CHAPTER 344

An Act to amend and reenact §§ 2a, 2b, and 12a, as amended, of Chapter
161 of the Acts of Assembly of 1926, which chapter was continued tn
force by § 21-120 of the Code of Virginia, relating to sanitary districts
in certain counties.

[S 295)

Approved March 31, 1964

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §§ 2a, 2b, and 12a, as amended, of Chapter 161 of the Acts of
Assembly of 1926, which chapter was continued in force by § 21-120 of the
Code of Virginia, be amended and reenacted as follows:
2a. The circuit court, or the judge of such court in vacation, upon
the petition of the * governing body of the county made pursuant to a
resolution of such governing body duly adopted or upon the petition of *
fifty qualified voters residing within the limits of the territory proposed
to be added or severed, or if the proposed area to be added or severed con-
tains less than one hundred qualified voters, upon the petition of fifty per
centum of the qualified voters thereof, may make an order altering the
boundaries of and enlarging or reducing any sanitary district, including
“small districts” or “local districts,’ created under the provisions of
this act, which order shall prescribe the metes and bounds of the terri-
tory to be added or severed; provided, however, that no order reducing
a * district and severing any territory therefrom shall be made if any bonds
of * such district have theretofore been issued and have not been redeemed
in full as of the date of the petition requesting such reduction of * any such
district, or if any system or systems have been established and are in
operation under the provisions of section three of this act, as amended,
in the territory proposed to be severed as of the date of the petition re
questing such reduction of the * district.
Upon the filing of said petition a hearing shall be had as provided in
section two of this act, as amended, and the notice of such hearing may
require all interested persons to appear and show cause why any special
tax levied or to be levied in * such sanitary district for special sanitary dis-
trict purposes may not likewise be levied and collected, or discontinued
after the end of the current taxable year, in the territory proposed to be
added to or severed from such district, and to appear and show cause why
the net operating revenue derived or to be derived in the added territory
from the operation of any system or systems established or to be established
under the provisions of section three of this act, as amended, may not be
set apart to pay the interest on and retire at maturity the principal of any
bonds theretofore issued in connection with such system or systems. Noth-
ing in such order enlarging a sanitary district as provided herein shall be
construed to limit or adversely affect the rights and interests of any holder
of bonds issued by said district, and such order shall expressly preserve
and protect such rights and interests.

§ 2b. The circuit court, or the judge thereof in vacation, upon the
petition of the governing body of the county made pursuant to a resolution
of such governing body duly adopted, or upon the petition of * fifty qualified
voters residing within the boundaries of each sanitary district affected,
provided, however, that if any of such districts contain less than one hun-
dred qualified resident voters, such petition, as to such districts, shall be
sufficient if signed by not less than fifty per centum of the qualified voters
residing within the boundaries of each of such districts, may make an order
merging into one sanitary district any two or more sanitary districts *,
including “small districts” or “local districts”, heretofore or hereafter
created in the same county pursuant to any of the provisions of this act,
as amended, or pursuant to any other general or special law, which order
shall prescribe the metes and bounds and the name or other designation
of the new district so created.

Upon the filing of said petition a hearing shall be had as provided in
§ 2 hereof, and the notice of such hearing may require all interested persons
to appear and show cause (1) why any special tax or taxes levied or to be
levied for * such district purposes in any one or more of the districts affected
may not be likewise levied and collected in the new district when created ;

(2) Why a special tax or taxes may not be levied in such newly created
district which shall be in lieu of any special tax or taxes levied for * such
district purposes in any one or more of the districts affected, and a sufficient
part of the revenue so obtained applied to pay the interest and to create
a sinking fund to retire at maturity any outstanding bonds theretofore
issued by any such district or districts; and

Why the net operating revenue derived in any one or more of
the said districts from the operation of any system or systems established
under the provisions of section three of this act may not be set apart to
pay the interest on and retire at maturity the principal of any bonds there-
tofore issued in connection with any such system or systems established
in any of the said * districts. Such order shall expressly preserve and pro-
tect the rights of holders of any such outstanding bonds, and nothing herein
shall be construed to limit or affect the rights and interest of any such
bondholders.

§ 12a. In any county in which a sanitary district has been, or is
hereafter created under this act or to which the provisions of this act are
applicable as provided in section one hereof the circuit court of such
county, or the judge of such court in vacation, may make an order forming
any particular area or areas within such sanitary district into a smaller
district, hereafter referred to as “small district’, upon the petition of
the governing body of the county made pursuant to a resolution of such
governing body duly adopted, or upon the petition of fifty qualified voters
residing within the boundaries of the. proposed “small district” or if the
proposed “small district’? contains less than one hundred qualified voters,
upon the petition of fifty per centum of the qualified voters thereof. Such
order shall prescribe the metes and bounds of the “small district”.

Upon the filing of said petition the court, or the judge thereof in vaca-
tion shall fix a day for a hearing on the question of the proposed “small dis-
trict”? which hearing shall embrace a consideration of whether the property
embraced in said proposed “small district” will or will not be benefited by
the establishment thereof and whether the creation of such “small district”
will cause substantial detriment to the sanitary district; notice of such
hearing shall be given by publication once a week for three consecutive
weeks in some newspaper of general circulation within the said county to
be designated by the court, or the judge thereof in vacation. At least ten
days shall intervene between the completion of the publication and the date
set for the hearing, and no “small district” shall be created until the said
notice has been given and the hearing had.

Any person interested may answer the said petition and make defense
thereto; and if upon such hearing the court, or the judge thereof in vaca-
tion, as the case may be, be of opinion that any property embraced within
the limits of said proposed “small district” will not be benefited by the
establishment of such district or that the creation of such “small district”
will cause substantial detriment to the sanitary district, then such “small
district” shall not be created.

After the entry of an order creating the “small district’, the board of
supervisors or other governing body of the county, which shall also be
the governing body of the “small district”, may exercise in and with
respect to the “small district’”’ any of those powers and duties conferred or
imposed upon the board of supervisors or other governing body, in sections
three, three-a and three-c hereof with respect to a sanitary district.

Any “small district” heretofore or hereafter created in any county
under the provisions of this section, may be dissolved by an order entered
by the circuit court of such county, or the judge thereof in vacation, upon
the petition of the governing body of the county made pursuant to a resolu-
tion of the governing body of such county duly adopted, or upon the petition
of fifty qualified voters residing within the boundaries of the “‘small dis-
trict” desired to be dissolved, or if the ‘‘small district”? contains less than
one hundred qualified voters, upon the petition of the * fifty per centum
of the qualified voters residing within the boundaries of such “small dis-
trict”. No “small district’? shall be dissolved in which there is a “local
district”, as defined in this act, which has not been dissolved.

Upon filing of the petition, the court, or judge thereof in vacation,
shall fix a day for a hearing on the question of dissolving the “‘small district”
which hearing shall embrace a consideration of whether the property in
the “small district” and in the sanitary district of which the “small district”
is a part, will or will not be benefited by the dissolution thereof and the
court, or judge thereof in vacation, shall be fully informed as to the obli-
gations and functions of the “small district”. Notice of such hearing shall
be given by publication once a week for three consecutive weeks in some
newspaper of general circulation within such county to be designated by the
court, or the judge thereof in vacation. At least ten days shall intervene
between the completion of the publication and the date set for hearing,
and such publication shall be considered complete on the twenty-first day
after the first publication and no such “small district’? shall be dissolved
until the notice has been given and the hearing had.

Any interested parties may appear and be heard on any matters
pertaining to the subject of the hearing.

Upon the hearing, such order shall be made and entered as may seem
equitable and proper, to the court or judge, concerning the dissolution of
the “small district” and the funds on hand to the credit of the “small dis-
trict”. Provided, however, that no such order shall be made dissolving
such “‘small district” unless the purposes for which the “small district” was
created have been completed, or, unless all obligations and functions of the
“small district”? have been taken over by such county or the sanitary district
of which said “small district” is a part or, unless the purposes for which the
“small district” was created are impractical or impossible of accomplish-
ment and any obligations which have been incurred by such “small dis-
trict” shall have been discharged.

On and after the effective date of this amendment, any unpaid charge
which shall become a lien on property in the “small district” by reason
of the failure to pay such charge, shall become a lien superior to the interest
of any owner, lessee or tenant of such property and shall be next in succes-
sion to county taxes and any lien of the sanitary district on the real prop-
erty against which the lien exists. Such lien shall, in all other respects,
be of the same nature as and on parity with a lien of the sanitary district.
The binding effect thereof and method for enforcement shall be as provided
in this act for liens of the sanitary district. Any and all taxes levied or
imposed with respect to the “small district” shall rank equally with and
shall be levied or imposed and collected in the same manner and by use of
the same remedies provided for taxes levied or imposed in the sanitary

istrict.