Chap. 251.—An ACT authorizing any city having a population of not less than
100,000 nor more than 170,000, according to the last preceding United States
census, to establish and maintain a system of pensions, retirement allowances
and death benefits for its officers and employees, prescribing how funds may be
provided for the maintenance and operation of said system, authorizing the
prescribing of rules and regulations for the management, investment and admin-
istration of any of such funds, providing certain exemptions from taxation and
from legal process in connection with the operation of such system, and validat-
ing any such system established in conformity therewith by ordinance that
became effective on and after January 1, 1942. [H B 312]

Approved March 18, 1942

1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia, as follows:

Section 1. The council or other governing body of any city having
a population of not less than one hundred thousand nor more than one
hundred seventy thousand, according to the last preceding United States
census, may, in its discretion, establish and maintain, in such manner and
to such extent and in such combination thereof as such council or other
governing body may deem desirable, a system or systems of pensions and
retirement allowances for, and death benefits for the dependents of, the
officers and employees of any such city, including policemen and firemen
and such other officers and employees whose entire compensation is paid
directly by any such city but not to include officials elected by the people
or the General Assembly, and may, in their discretion include therein the
employees in the offices of the city treasurer and commissioner of
revenue in any such city, and to that end, shall have authority to
establish a fund or funds for the payment of such pensions, retire-
ment. allowances and death benefits by making appropriations out
of the treasury of such 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 combination of said methods, to make rules
and regulations for the management, investment and administration of
such fund or funds, and the payment of such pensions, retirement allow-
ances and death benefits, and to do all such other things that may be
deemed necessary or advisable to carry into effect the provisions of any
such system or systems.

Section 2. That the pensions accruing and to accrue to any such
officer or employee or to the beneficiary thereof, under any such system,
and the accumulated contributions, securities, moneys and assets of any
such fund, are hereby exempted from State, county and municipal taxa-
tion, and shall not be subject to execution, attachment or garnishment, or
any other process whatsoever, and shall be unassignable except as pro-
vided by a regulation of such system.

Section 3. That any system of pensions, retirement allowances and
death benefits heretofore established by any such city in conformity with
the provisions hereof by an ordinance to be effective on and after January
first, nineteen hundred and forty-two and all acts done pursuant to any
such ordinance so establishing the same since said ordinance became
effective, are hereby authorized, and shall have the same force and effect
as if this act had become effective on January first, nineteen hundred and
forty-two.
Section 4. That such council or other governing bodies of any such:
city shall have the continuing right and power to amend at any time any
ordinance adopted pursuant to the provisions thereof, which right and
power is expressly reserved to them, but no such amendment shall be
adopted which will reduce the then accrued benefits of such officers and
employees and beneficiaries covered by any such system or systems 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 pay-
ment of such benefits.

Section 5. That the powers and authority herein given any such
city shall be in addition to any other powers and authority to establish a
system of pensions, retirement allowances and death benefits given such
city by any other law.

Z. An emergency is hereby found and declared to exist and this act
shall be in full force and effect from its passage.