Chap. 204.—An ACT to provide for the creation of road subdistricts m= the
county of Chesterticld; to prescribe the powers and duties of the board of
supervisors of such county as to the construction of streets and sidewalks
in such subdistricts; and to provide for the issuance of county bonds to
provide funds for constructing such streets and sidewalks. [H B 454]

Approved March 18, 1926.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That the
circuit court of the county of Chestertield, or the judge of such court
in vacation, upon the petition of twenty qualified voters of said pro-
posed district, may make an order creating a road subdistrict or dis-
tricts in and for such county, which order shall prescribe the metes
and bounds of said subdistrict.

2. Upon the filing of the said petition the court shall fix a day for
a hearing on the question of the proposed subdistrict, notice of which
hearing shall be given by publication once a week for three corsecutive
weeks in some newspaper of general circulation within the sard county.
At least ten davs shall intervene between the completion of the pub-
lication and the date set for the hearing, and no such subdistrict shall
be created until the said notice has been given and the hearing had.
3. After the entry of such order creating a subdistrict in such
county the board of supervisors thereof may provide for the con-
struction of streets and sidewalks therein, as hereinafter prescribed.

4. In order to raise the necessary funds to construct such streets
and sidewalks the board of supervisors shall have power, subject to
the condition and limitations of this act, to issue the bonds of the said
county.to an amount in the aggregate of not exceeding eighteen per
centum of the assessed value of all real estate in the said subdistrict
subject to local taxation.

5. The circuit court of such county, or the judge thereof in vaca-
tion, upon the petition of twenty qualified voters of the road subdis-
trict, or a majority of the board of supervisors of said county, shall
make an order requiring the judges of election, at the next election of
county officers or at any other time not less than thirty days from
the date of such order, which shall be designated therein, to open a
poll and take the sense of the qualified voters of the said subdistricts
or districts on the question whether the board of supervisors shall
issue bonds for said purposes.

6. The regular election officers of said county in and, for the said
subdistrict or districts, at the time designated in the order authorizing
the vote, shall open polls at such voting places in the said subdistrict,
or districts, as may be designated in the said order, and shall conduct
such election and close the polls in such manner as is provided by law
in other elections. At the said election there shall be printed on each
ballot in separate lines, the following:

For Bond Issue
Against Bond Issue

Voters desiring to vote in favor of the issuance of said bonds shall
strike out the words “‘against bond issue,’”’ and voters desiring to vote
against bond issue shall strike out the words ‘‘for bond issue.’’ Voters
striking out or erasing the words “‘for’’ or ‘‘against’’ shall be deemed
to have stricken out or erased the entire line. The judges of election
at the several voting places shall immediately after the closing of the
polls at each of the said places count the ballots deposited, and shall,
within two days after the said election, make return thereof, as is
provided in other elections. Said ballots shall be printed and fur-
nished by the regular election officers.

7. The commissioners of election of said county shall, within two
days after the judges of election have made return of the poll books
and ballots as aforesaid, meet at the office of said clerk, and, having
taken an oath before him faithfully to discharge their duties, canvass
the returns and certify the results thereof to the circuit court, or the
judge thereof in vacation.

8. If it shall appear by the report of the commissioners that a
majority of the qualified voters of the said subdistrict or districts
voting on the question, are in favor of issuing the bonds for the pur-
poses aforesaid, the circuit court, or the judge thereof in vacation,
shall enter of reeord and order requiring the supervisors of the county
to proceed at their next meeting to carry out the wishes of the voters
as expressed at the said election.
sell said bonds (and to pay said agent or agents a commission for
negotiating said sale not to exceed three per centum of the amount of
bonds sold by them, or to pay such sum to the purchaser of such bonds,
provided, that said bonds shall be sold to be paid for in lawful money
only, and shall not be-sold at less than par value). When such sale of
bonds has been negotiated, the board of supervisors shall issue the
same. Such bonds may be either registered or with coupons attached,
as said board of supervisors may prescribe, and shall have written or
printed in ink the following sentences: ‘‘These bonds are issued for
the construction of streets and sidewalks in............ road _ sub-
district, but the full faith and credit of the entire county of Chester-
held is hereby pledged for their payment.’’ Such bonds shall be
signed by the chairman and countersigned by the clerk thereof under
the seal of the board; shall be in denomination of one hundred dollars
or some multiple thereof; shall bear interest at a rate not exceeding
six per centum per annum, payable semi-annually, both principal and
interest to be payable at such place or places as may be determined
by the board of supervisors, and shall be payable not exceeding thirty-
four years from the date thereof at said office, but may, in the discre-
tion of the said board, be made redeemable at such time or times
within such period or periods and. upon such notice as the said board
may prescribe and stipulate upon the face of the bonds when issued.
The board shall deliver them to the treasurer of the county, who shall
deliver said bonds to the purchasers thereof, or their order, upon the
payment of the price thereof. The said treasurer and his sureties
shall be liable for the amount received for said bonds as though it
were a county levy, and said funds shall be expended for the purposes
and in the subdistrict or districts which it was intended, and none
other. The said treasurer shall receive as compensation for his ser-
vices hereunder one-eighth of one per centum of the amount thus
coming into his hands, and also the reasonable cost to him of giving
surety on such additional bond or bonds as may be required of him,
if any, on account of his receipts heretofore or hereafter of said funds,
and the board of supervisors of such county may direct the treasurer
to deposit the proceeds of said bond issue in such bank or banks as it
may approve, to the credit of the said treasurer, to be paid out on his
checks therefor, and at the rate of interest to be specified, and all
interest accrued therefrom shall be accounted for by the said treasurer
and be expended for the purposes for which the bonds were issued,
and insofar as not necessary therefor, shall be used for the payment
of the interest on the bonds, or shall be paid into the sinking fund to
redeem the principal thereof at maturity.

11. The board of supervisors is hereby authorized and empowered
to apply any part or all of said sinking fund to the payment, if redeem-
able by their terms, or to the purchase of any of said bonds, at any
time, and all bonds so paid off or purchased by said board of super-
visors shall he immediately cancelled, and shall not be reissued, and
the board of supervisors is authorized and empowered to lend out,
upon real estate security, the loan not to exceed fifty per centum of
the assessed value of such real estate, or deposit in bank at interest
all accumulations of money to the credit of said sinking fund and to
collect and reinvest the same and the interest accruing thereon from
time to time, so often as may be necessary or expedient, until such
bonds become subject to call; provided, that no money to credit of
said sinking fund shall be loaned out or deposited or invested by the
said board of supervisors, unless said loan, deposit or investment shall
be first approved by the circuit court of said county, or the judge
thereof in vacation, and the form of the security be examined and
approved by the Commonwealth’s attorney of said county, which
approval shall be entered of record in the order book of said court.

The treasurer shall not be liable for any funds herein provided for
that shall be lost while on deposit made by order of the board of
supervisors with any bank or banks, or when invested in any real
estate security as provided herein, but the board of supervisors may
require of any such bank a bond, with corporate or other surety, to
secure such deposit. After the issuance of any bonds in pursuance
of this act, the board of supervisors shall provide for the payment of
the interest thereon and the creation of a sinking fund to retire them
at maturity by the annual levy of a special tax sufficient for the said
purposes, on all the property in the said road subdistrict subject to
local road taxation.

12. When the said county wishes to redeem any of its outstanding
bonds subject to call, issued under the provisions of this act, it may,
through the chairman of the board of supervisors, give notice of its
readiness to do so to the holder in person or by publication thereof
once a week for two successive weeks in a newspaper published in said
county or nearest thereto. It shall be sufficient in the notice to give
the number and amount of such bond, and fix a day for its presenta-
tion for payment, which shall not be less than ten days from the date
of personal service of notice, or the completion of the publication
thereof, as the case may be.

If the bond be not presented on the day fixed for its redemption,
interest thereon shall cease from that day.

13. Nothing in this act shall be construed as affecting the regular
county and district road levies in the said county or the distribution
of the regular county and district road funds therein.

14. An emergency existing, this act shall be in force from its
passage. _ _ |