Chap. 156.—An ACT to amend and re-enact Sections 14 and 15 of an act to
provide a new charter for the City of Richmond, approved March 24, 1926; to
amend and re-enact Section 27-a of said act, as amended by an act approved
March 22, 1930; and to amend and re-enact Section 29 of said act, as amended
by an act approved March 19, 1942; in relation to the composition of the City
Council and terms of office of members thereof, the powers and duties of the
city purchasing agent and heads of departments, and the number and election
of trustees of the city school board. [H B 193]

Approved March 11, 1946

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That sections fourteen and fifteen of an act to provide a new
charter for the City of Richmond, approved March twenty-four, nineteen
hundred twenty-six, be amended and re-enacted, as follows: |

Section 14. (a) The council of the City of Richmond shall be com-
posed of two branches. One of the branches shall be called the Common
Council and shall consist of five members from each ward. The members
first elected after the date of the passage of this act from each ward shall
be divided into two classes by lot upon the assembling of the common
council at its first meeting after the first day of September next succeed-
ing the election of such members. Two of such members from two of the
wards of the city shall be of the first class and three of the members from
the other two wards of the city shall be of the first class. Three of such
members from two of the wards of the city shall be of the second class
and two of the members from the other two wards of the city shall be of
the second class. The wards from which members of the first and second
classes shall be selected shall be chosen by lot upon the assembling of
the common council at its first meeting after the first day of September
next succeeding the election of such members, in such manner and form as
shall be prescribed by the common council at such meeting. The term of
office of the members of the first class shall be two years and the term of
office of the members of the second class shall be four years. Thereafter
the successors of such members shall be elected for terms of four years
at the election for members of the council next preceding the expiration
of the term of office of such members, respectively, and the alternation
thus established shall continue.

(b) The other branch shall be called the Board of Aldermen and
shall consist of three members from each ward, to be elected for terms
of four years.

(c) The members of the common council and the board of aldermen
shall be residents of their respective wards, and shall not be less than
twenty-one years of age. They shall be elected by the electors of their
respective wards.

(d) The members of the common council and the board of aldermen
in office at the date of the passage of this act shall continue in office until
the expiration of the terms for which they were respectively elected or
until their successors are elected and qualified as provided by law.

Section 15. (a) When any vacancy shall occur in either branch
by death, resignation, removal from the ward, failure to qualify, or from
any other cause, the branch in which such vacancy occurs shall elect a
qualified person to supply the vacancy for the unexpired term.

(b) Upon the formation of a new ward, either by resolution of the
council or by act of the General Assembly of Virginia, the members
elected to represent such new ward in the common council and board of
aldermen shall be divided into two classes, to be numbered by lot upon
the assembling of the common council and board of aldermen at their first
meetings after the first day of September next succeeding the election of
such members. One of such members of the board of aldermen and two
of such members of the common council shall be of the first class, and
two of the members of the board of aldermen and three of the members of
the common council shall be of the second class. The term of office of
the members of the first class shall be two years and the term of office
of the members of the second class shall be four years. Thereafter the
successors of such members shall be elected for terms of four years at
the election for members of the council next preceding the expiration of
the term of office of such members, respectively, and the alternation thus
established shall continue.

Be it further enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

2. That section twenty-seven-a of an act to provide a new charter
for the City of Richmond, approved March twenty-four, nineteen hun-
dred twenty-six, as amended by an act approved March twenty-two,
nineteen hundred thirty, be amended and re-enacted, as follows:
Section 27-a. There shall be elected by the people one commission-
er of the revenue, whose term of office shall be four years from the first
day of January succeeding his election, and there shall be appointed by
the council in joint session on the first Monday in June one city clerk,
one sergeant-at-arms of the city council, one city attorney, one city
comptroller, two police justices, one clerk to the police justice, and each
branch of the council shall be authorized to appoint such officers and
clerks as may be deemed proper for the regulation of its proceedings and
for the convenient transaction of their business, the terms of which of-
ficers and clerks so to be appointed shall be two years from the first day
of July succeeding their appointment except as herein otherwise pro-
vided. All of the aforesaid officers in office at the date of the passage
of this act shall continue in office until the expiration of the terms for
which they were respectively elected or appointed or until their suc-
cessors are elected or appointed and qualified as provided by law.

The city clerk shall appoint a suitable and qualified person as as-
sistant city clerk, who shall be ex-officio clerk of council committees and
whose compensation shall be fixed by the city council and who shail be
authorized to act as city clerk in the absence or disability of the said
city clerk.

Whenever the school board of the city establishes one school district
in and for the city, bounded by its corporate limits, and the council of the
city approves such action of the school board, as provided by section one
hundred thirty-three of the Constitution, the school board of the city
shall consist of five trustees to be elected by the council from such dis-
trict. The first trustees elected pursuant to this act, shall be elected on the
first Monday in June following the action of the school board and ap-
proval of such action by the council for terms of one, two, three, four and
five years, respectively, to be determined by lot at the first meeting of the
school board held after the first day of July following their election. The
terms of office of such trustees shall commence on the first day of July
following their election, and the offices of the trustees of the school board
of the city prior to such date are abolished as of that date and the terms
of office of all persons holding such offices prior to such date are termi-
nated. Thereafter, such trustees shall be elected by the council of the
city for terms of five years, respectively, on the first Monday in June of
the years such terms of office expire. No such trustee shall be eligible
to succeed himself or herself for more than one term. Until the school
board of the city establishes one school district in and tor the city, bounded
by its corporate limits, and the council of the city approves such action, the
trustees of the school board of the citv shall be elected in accordance with
section seven hundred eighty of the Code of Virginia: but whenever the
school board establishes such district and such action is approved by
the council of the city, the provisions of section seven hundred eighty of
the Code of Virginia relating to the election or appointment of trustees of
the school board of the city shall in all respects stand repealed, and they
shall be elected in accordance with the provisions of this act.

Be it further enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

3. That section twenty-nine of an act to provide a new charter for
the City of Richmond, approved March twenty-four, nineteen hundred
twenty-six, as amended by an act approved March nineteen, nineteen
hundred forty-two, be amended and re-enacted, as follows:

Section 29. (a) The mayor shall have authority to appoint a
purchasing agent who shall receive such salary as may be fixed by the
advisory board and shall hold office at the pleasure of the mayor and
shall give such bond as may be required by the advisory board. The
purchasing agent shall have power to appoint and remove, and fix the
duties of such clerks, assistants and subordinates, as shall be authorized
by the advisory board; such clerks, assistants and subordinates shall
receive such salaries as may be fixed by the advisory board.

(b) In the manner hereinafter provided, the purchasing agent shall
purchase for, on behalf of, and for the use of the city and all of its de-
partments, bureaus, officers, boards, institutions, commissions, libraries
and other agencies, including courts of record, police courts, civil justice
courts and juvenile courts, except the city school board and the officers
and agents thereof, which are hereinafter referred to as using agencies,
all supplies, materials and equipment, except scientific instruments, medi-
cines and drugs, and except law books, and except manuscripts, maps,
books, pamphlets and periodicals desired by any city public library, and
except such perishable articles as may be prescribed by rules and regula-
tions of the purchasing agent hereunder, and except such supplies, ma-
terials and equipment as may be needed by a using agency in an emer-
gency. The purchasing agent shall make all contracts for insurance on
behalf of the city; and in determining who shall be a reliable bidder as
respects insurance to be purchased or procured, he may consider, in
addition to the original bid price, such factors as security, engineering,
claim and supervisory services to be rendered in the best interests of the
city by the insuring company, as well as its resident agent. The pur-
chasing agent shall make all contracts for services and work to be per-
formed by independent contractors, as distinguished from officers, em-
ployees and servants of the city, for all using agencies, except professional
services and except such services and work as may be needed by a using
agency in an emergency.

(c) The purchasing agent shall determine, by rules and regula-
tions adopted with the approval of the advisory board, in what cases of
emergency a using agency may make purchases or contracts for insur-
ance, services or work, regardless of the character of the insurance,
articles, services, or work desired, and regardless of the amount of money
involved.

(d) Whenever the comptroller certifies that there is to the credit of
the using agency an appropriation balance sufficient for the purpose, the
purchasing agent, with the approval of the advisory board, shall have
the authority to purchase any article whatsoever, or to contract for any
insuranice, or services or any work, regardless of the estimate of the cost
and the character of such insurance, article, or work, if the using agency
requests the purchasing agent so to do; if the estimated cost thereof is not
more than five hundred dollars, then the approval of the advisory board
need not be obtained before any such purchase or contract for insurance,
services or work can be made, if the comptroller makes the proper certif-
icate and the using agency requests the purchasing agent to act. The
purchasing agent shall have like authority upon request from the city
school board, or any officer or agent thereof, to purchase or contract for
insurance, services or work for the city school board, or any officer or
agent thereof, but without the necessity of obtaining the approval of the
advisory board and without the necessity of any certificate from the
comptroller as to an appropriation balance.

(e) The purchasing agent shall have authority to sell, or trade-in
all supplies, materials and equipment which he considers to be not needed
for public use, or to be unsuitable for use, and he shall have authority to
transfer between the using agencies any supplies, materials and equip-
ment considered by him as not needed by one, but necessary to the con-
duct of another or other; the proceeds of the sale of any supplies, ma-
terials and equipment sold by him shall be paid into the general treasury ;
he shall also have authority to establish, maintain and control suitable
storerooms and warehouses; he shall inspect or cause to be inspected all
deliveries of supplies, materials and equipment ordered by him for de-
livery at such storerooms and warehouses and to the using agencies ; he
shall inspect or cause to be inspected the performance of every contract
for services, or working contract made by him for any using agency, in
order to determine the quantity and quality and conformance with specifi-
cations of the supplies, materials and equipment, and the character and
extent of the performance of services and work.

(f{) The purchasing agent shall have authority, with the approval of
the advisory board, to adopt and enforce reasonable rules and regulations
for governing the conduct of his office and for the purchasing, the selling,
and the trading-in of supplies, materials and equipment and for making
contracts for insurance, services and working contracts, not in conflict
with this section of the city charter.

(g) Except in cases of emergency, the purchasing agent shall not
issue any order for insurance, or the delivery of articles, or the perform-
ance of services or work on a contract, for one hundred dollars or more,
unless and until the city comptroller certifies that there is to the credit
of each of the using agencies concerned a sufficient appropriation bal-
ance, in excess of all unpaid obligations, to defray the cost of such insur-
ance, supplies, materials, equipment and services and work to be pur-
chased or contracted for on behalf of the respective using agency, or un-
less there is a sufficient balance in the revolving fund, when the supplies,
materials or equipment is to be stored or warehoused for the city general-
ly. In case he is of opinion that an emergency exists and that it is nec-
essary to make a purchase, or to contract for insurance, or for services or
work, without the necessity of advertising for bids, and without the ap-
proval of the advisory board, and without the necessity of an appropria-
tion balance to the credit of the using agency, the purchasing agent may
make such emergency purchase or contract for insurance, or for services
or work and the comptroller shall have authority to pay for the same.

(h) Every purchase of supplies, materials or equipment, and every
contract for insurance, or for services and every working contract, in-
volving more than five hundred dollars, shall be made on written contract,
in accordance with rules and regulations adopted by the purchasing agent
with the approval of the advisory board. Every such purchase and
every such contract for insurance, or for services and every such working
contract, in excess of five hundred dollars, for which there has been adver-
tisement and competitive bidding, shall be made from or awarded to the
lowest reliable bidder, except that the purchasing agent shall always have
authority to reject any and all bids and to order new bidding, or, with
the approval of the advisory board, to let the contract to any one, whether
a former bidder or not, without further bidding.

(1) Equipment may be obtained under a lease by the purchasing
agent on the same terms and conditions and in the same manner as such
equipment may be bought and no using agency may obtain by lease, in-
dependently of the purchasing agent, any equipment that could not be
purchased by it independently of the purchasing agent, at the time that
the rental thereof is desired, under the authority of this section of the
charter.

(j) The purchasing agent and the members of the advisory board,
personally or by deputy, shall constitute the board of standardization
whose duty it shall be to classify and standardize, and to prepare and
adopt written specifications for all supplies, materials, equipment, serv-
ices and work, used or needed by the various using agencies.

(k) The city council is authorized to appropriate from time to time
to the use of, and for the expenditure by the purchasing agent, sufficient
money for the purpose of the expenses of installation of the city pur-
chasing agent and his office, the administration thereof and the crea-
tion and administration of a revolving fund.

(1) Nothing in this section shall give the purchasing agent authority
to make any purchase, or to make any contract for insurance, or for serv-
ices, or any working contract, for the city school board or any officer
or agent thereof, or in any way to regulate or standardize any purchases
whatsoever for the city school board or any officer or agent thereof, ex-
cept when specifically requested so to do by the city school board or an
oficer or agent thereof.

(m) The heads of the departments shall approve all bills against
the city for work done and for all insurance, supplies, materials and
equipment furnished for their respective departments, and no bill for
such work, supplies, materials and equipment shall be paid by the comp-
troller unless the same has been so approved and certified by the head of
the department as correct. The head of each department may authorize
and direct a responsible assistant in his department to approve and certify
as correct salaries, bills and other charges against the city, and after
receipt of written notice from the department head of such authority in
ich assistant, the comptroller may pay any and all such charges upon
approval and certification by such duly authorized assistant, unless and
antil the comptroller has received written notice from that department
nead of the revocation of such authority of such assistant.

4. An emergency exists and this act is in force from its passage.