on said sections of roads
and bridges thereof, in addition to what is specified and required
by section nine hundred and eighty-two of the Code, notice of
which letting to contract shall be posted for not less than ten
days at three or more public places in the district. The bids
shall be in writing and signed by the contractor, and the same
shall be delivered under seal to the said-road board for their
€xamination and acceptance or rejection, and at their first meet-
ing 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, conditioned 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 road fund, in the circuit court of said county, by
motion, after ten days’ notice to the contractor and his securities,
and in case of a recovery on said motion, the same shall be taxed
in the judgment as if the motion were in favor of the Common-
wealth. And any such judgment may be deducted by said road
board from the amount due said contractor on his contract.
The attorney for the Commonwealth shall institute and prose
cute such motion. The said contract and bond shall be filed with
the clerk of said road board. The road board may, in its dis-
cretion, reject any and all bids, and if it seem desirable, have
all its roads, or any part thereof, worked under its own direc-
tion and control.

6 Should there be any section or sections of road upon which
there is no sealed bid, the road commissioner, after advertising
as is hereinbefore directed, may receive proposals to contract
for said section without requiring said proposals to be sealed,
said proposals to be subject to the same requirements in con-
tracting as sealed bids.

If any section or sections of road remain unlet by reason
of there being no bid, or for any other reason, and wherever
the road board shall deem it desirable, they shall appoint or
employ an overseer for such roads or sections thereof; said over-
seer to be paid such compensation per day as may be agreed
upon by the road board, and to be under its direction. Said
overseer, or the road commissioner, by direction of the board,
shall employ such labor as may be necessary to keep such road
in repair, paying such prices as are customary in the community.

8. An itemized account of all work done by overseers shall
be kept, and said overseers shall make off and swear to such
accounts and submit same to the commissioner of roads, and
upon his approval said accounts shall be presented to the road
board, and, if found to be correct, said board shall give its war-
rant upon the county treasurer for the amount.

9. It shall be the duty of the commissioner of roads to give,
under the direction of said board, personal supervision to all
roads and bridges within his district, and especially to require
foot bridges to be constructed and maintained over all streams
where necessary for the convenience of pedestrians, and to see
that all contractors are faithfully performing their contracts.
Should there be any failure on the part of contractors to comply
with said contracts, the road board shall at once institute,
through the attorney: for the Commonwealth, proceedings for
the recovery of damages for the breach of said contract.

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

11. The contractors shall be paid for work done under their
contracts semi-annually or oftener, as the road board may de-
termine, which payment shall be made by the warrant of said
board upon the county treasurer, but payment shall be with-
held by said board, if, at the time fixed for such payment, said
contractor’s road is not in order, until the commissioner, super-
vising the same shall report it to be in the condition required
by his contract.

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

All road taxes for district purposes shall be expended
for the benefit of the district from which they are collected, and
supervisors may levy not exceeding thirty (380) cents for dis-
trict purposes on one hundred dollar value.

1314. Supervisors may also lay a county levy not to exceed
twenty (20) cents, to be known as a county road tax for general
purposes: such as opening new roads, building bridges (where
the cost is more than thirty ($30.00) dollars, buying equipment,
and any other expense connected with road work which, in the
judgment of the board of supervisors, shall be paid out of the
general fund so created.

14. Except as herein provided, the county treasurer shall
hereafter pay out no money from district road taxes, except
under warrant of the road board of the several magisterial
districts.

15. No member of the road board shall be, directly or in-
directly, interested in any contract made under this act, and any
participation by either shall render the contract null and void,
and any member of the board so participating shall be deemed
guilty of a misdemeanor and punishable according to law.

16. The board of supervisors shall have power at any time,
for good cause, to remove any officer appointed or elected under
this act, and to fill vacancies for the unexpired term.

17. The boards of the several districts may sell or dispose
of any tools or implements which may be delivered to them by
the present road officials, or may have them used upon the roads
of the county as, in their discretion, may appear best for the
county. Any of said boards may, alone or in conjunction with
the boards of other districts, hire or purchase and maintain
jn good order such implements and machinery and such horses
and mules as may be found necessary to economically construct
and maintain its roads, and may employ such labor and make
such contracts as may be requisite for the protection, care and
maintenance of the same. And said board shall have power,
either alone or conjointly with the boards of other districts, to
contract for and procure from the State convicts, and may work
same upon the roads, under such provisions and regulations as
shall seem to it best. Any act required to be done by said board,
or permitted under and by virtue of this act, may be done at
any meeting thereof, unless otherwise specifically provided.

18. All application for new roads or new bridges or for the
change of location of existing roads shall be made to the board
of supervisors of the county. Any proceeding therefor shall be
as now provided by the general law. When any new road is
ordered to be opened or the location of any road changed, the
same shall be done either by contract or otherwise, as the said
road board shall deem best.

19. The general road law of the State, except so far as in
conflict with this act, shall be enforced in the county of Char-
lotte and especially that provision of the general road law which
provides for the prosecution of road officials for malfeasance,
misfeasance or neglect of duty, shall be in force in said county.

20. Each of the district boards shall, at the January and
July meetings of the board of supervisors, report to said super-
visors its proceedings hereunder, along with an itemized ac-
count of its disbursements, at which time any citizen of the dis-
trict may appear and challenge any item in said report, or may,
within thirty days after its filing, except to either the form,
accuracy, or efficiency of said report; and the said board shall
proceed, with the assistance of the attorney for the Common-
wealth, in a summary manner to examine said reports and the
items thereof, and if fraud appear therein, the matter shall
be brought to the attention of the grand jury. The supervisors
shall have power to require a complete formal and accurate re-
port, and to compel full explanation of any and all items therein.

21. In appointing members to said board, the supervisors
shall endeavor to see that every section of the district is, as
early as may conveniently be, represented thereon.

22. Said road boards shall have power to erect and maintain
such sign-boards and mile posts as may seem necessary, or as
the law may require.

23. All acts and parts of acts inconsistent with this act are
hereby repealed, insofar as inconsistent herewith.

24. Until the first day of January, nineteen hundred and
seventeen, the roads of said county shall continue to be worked
as heretofore under the existing law.

25. The board of supervisors are hereby authorized to lay
a different levy for the different districts of the county for road
purposes.

26. The road boards may, in their discretion, employ a
general superintendent of roads, who shall be a practical engi-
neer or expert road builder; who shall be removable at the
pleasure of said board of supervisors; who shall have charge
of all the road work, in said county; who shall co-operate with
the said various district road boards; and whose compensation
shall be fixed by the said board of supervisors.

The Commonwealth’s attorney of the county shall at-
tend all meetings of the board of supervisors when matters ap-
pertaining to the public roads are acted on; shall prepare all
contracts made by or with the board of supervisors; and exam-
ine all bonds required or taken by any of said boards; and take
all necessary and proper action to protect the districts and the
county in such matters. He shall, when required by the board
of supervisors, institute legal proceedings on any and all bonds
and contracts on which a liability has been incurred by the obli-
gors and contractor, and shall render to the board of super-
visors and to each of said district boards all reasonable services
and assistance that shall be required of him.

28. The board of supervisors is hereby authorized to pur-
chase tracts of land from which to obtain soil or material for
road building in the several districts; no one tract so purchased
to consist of more than five acres, but the said board may pur-
chase as many of said tracts as they deem necessary.

29. The general superintendent of roads or the road com-
missioner of the district in which the material is situated may
take, or cause to be taken from the most convenient land, wood,
stone, gravel, or earth that may be necessary in constructing
or repairing the road to be constructed or repaired under this
act; provided, that such stone, wood, gravel or earth shall not
be taken from any yard, garden or orchard, without the consent
of the owner; and, provided, further, that the general superin-
tendent of roads or the road commissioner shall not cut any
fruit or ornamental trees, or any hedge planted or left as pro-
tection to cattle; provided the same does not in any wise inter-
fere with the travel along the road.

30. If the general superintendent of roads or the road com-
missioner for any district and the owner or tenant of any land
from which it may be necessary to take any wood, stone, gravel,
earth or other material can agree upon the amount of compen-
sation due to said tenant or owner by reason thereof, the general
superintendent of roads or the road commissioner shall so re-
port to the district road board of the district in which said land
is located, and the said district board shall order its warrant
to be issued in favor of said owner or tenant for the full amount
of compensation agreed upon, or as much thereof as the board
may deem reasonable, subject to such owner or tenant’s right
to appeal to the circuit court of Charlotte county, as in other
cases of appeal from the board of supervisors.

31. If the owner or tenant of any such land shall think him-
self injured thereby, and said general superintendent of roads
or said road commissioner cannot agree with the owner or ten-
ant by reason of taking wood, stone, gravel or earth from his
land, the said general superintendent of roads or said road com-
missioner shall make application to a justice of the peace of the
district in which the wood, stone, gravel or earth is situated to
issue a warrant to five disinterested free holders, any three or
more of whom may act, requiring them to view the land and as-
certain what is a just compensation to such owner or tenant
for the said wood, stone, gravel or earth. The said freeholders,
after taking an oath before a justice of the peace to faithfully
and impartially discharge their duties as viewers, shall, after
giving to the owner or tenant five days’ notice in writing, ascer-
tain such compensation and report the same to the district road
board of the district in which the land is located. The said free-
holders, in ascertaining the compensation to the owner or tenant,
shall take into consideration the convenience and inconvenience
that may result to the owner or tenant from building or repair-
ing the road on which said wood, stone, gravel or earth is used.
The district road board may allow the full amount reported by
said freeholders, or so much thereof as upon investigation they
may deem reasonable, subject to such owner’s or tenant’s right
to appeal to the circuit court of Charlotte county, as in cases of
appeal from the board of supervisors. The notice required by
this act to be given to the owner or tenant shall be served and
returned by the sheriff, as other notices are served and returned,
and said freeholders shall be allowed two dollars per day for
each day they are actually engaged as viewers.