CHAP. 410.—An ACT allowing (under certain conditions) district ao:
county school boards to provide free school books for children attend
ing the public schools and instructing boards of supervisors and cit
councils to provide the necessary revenue. (H. B. 67.'

Approved March 21, 1916.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, Tha
each district school board of this Commonwealth is hereby
authorized to furnish free of charge to all pupils in the publi
schools all books adopted for use in said school, said books to b
paid for by each district school board or county school board
out of funds to be provided as herein prescribed. But no student
shall be allowed more than one book of any one kind, free, for
any one year.

2. Whenever twenty-five (25) per centum of the electorate
(voting at the previous election) of any school district, shall
petition the trustees of said district for the introduction of free
text books, then the said trustees of the said district shall cer-
tify in writing the fact to the electoral board of said county or
city who shall, at least thirty days before the next general elec-
tion, see to it that the question is printed upon the official ballot
of such election in type similar to that used for the rest of the
ballot and in the following form: “For free text books,”
“‘Against free text books.” If the majority of the votes cast
on this question is for free text books then the trustees of said
district shall communicate in writing this fact to the board of
supervisors or city council, as the case may be, together with a
statement of the number of pupils enrolled in the district, and
the amount of money needed to furnish free books, and it shall
be the duty of the board of supervisors or city council to lay a
levy for the purpose, or in lieu thereof to make an appropria-
tion of the amount asked for by the said trustees, provided the
same does not exceed one dollar for each pupil enrolled.

3. At such time as any district school board shall put this
act into operation, it shall not be necessary to take up all the
old books of the pupils, but to pupils wholly or in part supplied
with necessary books the board may supply the books only
as other or new books are needed. All school books furnished
as herein provided shall be the property of the district school
board and loaned to the pupils on such terms and conditions as
each such district school board prescribes.

It shall be the duty of the district school board to adopt
such rules and regulations as may be necessary to take care of
said books.

4. Books for use in the schools shall be ordered at least
thirty days before the opening of schools by the clerk of each
district school board from such person or persons as may be
designated by the State board of education, and at wholesale
prices as provided by law.

The expenses of ordering and distribution shall be borne
out of the district funds for free text books provided in section
two, the amount necessary to be determined by each district
board, but in no case shall the expense of distribution, excluding
freight, exceed four cents for each pupil enrolled for each ses-
sion. It shall be lawful, by vote of the district board, for the
district clerk to undertake the distribution of books, provided
his compensation shall not exceed the amount named in this act.

In such counties as it may seem advisable to take a vote
upon the free text-book question for the entire county as a unit,
rather than by districts, upon written notice from the county
school board to the electoral board of the county certifying that
each school district in the county had duly petitioned each dis-
trict board, as provided in section two of this act, the elec-
toral board shall have placed upon the ballot for the entire
county, in the same way and manner as provided in section two,
the words “For Free Text Books,” “Against Free Text Books.”
If the majority of those voting on this question declare in favor
of free text books then the supervisors are authorized to levy
for the entire county the amount estimated by the county school
board as needed to furnish said books, not to exceed one dollar
for each pupil enrolled in the public schools of said county,
which amount shall be placed to the credit of “a free text book
fund for the county,” to be disbursed by the county school
board, and said county board is authorized to order said books
in the same way and under the same conditions as provided in
section four, for district school boards, and to pay the expense
of distribution of said books as provided for the district school
boards in section five of this act. Provided that this act shall
not apply to any county or any school district in which the
school session is not at least seven months long.

7. Any school district or county as a unit having once
adopted above provisions or system, shall have the right to
abolish the system by an election called and held as prescribed
and regulated in sections 2 and‘6 of this act, and if the majority
of the votes cast is against the continuance of free books, the
system shall be discontinued.