CHAPTER 327

An Act to amend Chapter 384 of the Acts of Assembly of 1946, approved
March 28, 1946, which provided a charter for the city of Charlottes-
ville, by adding a section numbered 5.1, to provide for submission of
proposed ordinances or charter amendments to the qualified voters of

the city. ‘3 166)
Approved March 16, 1960

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That Chapter 384 of the Acts of Assembly of 1946, approved March
28, 1946, be amended by adding a section numbered 5.1 as follows:

§ 5.1. The council shall have authority to order, by resolution
directed to the corporation court of the city or the judge thereof in
vacation, the submission to the qualified voters of the city for an ad-
visory referendum thereon any proposed ordinance or amendment to the
city charter. Upon the receipt of such resolution the corporation court of
the city or the judge thereof in vacation shall order an election to be held
thereon not less than thirty nor more than sixty days after the receipt of
such resolution. The election shall be conducted and the result thereof
ascertained and determined in the manner provided by law for the conduct
of general elections and by the regular election officials of the city. Ifa
petition requesting the submission of an amendment to this charter, set
forth in such petition, signed by qualified voters equal in number to ten
per centum of the largest number of votes cast in any general or primary
election held in the city during the five years immediately preceding and
verified as hereinafter provided, is filed with the clerk of the corporation
court of the city he shall forthwith certify that fact to the court or judge
thereof in vacation. The signatures to such petition shall be verified by
attaching thereto a certificate of an officer or officers authorized to
administer oaths, that the persons whose names are signed thereto
made oath before such officer or officers that they are qualified voters of
the city. Upon the certification of such petition the corporation court of
the city or the judge thereof in vacation shall order an election to be
held not less than thirty nor more than sixty days after such certification,
in which such proposed amendment shall be submitted to the qualified
voters of the city for their approval or disapproval. Such election
shall be conducted and the result thereof ascertained and determined in
the manner provided by law for the conduct of general elections and by
the regular election officials of the city. If a majority of those voting
thereon at such election approve the proposed amendment such result
shall be communicated by the clerk of the corporation court of the city
to the two houses of the General Assembly and to the representatives of
the city therein with the same effect as if the council had adopted a resolu-
tion requesting the General Assembly to adopt the amendment.

Nothing contained in this section shall be construed as affecting the
provisions of § 14-a of this charter.
2. An emergency exists and this act is in force from its passage.