CHAPTER 568

An Act to amend and reenact §§ 1, 2, 5 as amended, 6 as amended, 8, and 12
as amended of Chapter 22 of the Acts of Assembly of 1946, approved
February 18, 1946, which authorized certain cities, counties and towns
to create the Peninsula Airport Commission, and to amend the Chapter
by adding thereto sections numbered 1-A, 1-B, 2-A and 6-A, to provide
for participation by certain political subdivisions, representation
therefor, and to enable the Commission to borrow money and give
security.

[S 232]
Approved April 6, 1954

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That §§ 1, 2, 5 as amended, 6 as amended, 8, and 12 as amended of
Chapter 22 of the Acts of Assembly of 1946, approved February 18, 1946,
be amended and reenacted, and that Chapter 22 of the Acts of Assembly
of 1946, approved February 18, 1946, be amended by adding thereto
sections numbered 1-A, 1-B, 2-A and 6-A as follows:
§ 1. If the governing bodies of each of the * cities of Newport News,
Warwick and Hampton, or any two or more of them, shall by resolution
declare that there is need for an airport commission to be created for the
purpose of establishing and operating one or more airports or landing fields
for all such political subdivisions, an airport commission, to be known as
“The Peninsula Airport Commission”, shall thereupon exist for such *
county and cities, * and shall exercise its powers and functions therein.

In any suit, action, or proceeding involving the validity or enforcement
of or relating to any contract of The Peninsula Airport Commission, such
commission shall be conclusively deemed to have become created as a body
corporate, and to have become established and authorized to transact busi-
ness and exercise its powers hereunder upon proof of the adoption of a
resolution by the governing body of each of the counties and cities * creat-
ing the airport commission declaring that there is need for such commis-
sion and that it unites with the other political subdivisons in its creation.
A copy of such resolution duly certified by the clerk of the county or city *
by which it is adopted, shall be admissible in evidence in any suit, action
or proceeding.

1-A. The county of York may, by resolution, declare that there is
need for its participation in the Peninsula Airport Commission, and may
participate therein if the terms of its participation be approved by the
Commission, together with the consent of the governing bodies of the partic-
tpating political subdivisions.

§ 1-B. The city of Williamsburg may, by resolution, declare that there
is need for its participation in the Peninsula Airport Commission, and may
participate therein if the terms of its participation | be approved by the Com-
mission, together with the consent of the governing bodies of the partic-
ipating ‘political subdivisions.

2. The Peninsula Airport Commission, hereinafter referred to as
the “Commission”, shall consist of * two members from each of the par-
ticipating county and cities, * appointed by the governing bodies thereof,
respectively. Original appointments of members shall be for terms as
follows: From the * city of Warwick and the city of Newport News, two
years; and from the * city of Hampton, three years, * . Thereafter
all appointments shall be for four-year terms, except appointments to
fill vacancies which shall be for the unexpired terms. The govern-
ing body appointing any member may remove such member at any
time and appoint his successor. The Commission shall have power
to elect its chairman, and to adopt rules and regulations for its own
procedure and government. The members of the Commission so appointed
shall constitute the Commission, and the powers of such Commission shall
be vested in and exercised by the members in office from time to time. A
majority of the members in office shall constitute a quorum. Members of
the Commission shall be paid ten dollars for each meeting attended, but
no member shall receive more than three hundred dollars in any one year.

§ 2-A. If the county of York shall participate in the Commission, it
shall appoint one member for a four year term conforming to the laws ap-
plicable to the Commission. If the city of Williamsburg shall participate in
the Commission, it shall appoint one member for a four-year term con-
forming to the laws applicable to the Commission.

§ 5. The counties and cities * for which the Commission is formed
are hereby authorized to appropriate to the Commission from available
funds, or from funds provided for the purpose by bond issues, such funds
as may be necessary for the acquisition, construction, maintenance and
operation of airports, air landing fields and other air navigation facilities.
The basis of financial participaton by the counties and cities * shall be
determined by agreement between their governing bodies. * Any county
participating in the Commission * is hereby authorized to issue bonds
for the purposes set forth herein in accordance with §§ 15-601 through
15-604 of the Code of Virginia *.

§ 6. The Commission shall prepare annually and submit to the gov-
erning bodies of the respective counties and cities * for which it is formed
for their approval, a budget showing the estimated revenues it may rea-
sonably expect to receive for such year, and its estimated expenses for all
purposes for such period. After the approval of such budget the Commis-
sion shall be limited in its expenditures for such year to the estimated
expenses shown therein, and shall not commit the participating sub-divi-
sions beyond appropriations actually made. If the estimated expenditures
exceed the estimated revenue from the operation of the Commission for
such year the governing bodies of the participating local subdivisions shall
appropriate, in the proportions in which they are financially interested in
the operations of the Commission, the funds necessary to supply the de-
ficiency. If the actual revenue received shall be less than the estimated
revenue as approved in the budget, the governing bodies of the partici-
pating local subdivisions may appropriate, in the same manner, the funds
necessary to supply the deficiency.

In the event that the Commission does not seek any appropriations
from the participating subdivisions for a calendar year, then the Com-
mission shall not be required to submit a budget for such year to the par-
ticipating subdivisions for their approval, but shall make an annual
financial report in lieu thereof. The Commission may expend any and all
funds received from the participating subdivisions and any and all revenues
derived from the airport or derived from revenue producing operations of
the Commission, without obtaining the approval of the participating sub-
divisions, but the Commission shall not commit the participating sub-
divisions beyond appropriations actually made by the governing bodies
of said subdivisions.

§ 6A. If each of the respective governing bodies of the participating
counties and cities shall so authorize, the Commission may from time to
time borrow money to the maximum amount specifically authorized by the
respective participating counties and cities and may secure the repayment
of such loans by giving a lien upon property of the Commission. All such
loans shall conform to the requirements of law applicable thereto.

The Commission may from time to time borrow money against specific
commitments or allocations for future funds made by local, State or Federal
governments or agencies thereof to the extent of the commitments or alloca-
tions for future funds properly made by such governments or agencies,
provided that any loan so made shall be repaid within a period of one year
from date thereof.

§ 8. The commission shall be an independent body corporate, invested
with the rights, powers and authority and charged with the duties set
forth in this act, and the political subdivisions by which it is created shall
not be responsible for its acts. No pecuniary liability of any kind shall
be imposed upon any county or city * creating the Commission because
of any act, agreement, contract, tort, malfeasance or misfeasance by or on
the part of the Commission or any member thereof, or its agents, servants
or employees, except as otherwise provided in this act with respect to con-
tracts and agreements between the Commission and any such county or
city *.
§ 12. Any county or city * creating the Commission may withdraw
therefrom upon giving one year’s notice to the Commission and to all
other participating counties and cities *. The political subdivision so with-
drawing shall forfeit its rights to any further revenue from the operations
of the Commission and to the repayment of any funds appropriated by it
for capital expenditure. The operations of the Commission may be dis-
continued at any time and its property disposed of by the unanimous ac-
tion of all participating counties and cities * due regard being had for
existing contracts and obligations. Upon the cessation of its activities all
of the assets of the Commission shall be distributed to the counties and
cities * participating therein at the time of liquidation in the proportion in
which they are financially interested in such activities.

Any county or city * participating in the Commission shall auto-
matically be excluded from the Commission on June thirtieth, nineteen
hundred forty-eight, if said county or city * prior to said date has not paid
to the Commission its proportionate share of the cost of participation, pro-
vided that said county or city * has been notified by the Commission prior
to May first, nineteen hundred forty-eight, of its failure to pay its agreed
proportional share.

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