10101082D
SENATE BILL NO. 503
Offered January 13, 2010
Prefiled January 13, 2010
A BILL to amend and reenact §§3.1, as amended, and 3.6 of
Chapter 35 of the Acts of Assembly of 1974, which provided a charter for the Town
of Fincastle, relating to the town mayor and town council, and to amend such
Chapter by adding a section numbered 4.8, relating to a town manager.
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Patron-- Smith
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Referred to Committee on Local Government
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Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §§3.1, as amended, and 3.6 of Chapter 35 of
the Acts of Assembly of 1974 are amended and reenacted and that such Chapter is
amended by adding a section numbered 4.8 as follows:
§3.1. Election, Qualification and Term of Office of
Councilmen and Mayor.
(a) The town of Fincastle shall be governed by a town council
composed of eight six councilmen
and a mayor, all of whom shall be qualified voters
of the town. However, in the
municipal election in May 1994 and every two years thereafter, there shall be
elected six councilmen and a mayor who shall compose the council.
(b) The mayor and councilmen in office at the time of the
passage of this act shall continue in office until the expiration of the terms
for which they were elected, or until their successors are duly elected and
qualified. An election for mayor
and councilmen shall be held on the first Tuesday in May 1974 and the mayor and
councilmen shall constitute the town council, who shall hold office for a term
of two years from July 1, next following the date of their election and until
their successors have been duly elected and qualified. Elections of mayor and
councilmen shall be on the first Tuesday in May 1974 and on such Tuesday each
two years thereafter. However, beginning in 2010, the town's councilmen and
mayor shall be elected at the time of the November general election and shall
hold office for a term of two years from January 1, next following the date of
their election and until their successors have been duly elected and qualified.
Those councilmen and the mayor whose terms are set to expire on July 1, 2010,
shall have their terms extended for six months until January 1, 2011. Beginning in November
2010, an election for mayor and councilmen shall be held
at the time of the November general election. Following
the November 2010 general election,
the candidate for mayor and three candidates for town council receiving the highest
votes will serve four-year terms and the candidates receiving the next three highest votes will serve two-year terms, from January 1,
next following the date of their election and until their successors have been
duly elected and qualified. Beginning
with the November 2012 general election, the council members
shall be elected for four-year terms, from January 1,
next following the date of their election and until their successors have been
duly elected and qualified.
§3.6. Powers and Duties of Mayor. The mayor shall be the
chief executive officer of the town, unless the town
has in its employ a town manager, as set forth in §4.8 of this charter.
If and when a town manager is
appointed, all executive powers as well as the supervisory powers of the mayor
as to Town employees shall devolve upon him. He Unless
otherwise noted, the town
mayor shall have and exercise all power and authority
conferred by general law not inconsistent with this charter. He shall preside
over the meetings of the town council and shall have the same right to speak and vote therein as members of
the town council, but shall not vote,
except in the case of tie. He shall have the power of veto
over the ordinances and resolutions of the council, but such ordinances and
resolutions may be passed over such veto by a two-thirds vote of the members of
the town council present and voting. He shall be recognized as the head of the
town government for all ceremonial purposes. He shall perform such other duties
consistent with this office as may be imposed by the council. He shall see that the duties of the various town officers are
faithfully performed. In times of public danger or emergencies, he may
take command of the police and maintain order and enforce laws, and for this
purpose may deputize such assistant policemen as may be necessary. He, or the
person acting as mayor, shall authenticate, by his signature, such documents or
instruments as the council, this charter, or the laws of the Commonwealth shall
require.
§4.8. Town Manager. The
town council may appoint a town manager on the basis of executive and administrative qualifications,
who shall serve at the pleasure of the council. The
town manager shall be the executive officer of the
town, and shall be responsible to the town council for the proper
administration of the town government. The salaries and
compensation paid to the town manager shall
be fixed by the council.
It shall be the duty
of the town manager to:
(a) Appoint
such employees as the council shall determine are necessary for the proper administration of the affairs of the
town and, when deemed necessary, suspend or remove any town employees, except
as otherwise provided by the laws of
the Commonwealth or this charter;
(b) Direct and
supervise employees of the town and the administration of all departments,
offices and agencies of the town, except as otherwise provided by the laws of
the Commonwealth or this charter;
(c) Attend
all meetings of the town council, with the right to speak but not to vote;
(d) See
that all laws, provisions of this charter and acts of the council subject to
enforcement by the manager are faithfully
executed;
(e) Prepare
and submit to the town council the
annual budget and capital program of
the town and be responsible for their administration and execution after its adoption;
(f) Make reports as
the council may require upon the affairs of the town and keep the council fully
advised of the town's financial condition and its future financial needs;
(g) Ensure that
adequate and accurate financial and personnel records are maintained with respect
to the financial transactions and employees of the town, respectively; and
(h) Perform
such other duties as may be prescribed by this charter,
or required of him in accordance therewith by the town council, or which may be
required of the chief executive
officer of a town by the general laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia.
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