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ACROSS SESSIONS
- Subject Index: Since 1995
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Developed and maintained by the Division of Legislative Automated Systems.
1998 SESSION
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §§ 1.02, 2.02, 2.03, 2.04.1, 2.06, 3.04 and 3.05 as amended, §§ 4.02 and 4.03, § 4.04 as amended, § 4.05, § 4.10 as amended, § 4.11, § 4.13 as amended, § 4.14, §§ 4.15 and 4.16 as amended, §§ 5.01, 5.02 and 5.03, § 5.05 as amended, § 5.06, §§ 5.07 and 6.02 through 6.05 as amended, §§ 6.07 and 6.08, §§ 6.09, 6.10 and 6.11 as amended, § 6.12, § 6.13 as amended, § 6.14, § 6.16 as amended, § 6.18, §§ 6.19, 6.20, 6.21, 8.01, 8.03 and 8.10 as amended, § 13.01, §§ 13.05, 13.06 and 13.08 as amended, § 13.10, §§ 17.02, 17.06, 17.11 and 17.14 as amended, § 17.19, and §§ 17.20, 18.03, 18.05, 20.10 and 20.11 as amended, of Chapter 116 of the Acts of Assembly of 1948 are amended and reenacted and that Chapter 116 is amended by adding sections numbered 3.06.1, 4.17, and 4.18; a chapter numbered 5A, consisting of sections numbered 5A.01, 5A.02, and 5A.03; a chapter numbered 5B, consisting of sections numbered 5B.01 and 5B.02; and a chapter numbered 7B, consisting of sections numbered 7B.01 through 7B.06, as follows:
§ 1.02. Boundaries.
The boundaries of the city shall be as described in the act of the General Assembly approved March 24, 1926, found in Chapter 318 at page 533 of the Acts of Assembly of 1926 as modified and enlarged by the decree of the Circuit Court of Henrico County entered February 1, 1940, in the annexation proceedings styled City of Richmond versus County of Henrico, which decree was modified, amended and enlarged by decrees of the Supreme Court of Appeals entered June 9, 1941, in accordance with the written opinion of that court in the case styled County of Henrico, Windsor Farms, Incorporated, and others versus City of Richmond, officially reported in volume 177 of the Virginia Reports at page 754, all of which decrees are recorded in the clerk's office of the Circuit Court of the City of Richmond, Division I, in Deed Book 430-C at pages 275 and 292, and as modified and enlarged by the decree of the Circuit Court of Chesterfield County entered November 6, 1941, in the annexation proceeding styled City of Richmond versus County of Chesterfield, which decree is recorded in the clerk's office of the Circuit Court of the City of Richmond, Division I, in Deed Book 429-C, page 421, and in the clerk's office of the Circuit Court of the City of Richmond, Division II, in Deed Book 86-B, page 358, and as modified and enlarged by an order of annexation entered by the Circuit Court of Chesterfield County on July 12, 1969, which order is recorded in the clerk's office of the Circuit Court of Chesterfield County in Chancery Order Book 49, page 210.
§ 2.02. Financial powers.
In addition to the powers granted by other sections of this charter, the city shall have power:
(a) To raise annually by taxes and assessments in the city such sums of money
as the council shall deem necessary to pay the debts and defray the expenses of
the city, in such manner as the council shall deem
expedient;, provided, that such taxes and
assessments are not prohibited by the laws of the Commonwealth. In addition
to, but not as a limitation upon, this general grant of power, the
city shall, when not prohibited by the laws of the Commonwealth, have power to
levy and collect ad valorem taxes on real estate and tangible personal property
and machinery and tools, to levy and collect taxes for admission to
or other charge for any public amusement, entertainment, performance,
exhibition, sport or athletic event in the city, which taxes may be added to
and collected with the price of such admission or other charge; to levy on and
collect taxes from purchasers of any public utility service and from
subscribers to franchised cable antenna television service used within the
city, which taxes may be added to and collected with the bills rendered
purchasers of such service; to require licenses, prohibit the conduct of any
business or profession without such a license, require taxes to be paid on such
licenses in respect of all businesses and professions which cannot, in the
opinion of the council, be reached by the ad valorem system; and to require
licenses of owners of vehicles of all kinds for the privilege of using the
streets, alleys, and other public places in the city, require taxes to be paid
on such licenses and prohibit the use of streets, alleys and other public
places in the city without such licenses; provided, however, that nothing
herein contained shall be construed as permitting the city to levy and collect
directly or indirectly a tax on payrolls.
(b) To borrow money for the purposes and in the manner provided by Chapter
7A 7B of this charter.
(c) To make appropriations, subject to the limitations imposed by this charter, for the support of the city government, and any other purposes not prohibited by this charter and the laws of the Commonwealth.
(d) To appropriate, without being bound by other provisions of this charter,
funds for the purpose of meeting a public emergency threatening the lives,
health or property of the inhabitants of the city;,
provided, that any such appropriation shall require at least seven
affirmative votes in the council and that the ordinance making such
appropriation shall contain a clear statement of the nature and extent of the
emergency.
(e) To accept or refuse gifts, donations, bequests or grants from any source for any purpose related to the powers and duties of the city government.
(f) To provide, or aid in the support of, public libraries and public schools.
(g) To grant financial aid to military units organized in the city in accordance with the laws of the Commonwealth, and to charitable or benevolent institutions and corporations, including those established for scientific, literary or musical purposes or the encouragement of agriculture and the mechanical arts, whose functions further the public purposes of the city.
(h) To establish a system of pensions for injured, retired or superannuated
city officers and employees, members of the police and fire departments,
teachers and other employees of the school board, judges, clerks, deputy
clerks, bailiffs and other employees of the municipal courts, and to establish
a fund or funds for the payment of such pensions by making appropriations out
of the treasury of the city, by levying a special tax for the benefit of such
fund or funds, by requiring contributions payable from time to time from such
officers or employees, or by any combination of these methods or by any other
method not prohibited by law;, provided, that
the total annual payments into such fund or funds shall be sufficient on sound
actuarial principles to provide for the pensions to be paid therefrom; and
provided further, that the benefits accrued or accruing to any person under
such system shall not be subject to execution, levy, attachment, garnishment or
any other process whatsoever nor shall any assignment of such benefits be
enforceable in any court.
(i) To provide for the control and management of the fiscal affairs of the city, and prescribe and require the adoption and keeping of such books, records, accounts and systems of accounting by the departments, boards, commissions, courts or other agencies of the city government provided for by this charter or otherwise by law as may be necessary to give full and true accounts of the affairs, resources and revenues of the city and the handling, use and disposal thereof.
§ 2.03. Powers relating to public works, utilities and properties.
In addition to the powers granted by other sections of this charter, the city shall have power:
(a) To lay out, open, extend, widen, narrow, establish or change the grade of, close, construct, pave, curb, gutter, adorn with shade trees, otherwise improve, maintain, repair, clean and light streets, including limited access or express highways, alleys, bridges, viaducts, subways and underpasses, and make and improve walkways upon streets and improve and pave alleys within the city; and the city shall have the same power and authority over any street, alley or other public place ceded or conveyed to the city or dedicated or devoted to public use as over other streets, alleys and other public places.
(b) To acquire, construct, own, maintain and operate, within and without the city, public parks, parkways, playfields and playgrounds, and to lay out, equip and improve them with all suitable devices, buildings and other structures.
(c) To collect and dispose of garbage and other refuse and to construct, maintain and operate, within and without the city, incinerators, dumps or other facilities for such purposes.
(d) To construct, reconstruct, improve, maintain and operate, within and without the city, sewers, drains, culverts and sewage disposal works, and stormwater control facilities.
(e) To assess the whole or part of the cost of making and improving walkways on then existing streets, improving or paving existing alleys, or constructing sewers, culverts and drains, upon the owners of land abutting thereon or on the street or alley in which such sewer, culvert or drain is laid in the manner provided in § 12.06 of this charter, provided that the amount of such assessment shall not exceed the peculiar benefit resulting to the landowner from the improvement; provided further, that in lieu of any such assessment for the construction of a sewer, culvert or drain, the city may assess and collect an annual sewer tax as compensation for the use thereof, and may provide for the commutation thereof upon such terms and conditions as the council may provide by ordinance, but such assessment shall not be in excess of the peculiar benefit resulting therefrom to such abutting landowners; and provided further, that the city may acquire by condemnation or otherwise any interest or right of any owner of abutting property in the use of any sewer, culvert or drain, and thereafter charge such landowner for the use of such sewer, culvert or drain. The city may order such improvements to be made and the cost thereof apportioned in pursuance of an agreement between the city and the abutting landowners.
(f) To construct, maintain and equip all buildings and other structures
necessary or useful in carrying out the powers and duties of the city. The
city may contract as provided by law with a private party or parties to provide
the financing, site selection, acquisition, construction, maintenance, and
leasing, or any of them, for a jail, juvenile detention facility, or other
correctional facility. Nothing herein shall be interpreted to include
preclude operation of correctional facilities by private
parties.
(g) To sell, lease or dispose of, except as otherwise provided in this charter and in the Constitution and laws of the Commonwealth, land, buildings and other property of the city, real and personal.
(h) To control and regulate the use and management of all property of the city, real and personal.
(i) To acquire, construct and maintain or authorize the construction and maintenance of bridges, viaducts, subways or underpasses over or under the James River or any other stream, creek or ravine when any portion of such bridge, viaduct, subway or underpass is within the city limits, and to charge or authorize the charging of tolls for their use by the public, and to require compensation for their use by public utility, transmission or transportation companies, except as the right to require such compensation is affected by any contract heretofore or hereafter made with the company concerned; provided that no tolls or compensation shall ever be imposed or collected for the use of "Robert E. Lee Bridge" by any vehicle or pedestrian.
(j) To authorize by ordinance, in accordance with the Constitution and laws of the Commonwealth, the use of the streets for the laying down of street railway tracks and the operation of street railways therein under such conditions and regulations as may be prescribed by such ordinance or by any future ordinance, or to acquire by agreement or condemnation any such street railway and maintain and operate the same.
(k) To acquire, construct, own, maintain and operate, within and without the city, places for the parking or storage of vehicles by the public, which shall include but shall not be limited to parking lots, garages, buildings and other land, structures, equipment and facilities, when in the opinion of the council they are necessary to relieve congestion in the use of streets and to reduce hazards incident to such use; provide for their management and control by a department of the city government or by a board, commission or agency specially established by ordinance for the purpose; authorize or permit others to use, operate or maintain such places or any portions thereof, pursuant to lease or agreement, upon such terms and conditions as the council may determine by ordinance; and charge or authorize the charging of compensation for the parking or storage of vehicles or other services at or in such places.
(l) To acquire, construct, own, maintain and operate, within and without the city, airports and all the appurtenances thereof; provide for their management and control by a department of the city government or by a board, commission or agency specially established by ordinance for the purpose; charge or authorize the charging of compensation for the use of any such airport or any of its appurtenances; lease any appurtenance of any such airport or any concession incidental thereto or, in the discretion of the council, lease any such airport and its appurtenances with the right to all concessions thereon to, or enter into a contract for the management and operation of the same with, any person, firm or corporation on such terms and conditions as the council may determine by ordinance.
(m) To acquire, construct, own, maintain and operate, within and without the city, stadia, arenas, swimming pools and other sport facilities; provide for their management and control by a department of the city government or by a board, commission or agency specially established by ordinance for the purpose; charge or authorize the charging of compensation for the use of or admission to such stadia, arenas, swimming pools and other sport facilities, including charges for any services incidental thereto; and lease, subject to such regulations as may be established by ordinance, any such stadium, arena, swimming pool or other sport facility or any concession incidental thereto, or enter into a contract with any person, firm or corporation for the management and operation of any such stadium, arena, swimming pool or other sport facility, including the right to all concessions incident to the subject of such contract, on such terms and conditions as the council may determine by ordinance.
(n) To acquire, construct, own, maintain and operate, within and without the city, water works, gas plants and electric plants with the pipe and transmission lines incident thereto, to be managed and controlled as provided in Chapter 13 of this charter, for the purpose of supplying water, gas and electricity within and without the city, and to charge and collect compensation therefor and to provide penalties for the unauthorized use thereof.
(o) To acquire, construct, own, maintain and operate, within and without the city, landings, wharves, docks, canals and the approaches to and appurtenances thereof, tracks, spurs, crossings, switchings, terminals, warehouses and terminal facilities of every kind and description necessary or useful in the transportation and storage of goods, wares and merchandise; perform any and all services in connection with the receipt, delivery, shipment and transfer in transit, weighing, marking, tagging, ventilating, refrigerating, icing, storing and handling of goods, wares and merchandise; prescribe and collect charges from vessels coming into or using any of the landings, wharves, and docks, and from persons using any of the facilities above described; provide for the management and control of such facilities or any of them by a department of the city government or by a board, commission or agency specially established by ordinance for the purpose; lease any or all of such facilities or any concessions properly incident thereto to any person, firm or corporation, or contract with any person, firm or corporation for the maintenance and operation of any or all of such facilities on such terms and conditions as the council may determine by ordinance; apply to the proper authorities of the United States to grant to the city the privilege of establishing, maintaining and operating a foreign trade zone within or without the city; regulate the use of other landings, wharves and docks located on the James River within and without the city; prevent and remove obstructions from the harbor of the James River and in, upon or near the landings, wharves, docks or canals adjacent thereto, and collect from the person or persons responsible for such obstructions the cost of their removal; close or discontinue the use of any such wharf, landing, dock or canal now owned or hereafter acquired by the city and upon the closing or discontinuance of such use the same shall thereupon be forever discharged from any public use or easement or from any obligation theretofore imposed by reason of such public use or easement by statute or otherwise, provided that the dock or any part thereof conveyed by the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway Company to the William R. Trigg Company, by deed dated June 1, 1901, in accordance with the provisions of the act of assembly approved February 15, 1901, and which dock is now owned by the city may be maintained and operated by the city for such other public purposes as authorized by the city council, but further provided if said dock shall be closed by the city to such public use and purpose and filled in, the city shall make provision for disposing of the water required by said dock and shall at its own cost and expense maintain the provision so made and the city shall have the right to use or dispose of the land upon which the said landing, wharf, dock or canal may be located, together with all lands or other rights appurtenant thereto, to the same extent as if the said landing, wharf, dock, canal or lands, or right thereto belonging, had never been charged with any public use or easement; improve and keep in good, safe and navigable condition the James River in the corporate limits and within twenty miles thereof, and may hold, lease, sell or otherwise dispose of all lands or interest therein acquired for the improvement of the James River and navigation and for the construction of canals or widening the river; and provide and operate such connections by ferries, bridges, or otherwise, as may be necessary for transportation between the section of land divided by such canals.
(p) To construct, own, maintain, operate and equip a visitors center and incidental parking, playgrounds and facilities.
§ 2.04.1. Human rights commission.
The city shall also have the power:
To establish a human relations commission consisting of fifteen citizens
to be appointed by the council. Of the fifteen members of the commission, five
members shall be appointed for terms expiring June 30, 1973, five members for
terms expiring June 30, 1974, and five members for terms expiring June 30,
1975. Thereafter appointments shall be for terms of three years, such members
shall be eligible for reappointment for one additional term. The commission
shall elect a chairman and may elect an executive committee and such other
officers as may be required for performing its duties and responsibilities. The
human relations commission shall promote mutual understanding and respect among
all social, racial, cultural, ethnic and minority groups in the city and seek
solutions to problems concerning citizens of the city with the objective of
providing an environment in which each citizen shall have equal opportunity to
grow to his maximum potential.
The powers granted the council, certain city officials, boards and
commissions of the city by § 4.16 of this charter shall not apply to the
human relations commission.
There may be an executive director of the human relations commission who
shall be appointed by the council for an indefinite term, and who shall be a
member of the unclassified service of the City of Richmond. All other
employees of the commission shall be in the classified service.
The city shall have the power to establish a human rights commission consistent with the provisions of § 15.2-965 of the Code of Virginia.
§ 2.06. Enforcement of regulations.
When by the provisions of this charter or the Constitution and general laws of
the Commonwealth the city is authorized to pass ordinances on any subject, the
council may provide suitable penalties for the violation of any such
ordinances, including ordinances effective outside the city as provided in this
charter. No such penalty shall exceed the maximum fine permitted under state
law for violation of a Class 1 misdemeanor or confinement for twelve months or
both. Upon conviction for violation of any ordinance, the court
trying the case may require bond of the person so convicted with proper
security in the penalty of not more than two thousand dollars, conditioned to
keep the peace and be of good behavior and especially for the period of not
more than one year not to violate the ordinance for the breach of which
he/she has been convicted. From any fine or confinement
imposed, an appeal shall lie as in cases of misdemeanor. Whenever
any fine or penalty shall be imposed but not paid, the court trying
the case may, unless an appeal be forthwith taken, issue a writ of fieri facias
directed to the sergeant of the city for the collection of the
amount due, returnable within sixty days from its issuance. The city is hereby
expressly authorized and empowered to institute and maintain a suit or suits to
restrain by injunction the violation of any ordinance legally adopted by it,
notwithstanding such ordinance may provide penalties for its violation.
§ 3.04. Vacancies in office of councilman.
Vacancies in the office of councilman, from whatever cause arising, shall be
filled for the unexpired portion of the term by majority vote of the
remaining members of the council or, if the council shall fail to fill a
vacancy in its membership within thirty days of the occurrence of the vacancy,
by appointment by the chief judge of the circuit court of the city of
Richmond in accordance with general law applicable to interim
appointments and special elections, provided that, any provision in the general
law to the contrary notwithstanding, a special election may be called to fill
any such vacancy if the vacancy occurs more than one year prior to the
expiration of the full term of the office to be filled.
§ 3.05. Election of other city officers.
All other city officers required by the laws of the Commonwealth to be elected
by the qualified voters of the city other than the clerk of the court of
record shall be elected on the first Tuesday following the first Monday in
November preceding the expiration of the terms of office of their respective
predecessors, for such terms as are prescribed by law. All such elective
officers shall be nominated and elected as provided in the general laws of the
Commonwealth. The clerks of the court of record, the Circuit Court of the City
of Richmond (Thirteenth Circuit), Division I and Division II, shall be
nominated and elected at the time, for the terms and in the manner prescribed
by the general laws of the Commonwealth. Vacancies in elective offices
referred to in this section shall be filled by appointment in
accordance with general law as follows: In the office of the clerk of a
court, by the court (Circuit Court, Division I, by the judges of such division;
Circuit Court, Division II, by judges of such division); in the office of
sheriff, by the Circuit Court, Division I, of the city; in the office of the
attorney for the Commonwealth or city treasurer, by the Circuit Court of the
City of Richmond, Division I; or in any of the above cases, by the chief judge
of the designated court in vacation. The officers so elected or
appointed shall qualify in the mode prescribed by law and shall continue in
office until their successors are elected and qualified.
§ 3.06.1. Submission of proposition to voters.
The council shall have authority to order, by resolution directed to the Circuit Court of the City of Richmond, the submission to the qualified voters of the city, for an advisory referendum thereon, any proposed ordinance or amendment to the city charter. Upon the receipt of such resolution, the Circuit Court of the City of Richmond shall order an election to be held in accordance with the applicable provisions of Article 5 (§ 24.2-681 et seq.) of Chapter 6 of Title 24.2 of the Code of Virginia. Following certification of the election results by the Electoral Board to the Circuit Court, the Court shall enter an order proclaiming the results of the election, and a duly certified copy of the order shall be transmitted to the council, which may take such further action as it may deem advisable and in the best interests of the city.
If a petition requesting the submission of an amendment to this charter, set forth in such petition, signed by qualified voters equal in number to ten percent or more of the largest number of votes cast in any general or primary election held in the city during the five years immediately preceding, is filed with the clerk of the Circuit Court of the City of Richmond, he/she shall forthwith certify that fact to the Court. The process and requirements for voter petitions established under state law shall be applicable to voter petitions provided for under this section, except to the extent of any conflict with requirements set forth in this charter. Upon the certification of such petition, the Circuit Court of the City of Richmond shall determine that the proposed charter amendment pertains only to the structure or administration of the city government. When such determination has been made, the court shall order an election to be held in accordance with the applicable provisions of Article 5 (§ 24.2-681 et seq.) of Chapter 6 of Title 24.2 of the Code of Virginia, in which such proposed amendment shall be submitted to the qualified voters of the city for their approval or disapproval. If a majority of those voting thereon at such election approve the proposed amendment, such result shall be communicated by the clerk of the Circuit Court of the City of Richmond to the representatives of the city in the General Assembly with the same effect as if the council had adopted a resolution requesting the General Assembly to adopt the amendment.
§ 4.02. Powers.
All powers vested in the city shall be exercised by the council except as otherwise provided in this charter. In addition to the foregoing, the council shall have the following powers:
(a) To provide for the organization, conduct and operation of all departments, bureaus, divisions, boards, commissions, offices and agencies of the city.
(b) To create, alter or abolish departments, bureaus, divisions, boards, commissions, offices and agencies other than those specifically established by this charter.
(c) To create, alter or abolish and to assign and reassign to departments, all bureaus, divisions, offices and agencies except where such bureaus, divisions, offices or agencies are specifically assigned by this charter.
(d) To provide for the number, titles, qualifications, powers,
duties and compensation of all officers and employees of the city, subject in
the case of members of the classified service to the provisions of
Chapter 9 § 5A.03 of this charter.
(e) To provide for the form of oaths and the amount and condition of surety bonds to be required of certain officers and employees of the city.
§ 4.03. Mayor.
On the first Tuesday in September 1948, on the first day of July 1950 and on the first day of July of every second year thereafter, or if such day shall fall on Sunday then on the following Monday, the newly elected council, having taken the oath of office as hereinafter provided, shall proceed to choose by majority vote of all the members thereof one of their number to be mayor and one to be vice-mayor for the ensuing two years. The mayor shall preside over the meetings of the council and shall have the same right to vote and speak therein as other members. He/She shall be recognized as the head of the city government for all ceremonial purposes, the purposes of military law and the service of civil process. The vice-mayor shall in the absence or disability of the mayor perform the duties of mayor, and if a vacancy shall occur in the office of mayor shall become mayor for the unexpired portion of the term. In the absence or disability of both the mayor and vice-mayor the council shall by majority vote of those present choose one of their number to perform the duties of mayor.
§ 4.04. City clerk.
The council shall appoint a city clerk for an indefinite term.
He/She shall be the clerk of the council, shall keep the journal of
its proceedings and shall file the original draft of all ordinances and shall
maintain an index of all such ordinances. He/She shall be the
custodian of the corporate seal of the city and shall be the officer authorized
to use and authenticate it. All records in his/her office shall be
public records and open to inspection at any time during regular business
hours. He/She shall receive compensation to be fixed by the council
and all fees received by him/her shall be paid into the city
treasury. He/She shall appoint and remove, subject to the
provisions of Chapter 9 of this charter, an assistant city clerk, who
shall be authorized to act as city clerk in the absence or disability of the
city clerk, and all deputies and other employees in his/her office,
and shall have such other powers and duties as may be prescribed by this
charter or by ordinance.
§ 4.05. Induction of members.
The first meeting of a newly elected council shall take place in the council
chamber in the city hall at ten o'clock A.M. on the first day of July
following their election, or if such day shall fall on Sunday then on the
following Monday, provided that the council first elected under this charter
shall hold its first meeting on the first Tuesday in September 1948
as provided for by general law. It shall be called to order by the city
clerk who shall administer the oath of office to the duly elected members. In
the absence of the city clerk, the meeting may be called to order
and the oath administered by any judicial officer having jurisdiction in the
city. The council shall be the judge of the election and qualifications of its
members, but the decision of the council in this matter shall be
subject to review by the hustings court Circuit Court of
the City of Richmond. The first business of the council shall be the election
of a mayor and vice-mayor and the adoption of rules of procedure. Until this
business has been completed, the council shall not adjourn for a
period longer than forty-eight hours.
§ 4.10. Procedure for passing ordinances.
An ordinance may be introduced by any member or committee of the council or by
the city manager at any regular meeting of the council or at any special
meeting when the subject thereof has been included in the notice for such
special meeting or has been approved by the unanimous consent of all the
members of the council. Upon introduction it shall receive its first
reading and a time, not less than seven days after such introduction, and
place shall be set at which the council or a committee thereof will hold a
public hearing on such ordinance, provided that the council may reject any
ordinance on first reading without a hearing thereon by vote of six members.
The hearing may be held separately or in connection with a regular or special
meeting of the council and may be adjourned from time to time. It shall be the
duty of the city clerk to cause to be published printed
in a daily newspaper of published or in
general circulation published in the city, not later than the
fifth day before the public hearing on the proposed ordinance, a
notice containing the time and place of the hearing and the title of the
proposed ordinance. It shall also be his/her duty, not
later than the fifth day before the public hearing, to cause its
full text to be printed or otherwise reproduced, as the council may by
resolution direct, in sufficient numbers to supply copies to those who
individually request them, or, if the council shall so order, to
cause the same to be published printed as a paid
advertisement in a newspaper of published or in general
circulation published in the city. It shall further be
his/her duty to place a copy of the ordinance in a file provided
each member of the council for this purpose. A proposed ordinance, unless it
be is an emergency ordinance, shall be read a second
time and may be finally passed at a regular meeting of the council
following the introduction of the ordinance and after the conclusion of the
public hearing thereon. If on its second reading an ordinance,
other than an emergency ordinance, be is amended as to
its substance, it shall not be passed until it shall be reprinted,
reproduced or published as amended, and a hearing shall be set and
advertised and all proceedings had as in the case of a newly introduced
ordinance.
§ 4.11. Emergency ordinances.
An emergency ordinance for the immediate preservation of the public peace,
health and safety may be read a second time and passed with or without
amendment at any regular or special meeting subsequent to the meeting at which
the ordinance was introduced, provided that prior to its passage the full text
of the original ordinance has been published printed in a
daily newspaper of published or in general
circulation published in the city. An emergency ordinance must
contain a specific statement of the emergency claimed and six affirmative votes
shall be necessary for its adoption.
§ 4.13. Record and publication of ordinances.
Every ordinance after passage shall be given a serial number and shall be retained by the clerk in a permanent file kept for that purpose and the clerk shall maintain a permanent card or similar index. Within one year after the first Tuesday in September 1948 there shall be prepared under the direction of the city attorney, who is hereby authorized to employ such assistance as he/she deems necessary for the purpose, a codification of all ordinances in force. Such codification shall be passed by the council as a single ordinance and without prior publication. Upon its passage it shall be published in bound or loose-leaf form. This codification, to be known and cited officially as the city code, shall be furnished to city officers and shall be sold to the public at a price to be fixed by the council. A similar codification shall be prepared, passed, published and distributed, as above provided, at least every five years. It shall be the duty of the city clerk to cause all ordinances adopted to be printed as promptly as possible after their adoption in substantially the same style and format as the codification of ordinances and sold at such prices as the council may establish.
§ 4.14. Appointments and Removals.
The council in making appointments and removals shall act only by the affirmative votes of at least five members. It may remove any person appointed by it for an indefinite term, provided that the person sought to be removed shall have been served with a written notice of the intention of the council to remove him/her, containing a clear statement of the grounds for such removal and fixing the time and place, not less than ten days after the service of such notice, at which he/she shall be given an opportunity to be heard thereon. After the hearing, which shall be public at the option of the person sought to be removed and at which he/she may be represented by counsel, the decision of the council shall be final.
§ 4.15. Removal of councilmen and members of boards and commissions; forfeiture of office or enforcement for certain convictions.
Any member of the council or any member of a board or commission,
including the school board, appointed by the council for a specified term
may be removed by the council but only for malfeasance in office or neglect of
duty. He/She shall be entitled to notice and hearing as provided by
the preceding section in the case of officers appointed for indefinite terms.
It shall be the duty of the council, at the request of the person sought to be
removed, to subpoena witnesses whose testimony would be pertinent to the matter
in hand. From the decision of the council an appeal shall lie to the Circuit
Court of the City of Richmond, Division I. Any officer, elective or
appointive, or employee of the city who shall be convicted by a final judgment
of any court from which no appeal has been taken or which has been affirmed by
a court of last resort on a charge involving moral turpitude or any felony or
any misdemeanor involving possession of marijuana or any controlled substances
shall forfeit his/her office or employment.
§ 4.16. Powers of investigation.
(a) The council, or any committee of members of the council when authorized by
the council, shall have power to make such investigations relating to the
municipal affairs of the city as it may deem necessary, and shall have power to
investigate any or all departments, boards, commissions, offices and agencies
of the city government, including the school board, and
any officer or employee of the city, concerning the performance of their duties
and functions and use of property of the city.
(b) The city manager and the heads of all departments, and all boards and commissions whose members are appointed by the council and the city auditor, shall have power to make such investigations in connection with the performance of their duties and functions as they may deem necessary, and shall have power to investigate any officer or employee appointed by them or pursuant to their authority concerning the performance of duty and use of property of the city.
(c) The council, or any committee of members of the council when authorized by
the council, the city manager, the heads of departments, and boards and
commissions whose members are appointed by the council and the city auditor, in
an investigation held by any of them, may order the attendance of any person as
a witness and the production by any person of all relevant books and papers.
Any person, having been ordered to attend, or to produce such books and papers,
who refuses or fails to obey such order, or who having attended, refuses or
fails to answer any question relevant or pertinent to the matter under
investigation shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction
shall be punishable punished by a fine not exceeding one
hundred dollars or imprisonment in jail not exceeding thirty days, either or
both. Every such person shall have the right of appeal to the Circuit Court of
the City of Richmond, Division I. The investigating authority shall cause
every person who violates the provision provisions of
this section to be summoned before the general district court criminal division
for trial. Witnesses shall be sworn by the person presiding at such
investigation, and they shall be liable to prosecution or suit for damages for
perjury for any false testimony given at such investigation.
§ 4.17. City attorney.
The city attorney shall be the chief legal advisor of the council, the city manager and all departments, boards, commissions and agencies of the city in all matters affecting the interests of the city. The city attorney shall perform particular duties and functions as assigned by the council. The city attorney shall be appointed by the council, shall serve at its pleasure, and shall devote full time and attention to the representation of the city and the protection of its legal interests. The city attorney shall have the power to appoint and remove assistants or any other employees as shall be authorized by the council and to authorize any assistant or special counsel to perform any of the duties imposed upon him/her in this charter or under general law.
§ 4.18. City auditor.
There shall be a city auditor who shall be appointed by the council for an indefinite term. He/She shall have been certified as a certified public accountant by the Virginia State Board of Accountancy or by the examining board of any other state which extends to and is extended reciprocity by the Commonwealth of Virginia, and shall be qualified by training and experience for the duties of his/her office. In performing his/her duties, he/she shall have access at any and all times to all books, records and accounts of each department and agency subject to examination and audit by him/her.
§ 5.01. Appointment and Qualifications.
There shall be a city manager who shall be the chief executive officer of the city and shall be responsible to the council for the proper administration of the city government. He/She shall be appointed by the council for an indefinite term. He/She shall be chosen solely on the basis of his/her executive and administrative qualifications, with special reference to his/her actual experience in or knowledge of accepted practice in respect to the duties of his/her office. At the time of his/her appointment he/she need not be a resident of the city or the Commonwealth but during his/her tenure of office he/she shall reside within the city.
§ 5.02. Power of appointment and removal.
The city manager shall appoint for an indefinite term and remove, subject
to the provisions of chapter 9 of this charter and except as otherwise provided
in this charter, the heads of all departments and all other officers and
employees of the city; provided that where the council is given power by this
charter to establish a board or commission for any purpose the council may
provide for the appointment of the members of such board or commission by the
city manager or by the council, and for the appointment by such board or
commission of its employees, and may specify which, if any, of such employees
shall not be included in the classified service. The city manager shall have
power to remove any officer or employee appointed by him except a member of the
classified service, provided that the officer or employee shall have been
served with a written notice of the intention of the city manager to remove
him, containing a clear statement of the grounds for such removal and of the
time and place, not less than ten days after the service of such notice, at
which he shall be given an opportunity to be heard. After such hearing, which
shall be public at the option of such officer or employee, the action of the
city manager shall be final. Pending final action, the city manager may suspend
from duty for not more than sixty days any such officer or employee.
The city manager shall appoint for an indefinite term qualified officers and
employees to head all the administrative departments of the city, and shall
appoint, dismiss and discipline, in accordance with the city's personnel
regulations, all officers and employees in such departments, except as
otherwise specifically provided by law or this charter. Department heads who
are appointed by the city manager shall serve at the pleasure of the city
manager.
The city manager shall designate himself/herself or some other officer or employee to perform the duties of any office or position of the administrative service under his/her control which is vacant or which lacks administration due to the absence or disability of the incumbent.
§ 5.03. Council not to interfere in either appointments, assignment or use of, or removals.
Neither the council nor any of its members shall direct or request the appointment of any person to or his/her removal from any office or employment by the city manager or by any of his/her subordinates or in any way take part in either the appointment of, assignment or use of, or removal of officers and employees of the city except as specifically provided in this charter. Except for the purpose of inquiry, the council and its members shall deal with the administrative services solely through the city manager, and neither the council nor any member thereof shall give orders either publicly or privately to any subordinate of the city manager. Any councilman violating the provisions of this section or voting for a motion, resolution or ordinance in violation of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall cease to be a councilman.
§ 5.05. General duties.
It shall be the duty of the city manager to:
(a) Attend all meetings of the council with the right to speak but not to vote;
(b) Keep the council advised of the financial condition and the future needs of the city and of all matters pertaining to its proper administration, and make such recommendations as may seem to him/her desirable;
(c) Prepare and submit the annual budget to the council as provided in Chapter 6 of this charter and be responsible for its administration after its adoption;
(d) Prepare in suitable form for publication and submit to the council not
later than the first regular meeting of council following submission of the
report required to be made to the Auditor of Public Accounts of the
Commonwealth pursuant to the provisions of § 15.1-166 of the Code of
Virginia or other applicable requirement of state law, a concise report
of the financial transactions and administrative activities of the city
government during the fiscal year ending on the preceding thirtieth day of June
and cause to be printed such number of copies thereof as the council shall
direct;
(e) Present adequate financial and activity reports at each regular
meeting of as required by the council;
(f) Perform such other duties as may be prescribed by this charter or required
of him/her in accordance therewith by the council or which may be
required of the chief executive officer of a city by the general laws of the
Commonwealth other than the duties conferred on the mayor by this charter;
provided, however, that the appointment of members of a
redevelopment and housing authority in the city shall be made by the council;
and
(g) Issue such regulations as may be necessary in order to implement his/her duties and powers; and
(h) Fulfill the city's responsibilities for maintaining cemeteries as provided for in § 2.05(d) of the charter and § 15.2-1121 of the Code of Virginia.
§ 5.06. Relations with boards, commissions and agencies.
The city manager shall have the right to attend and participate in the
proceedings of, but not to vote in, the meetings of all boards, commissions or
agencies created by this charter or by ordinance, except the school board,
the personnel board, and the board of zoning appeals.
§ 5.07. Acting city manager.
The council shall designate by ordinance the head of a department, bureau or
other officer appointed by the city manager, to act as city manager in case of
the absence, incapacity, death or resignation of the city manager, until
his/her return to duty or the appointment of his/her
successor. The city manager shall designate from time to time an employee
in each department or bureau or agency, the head of which is appointed by him,
to act as director of the department or head of the bureau or agency in case of
the absence, incapacity, death or resignation of the director or head of the
bureau or agency, until his return to duty or the appointment of his successor,
except as otherwise provided by this charter.
§ 5A.01. Creation of departments.
The city council may establish administrative departments, bureaus, divisions, or offices, or may alter, combine or abolish existing administrative departments, bureaus, divisions or offices; however, neither the council nor the city manager shall have the power to alter the purpose of, combine, transfer or abolish any department created by this charter.
§ 5A.02. Responsibility of department heads.
There shall be a director appointed by the city manager as the head of each administrative department. Such directors shall be chosen on the basis of their executive and administrative ability, experience and education, and shall serve at the pleasure of the city manager.
§ 5A.03. Personnel rules and regulations.
The council, upon receiving any recommendations submitted to it by the city manager, shall establish a personnel system for the city administrative officials and employees. Such system shall be based on merit and professional ability and shall not discriminate on the basis of race, national origin, religion, sex, age, disabilities, political affiliation, or marital status. The personnel system shall consist of rules and regulations which provide for the general administration of personnel matters, a classification plan for employees, a uniform pay plan and a procedure for resolving grievances of employees as provided by general law for either local government or state government employees.
§ 5B.01. Retirement system established.
The retirement system for the city employees hitherto established by ordinance shall continue in force and effect subject to the right of the council to amend or repeal the same as set forth in such ordinance. From and after July 1, 1978, the Board of Trustees of the Richmond Retirement System shall consist of seven members appointed by the council for terms of three years. Any vacancy shall be filled for the unexpired portion of the term. Of the members so appointed, two shall always be members of the classified service. Such members of the Board of Trustees of the Richmond Retirement System shall have the responsibility of the supervision of the administration of the retirement plan, the determination of eligibility for the receipt of retirement benefits, the award of retirement benefits as authorized by ordinance of the City of Richmond, and such other duties as have heretofore been exercised by the Board of Trustees of the Richmond Retirement System other than fiduciary responsibilities concerning the management, control and investment of the financial resources of the Richmond Retirement System. The council of the City of Richmond may appoint and employ a corporation, vested with fiduciary powers under either the laws of the United States or the Commonwealth of Virginia, to be responsible for the investment of the funds of the Richmond Retirement System, which funds shall include any securities which may now or hereafter be part of the assets of such Richmond Retirement System. The director of finance shall be the disbursing officer for the payment of benefits awarded by the trustees of the Richmond Retirement System and as such shall perform such duties as may be required of him/her by ordinance but shall receive no additional compensation on account of such duties.
§ 5B.02. Post-retirement supplements.
(a) In addition to the allowance authorized to be paid under § 51.1-801 of the Code of Virginia, the council may, by ordinance, provide for post-retirement supplements, payable in accordance with the provisions of this section, to the recipients of such allowances. Such supplements shall be subject to the same conditions of payment as are such allowances.
(b) The amounts of the post-retirement supplements provided for hereunder shall be determined as percentages of the allowances authorized to be supplemented hereby. Such percentages may be determined by reference to the increase, if any, in the United States Average Consumer Price Index for all items, as published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor, from its monthly average for the calendar year in which the allowance initially commenced as a result of the death or retirement of a member of a system of retirement authorized by § 5B.01 to its monthly average for the calendar year immediately prior to the calendar year as of which the amount of the post-retirement supplement is determined. Such supplement may be either the percentage computed from the actual increase in such index or some percentage of such actual increase.
(c) Amounts of post-retirement supplements shall be determined initially by the ordinance adopting the same, and thereafter as may be provided by ordinance.
(d) Any ordinance adopted hereunder may be retroactive to the extent that the council has heretofore appropriated funds for post-retirement supplements, which appropriation has been otherwise unexpended.
§ 6.02. Submission.
On a day to be fixed by the council, but in no case later than the seventh day
of April in each year, the city manager shall submit to the council: (a)
separate current expense budgets for the general operation of the city
government, hereinafter referred to as the general fund budget, for
the public schools and for each utility as defined in Chapter 13 of this
charter; (b) a budget message; and (c) a capital budget.
§ 6.03. Preparation.
It shall be the duty of the head of each department, the judges of the
municipal courts, each board or commission, including the school board, and
each other office or agency supported in whole or in part by the city,
including the attorney for the Commonwealth, to file with the budget
officer provide, at such time as the city manager may
prescribe, estimates of revenue and expenditure for that department, court,
board, commission, office or agency for the ensuing fiscal year. Such
estimates shall be submitted on the forms furnished by the budget officer
in a form as determined by the city manager, and it shall be
the duty of the head of each such department, judge, board, commission, office
or agency to supply all of the information which the city manager may require
to be submitted thereon. The budget officer shall assemble and compile
these estimates and in cooperation with the director of finance supply such
additional information relating to the financial transactions of the city as
may be necessary or valuable to the city manager in the preparation of the
budgets. The city manager shall hold such hearings as he/she
may deem advisable and with the assistance of the budget officer
shall review the estimates and other data pertinent to the preparation of the
budgets and make such revisions in such estimates as he/she may deem
proper, subject to the laws of the Commonwealth relating to obligatory
expenditures for any purpose, except that in the case of the school
board, he/she may recommend a revision only in its total
estimated expenditure.
§ 6.04. Scope of the budget.
In respect of to each utility there shall be included in
the general fund budget estimates only the net amounts estimated to
be received from or to be appropriated to such utility in the general
fund budget as provided in § 6.13. In respect to the public
schools, there shall be included only the total amount to be appropriated by
the city for their support. The general fund budget shall be
prepared in accordance with accepted principles of municipal accounting and
budgetary procedures and techniques and shall contain:.
(a) An estimate of such portion of the general fund undesignated fund
balance, if any, at the end of the current fiscal year, including an estimate
of expenditures, payments on principal and interest, in relation to evidences
of debt to be issued during the year, as it is proposed to use for meeting
expenditures in the general fund budget;
(b) An estimate of the receipts from current ad valorem taxes on real
estate and tangible personal property during the ensuing fiscal year, assuming
that the proportion of the levy collected be no greater than the average
proportion of the levy collected in the last three completed tax years;
(c) An estimate of receipts from all other sources of revenue based on an
analysis by the city manager;
(d) A statement to be furnished by the director of finance of the debt
service requirements for the ensuing year;
(e) An estimate of any deficit in the undesignated fund balance, if any,
at the end of the current fiscal year and of any other obligations required by
this charter to be budgeted for the ensuing fiscal year;
(f) An estimate of expenditures for all other purposes to be met from the
general fund in the ensuing fiscal year.
All the estimates shall be in detail showing receipts by sources and
expenditures by operating units, character and object, so arranged as to show
receipts and expenditures as estimated for the current fiscal year and actual
receipts and expenditures for the last preceding fiscal year in comparison with
estimated receipts and recommended expenditures for the ensuing fiscal
year.
The budget shall provide a complete financial plan of all city funds and activities for the ensuing fiscal year and, except as required by law or this charter, shall be in such form as the city manager deems desirable or the city council may require. The budget shall begin with a clear general summary of its contents; shall show in detail all estimated income, indicating the proposed property tax levy, and all proposed expenditures, including debt service, for the ensuing fiscal year; and shall be so arranged as to show comparative figures for actual and estimated income and expenditures of the current fiscal year and actual income and expenditures of the preceding fiscal year.
§ 6.05. Balanced budget required.
In no event shall the expenditures recommended by the city manager in the
general fund budget exceed the receipts estimated, taking into account the
estimated undesignated fund balance or deficit in undesignated fund balance at
the end of the current fiscal year, as provided in the preceding section,
unless the city manager shall recommend an increase in the rate of ad valorem
taxes on real estate and tangible personal property or other new or increased
taxes or licenses within the power of the city to levy and collect in the
ensuing fiscal year the receipts from which, estimated on the basis of the
average experience with the same or similar taxes during the three tax years
last past, will make up the difference. If estimated receipts exceed estimated
expenditures the city manager may recommend revisions in the tax and license
ordinances of the city in order to bring the general fund budget into
balance. For any fund, the total of proposed expenditures shall not
exceed the total of the estimated income plus the carried-forward fund balance.
§ 6.07. Appropriation and additional tax ordinances.
At the same time that he/she submits the general fund
budget, the city manager shall introduce in the council a
general fund any appropriation ordinance required.
The appropriation ordinance shall be based on the general fund
budget but need not be itemized further than by departments and the
major operating units thereof, and by courts, bureaus, boards, commissions,
offices and agencies submitting separate budget estimates, and by the principal
objects of expenditure. At the same time, the city manager
shall also introduce any ordinance or ordinances altering the tax rate on real
estate and tangible personal property or levying a new tax or altering the rate
of any other tax necessary to balance the general fund budget as
hereinbefore provided. The hearing on the budget plan as a whole, as provided
in § 6.09, shall constitute the hearing on all ordinances referred to in
this section, and the appropriation ordinances for each utility.
§ 6.08. Distribution of copies of budget message and budgets.
The city manager shall cause the budget message to be printed, mimeographed or
otherwise reproduced for general distribution at the time of its submission to
the council and sufficient copies of the general fund, school and utility
budgets to be made to supply copies to each member of the council and each
daily newspaper of published or in general
circulation published in the city and two copies to be deposited in
the office of the city clerk where they shall be open to public inspection
during regular business hours.
§ 6.09. Public hearings on budget plan.
A public hearing on the budget plan as a whole shall be held by the council
within the time and after the notice provided for hearings on ordinances by
§ 4.10 of this charter, except that the notice of such hearing shall be
published printed in a daily newspaper of
published or in general circulation published in
the city.
§ 6.10. Action by council on budget generally.
After the conclusion of the public hearing, the council may insert
new items of expenditure or may increase, decrease or strike out items of
expenditure in the general fund budget, except that no item of
expenditure for debt service or required to be included by this charter or
other provision of law shall be reduced or stricken out. The council shall not
alter the estimates of receipts contained in the said budget except to correct
omissions or mathematical errors, and it shall not cause the total
of expenditures as recommended by the manager to be increased without a public
hearing on such increase, which shall be held not less than five days after
notice thereof by publication has been printed in a
daily newspaper of published or in general
circulation published in the city. The council shall in no event
adopt a general fund budget in which the total of expenditures
exceeds the receipts, estimated as provided in § 6.04, unless at the same
time it adopts measures for providing additional revenue in the ensuing fiscal
year, estimated as provided in § 6.05, sufficient to make up
this difference.
§ 6.11. Adoption of budget, appropriation ordinance and ordinances for additional revenue.
Not later than the thirty-first day of May in each year the council shall adopt
the general fund budget, the general fund appropriation
ordinance ordinances and such ordinances providing for
additional revenue as may be necessary to put the budget in balance. If for
any reason the council fails to adopt the general fund budget on or
before such day, the general fund budget as submitted by
the city manager shall be the general fund budget for the ensuing
year and the appropriation ordinance and the ordinances providing additional
revenue, if any, as recommended by the city manager shall have full force and
effect to the same extent as if the same had been adopted by the council,
notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this charter.
§ 6.12. Effective date of budget; certification and availability of copies thereof.
Upon final adoption, the general fund budget shall be in effect for
the ensuing fiscal year. A copy of such budget as finally adopted shall be
certified by the city manager and city clerk and filed in the office of
the director of finance. The general fund budget so certified shall
be printed, mimeographed or otherwise reproduced and sufficient copies thereof
shall be made available for the use of all departments, courts, boards,
commissions, offices and agencies and for the use of interested persons and
organizations. Copies of the budget, capital program and
appropriation and revenue ordinances shall be public records and shall be made
available to the public at suitable places in the city.
§ 6.13. Utility budgets and related ordinances.
Separate budget estimates for each of the utilities as defined in Chapter 13 of
this charter shall be submitted to the budget officer city
manager at the same time as the budgets of other departments and in the
form prescribed by the city manager, subject, however, to the provisions of
Chapter 13 which shall also control the action of the city manager and council
thereon. The city manager shall submit with the budget of each utility an
ordinance making appropriations for the operation of such utility during the
ensuing fiscal year, which need not be itemized further than by principal
objects of expenditure. He/She shall also at the same time
submit any ordinance changing the rates to be charged by the utility, used in
estimating receipts. The council shall have the same powers and be subject to
the same limitations with regard to the adoption of such utility budgets and
accompanying appropriation and rate ordinances, subject to the provisions of
the said Chapter 13, as are conferred or imposed on it by § 6.10 with
regard to the general fund budget and its accompanying appropriation
and revenue ordinances. If for any reason the council fails to adopt the
utility budgets or any of them before the expiration of the time set for the
adoption of the general fund budget, such budget or
budgets and the accompanying appropriation ordinance or ordinances and the
ordinances changing rates, if any, shall have full force and effect to the same
extent as if the same had been adopted by the council, notwithstanding anything
to the contrary in this charter. When such utility budgets and accompanying
appropriation ordinances are adopted or become effective because of the
council's failure to act thereon, they shall be certified to the
director of finance with like effect as in the case of the general fund
budget and its appropriation ordinance.
§ 6.14. School budget.
It shall be the duty of the school board to submit its budget estimates to the
budget officer city manager at the same time as other
departments and in the form prescribed by the city manager. The action of the
city manager and council on the school budget shall relate to its total only
and the school board shall have authority to expend in its discretion the sum
appropriated for its use, provided that if it receives an appropriation greater
or less than its original request, it shall forthwith revise its
estimates of expenditure and adopt appropriations in accordance therewith. The
school board shall before the beginning of the fiscal year file with the
director of finance its budget as finally revised and its appropriations based
thereon which need not be itemized further than by operating units and
principal objects of expenditure. It shall have power to order during
the course of the fiscal year transfers from one item of appropriation to
another, notice of which shall be immediately transmitted to the director of
finance. The director of finance shall have the same authority to require
expenditures to be made by school officers in accordance with the school budget
as he/she is given by this charter to require expenditures by other
city officers to be made in accordance with the general fund or utility
budgets.
§ 6.16. Amendments after adoption.
The city manager may at any time authorize, at the request of any
department, court, board, commission, office or agency, the transfer of any
unencumbered balance or portion thereof in any general fund or utility
appropriation from one classification of expenditure to another within the same
department, court, board, commission, office or agency, provided, that for this
purpose the water, gas and electric utilities shall be deemed to be separate
departments. At the request of the city manager but only within the last three
months of the fiscal year the council may by resolution transfer any
unencumbered balance or portion thereof in any general fund appropriation from
one department, court, board, commission, office or agency to another. During
the next succeeding fiscal year and after completion of an independent year-end
audit, the council may, at the request of the city manager, by resolution,
adopted by not less than six affirmative votes, transfer unexpended funds from
one or more departments or agencies to other departments or agencies to adjust
imbalances in the general fund budget resulting from application of generally
accepted accounting principles applicable to municipal funds and conform the
budget to such accounting principles and practices.
(a) At any time within the fiscal year, upon the recommendation of
the city manager and certification of the director of finance that there remain
sufficient funds not theretofore allotted for a specific purpose, the council
may, by not less than six affirmative votes, allot all or
part of the funds appropriated to an account designated "Reserve for
Contingencies" as authorized in § 15.1-161.1
15.2-2505 of the Code of Virginia for a designated program or project and
authorize expenditure of the funds so allotted.
(b) If at any time during the fiscal year the city manager certifies that there are available for appropriation revenues in excess of those estimated in the budget, the city council may by not less than six affirmative votes, and only upon the recommendation of the city manager, make supplemental appropriations for the year up to the amount of such excess.
(c) If at any time during the fiscal year it appears probable to the city manager that the revenue or fund balances available will be insufficient to finance the expenditures for which appropriations have been authorized, the city manager shall report to the city council without delay, indicating the estimated amount of the deficit, any remedial action taken by the city manager and recommendations as to any other steps to be taken. The council shall then take such further action as it deems necessary to prevent or reduce any deficit, and for that purpose it may by ordinance reduce one or more appropriations.
(d) At any time during the fiscal year, at the request of the city manager, the city council may by ordinance adopted by not less than six affirmative votes transfer part of or all of the unencumbered appropriation balance from one department or major organizational unit to the appropriation for other departments or major organizational units.
(e) No appropriation for debt service may be reduced or transferred, and no appropriation may be reduced below any amount required by law to be appropriated or by more than the amount of the unencumbered balance thereof. The supplemental and emergency appropriations and reduction or transfer of appropriations authorized by this section may be made effective immediately upon adoption.
§ 6.18. Lapsing of appropriations.
Any portion of an annual appropriation remaining unexpended and
unencumbered at the close of the fiscal year shall lapse, except that any
balance remaining in the funds of the school board at the end of the fiscal
year shall remain to the credit of that board and an estimate of any such
balance shall be included in the school budget of the ensuing year as an
estimated receipt. Every appropriation, except an appropriation for
a capital expenditure, shall lapse at the close of the fiscal year to the
extent that it has not been expended or encumbered. An appropriation for a
capital expenditure shall continue in force until expended, revised or
repealed; the purpose of any such appropriation shall be deemed abandoned if
three years pass without any disbursement from or encumbrance of the
appropriation.
§ 6.19. Capital budget.
At the same time he/she submits the current expense
budgets, the city manager shall submit to the council a program
which he/she shall previously have submitted to the city planning
commission in accordance with § 17.08 of this charter, of
proposed capital improvement projects, for the ensuing fiscal year
and for the four fiscal years thereafter, with his/her
recommendations as to the means of financing the improvements proposed for the
ensuing fiscal year. The council shall have power to accept with or without
amendments or reject the proposed program and proposed means of financing for
the ensuing fiscal year; and may from time to time during the fiscal year amend
by ordinance adopted by at least six affirmative votes the program previously
adopted by it or the means of financing the whole or any part thereof or both,
provided that the amendment shall have been recommended by the city manager and
shall have been submitted to the city planning commission for review and such
additional funds as may be required to finance the cost of the improvements are
available in the general fund or in the reserve fund for permanent public
improvements or in the water works, wastewater works, gas works or electric
works renewal funds. The council shall adopt a capital budget prior to
the beginning of the fiscal year in which the budget is to take effect. No
appropriation provided for a capital improvement purpose defined in the capital
budget shall lapse until the purpose for which the appropriation was made shall
have been accomplished or abandoned, provided the council shall have the power
to transfer at any time any appropriation or any unencumbered part thereof from
one purpose to another on the recommendation of the city manager. The city
manager may transfer the balance remaining to the credit of any completed
project to an incompleted project for the purpose of completing such project,
provided the projects have been approved in the adoption of a capital budget or
budgets and are within the same general purposes for which appropriations
were made to finance the cost of such projects. If no such transfers are
made, the balances remaining to the credit of completed or abandoned purposes
and projects shall be available for appropriation and allocation in a
subsequent capital budget or budgets. Any project shall be deemed to have been
abandoned if three fiscal years elapse without any expenditure from or
encumbrance of the funds provided therefor. The council shall have the power
at any time to abandon or to reduce the scope of any project in a capital
budget to the extent that funds appropriated therefor are unexpended and
unencumbered.
§ 6.20. Certification of funds, penalties for violation.
Except as otherwise provided in § 13.06 of this charter, no payment shall be made and no obligation incurred by or on behalf of the city or the school board except in accordance with an appropriation duly made and no payment shall be made from or obligation incurred against any allotment or appropriation unless the director of finance shall first certify that there is a sufficient unexpended and unencumbered balance in such allotment or appropriation to meet the same; provided that nothing herein shall be taken to prevent the advance authorization of expenditures for small purchases as provided in subsection (e) of § 8.03 of this charter. Every expenditure or obligation authorized or incurred in violation of the provisions of this charter shall be void. Every payment made in violation of the provisions of this charter shall be deemed illegal and every official who shall knowingly authorize or make such payment or knowingly take part therein and every person who shall knowingly receive such payment or any part thereof shall be jointly and severally liable to the city for the full amount so paid or received. If any officer, member of a board or commission, or employee of the city or of the school board, shall knowingly incur any obligation or shall authorize or make any expenditure in violation of the provisions of this charter or knowingly take part therein such action may be cause for his/her removal. Nothing in this section contained, however, shall prevent the making of contracts of lease or for services providing for the payment of funds at a time beyond the fiscal year in which such contracts are made, provided the nature of such transactions will reasonably require, in the opinion of the council, the making of such contracts.
§ 6.21. Reserve fund for permanent public improvements.
The council may by ordinance establish a reserve fund for permanent public
improvements and may appropriate thereto any portion of the general fund cash
surplus not otherwise appropriated at the close of any fiscal year. It may
likewise assign to the said fund a specified portion of the ad valorem tax on
real estate and tangible personal property not to exceed ten cents on the
hundred dollars of the assessed valuation thereof or the whole or part of the
proceeds of any other tax or other source of revenue. Appropriations
from the said fund shall be made only to finance improvements included in the
capital budget.
§ 7B.01. General borrowing power of city council.
The council may, in the name of and for the use of the city, incur indebtedness by issuing its bonds, notes or other obligations for the purposes, in the manner and to the extent provided by the general law of the Commonwealth of Virginia, as supplemented by the provisions of this chapter. Bonds, notes or other obligations authorized in compliance with the provisions of the charter as in effect at the time of such authorization may be issued whether or not such authorization complied with provisions of general law in effect at the time of their authorization.
§ 7B.02. Limitations on indebtedness.
In the issuance of bonds, notes and other obligations, the city shall be subject to the limitations as to amount contained in Article VII, Section 10 of the Constitution of Virginia.
§ 7B.03. Emergency expenditures.
The city may authorize by ordinance the issuance of bonds, notes or other obligations to provide for emergency expenditures. Bonds, notes or other obligations may be issued to finance an appropriation to meet a public emergency, as provided in § 2.02 (d) of this charter, when authorized by the ordinance making such appropriation.
§ 7B.04. Procedures for adopting ordinances authorizing the issuance of bonds or notes.
(a) The procedure for the adoption of an ordinance authorizing the issuance of bonds shall be the same as for the adoption of any other ordinance, except that six affirmative votes shall be necessary for its adoption. No such ordinance shall take effect until the thirty-first day after publication of the notice of its adoption as hereinafter provided.
(b) Within ten days after the adoption of an ordinance authorizing the issuance of bonds, the city clerk shall cause a notice of the adoption of such ordinance to be printed in a newspaper published or in general circulation in the city. Such notice shall include a statement that the thirty-day period of limitation within which to file a petition for a referendum on the ordinance authorizing the issuance of bonds shall have commenced as of the date of such publication.
(c) The procedure for the adoption of an ordinance authorizing the issuance of notes shall be the same as for the adoption of any other ordinance, except that no such ordinance shall be passed as an emergency ordinance and that six affirmative votes shall be necessary for its adoption. An ordinance authorizing the issuance of notes shall not be subject to the requirement of publication of a notice of adoption as hereinabove provided, nor shall such ordinance be subject to the provisions of § 7B.05 of this charter concerning a petition for a referendum. Such ordinance shall be effective immediately unless otherwise provided by the city council in such ordinance.
§ 7B.05. Optional referendum on ordinance authorizing the issuance of bonds.
If, within thirty days after publication of notice of adoption as required by § 7B.04 (a) of this charter, a petition, signed and verified as hereinafter provided and requesting the submission to the qualified voters of the city of an ordinance authorizing the issuance of bonds, shall be filed with the clerk of the Circuit Court of the City of Richmond, such ordinance shall be so submitted at an election called for such purpose. The provisions of § 3.07 of this charter as to the qualifications of the persons who sign the petition, the number of signatures to be required, the verification thereof, the filing of the petition and the request for the election shall apply equally to the petition and election provided for in this section. The election shall be ordered, conducted, and the results ascertained and certified in accordance with general law. If a majority of those voting thereon at such election shall fail to approve the ordinance, such ordinance shall be void. If a majority of those voting thereon at such election shall approve the ordinance, such ordinance shall be effective immediately.
§ 7B.06. Procedures for sale and terms of bonds and notes.
All bonds and notes shall be sold in such manner, either at public or private sale, for such price and upon such terms, including without limitation amounts, principal maturities, sinking fund requirements, maturity dates, interest rates and redemption features, as the council may determine by ordinance or resolution, or as the director of finance, with the approval of the city manager, may determine, when authorized to do so by ordinance or resolution. Furthermore, interest rates may be determined by reference to indices or formulas or agents designated by the council under guidelines established by it, or, when authorized to do so by ordinance or resolution, such determination and designation may be made by the director of finance, with the approval of the city manager.
§ 8.01. Establishment and composition of department of finance.
There shall be a department of finance which shall include the function of
accounting and control, collections of revenues, assessments of non-real
property, debt management, and cash management. The department of finance
shall be responsible for the administration of the financial affairs of
the city, including exercise of the powers conferred and duties imposed by law
upon commissioners of the revenue, collectors of taxes, license inspectors,
city treasurers, and similar officers.
§ 8.03. General powers and duties of director of finance.
The director of finance, under the supervision of the city manager, shall have charge of the administration of the financial affairs of the city and to that end he/she shall have authority and shall be responsible for the department of finance in order to discharge the following functions:
(a) Cooperate with the city manager and budget officer in compiling
estimates for the current expense and capital budgets. Manage the
city's finances in a professionally accountable and responsible manner.
(b) Supervise and control all encumbrances, expenditures and disbursements
to insure that budget appropriations are not exceeded.
(c) Maintain a general accounting system for the city and each of its
departments, courts, boards, commissions, offices and agencies in conformity
with generally accepted accounting principles and prescribe the form of
receipts, vouchers, bills or claims to be used and of accounts to be kept by
all departments, courts, boards, commissions, offices and agencies of the city,
including the school board except for such accounts as are kept by employees of
the school board, and in so doing he shall consult with the city
auditor. Provide for regular reporting of the city's financial
condition in conformance with generally accepted accounting principles.
(d) Require daily, or at such other intervals as he may deem expedient, a
report of receipts from each of such departments, courts, boards, commissions,
offices and agencies, including the school board, and prescribe the times at
and the manner in which moneys received by them shall be paid to the office of
the director of finance or deposited in a city bank account under his
control.
(e) Examine all contracts, purchase orders and other documents, except
bonds and notes authorized as provided in Chapter 7, which create financial
obligations against the city or the school board, and approve the same only
upon ascertaining that money has been appropriated and allotted therefor and
that an unexpended and unencumbered balance is available in such appropriation
and allotment to meet the same, provided that the director of finance may give
advance authorization for the expenditure from any appropriation for the
purchase of supplies, materials or equipment of such sum, within the current
allotment of such appropriation, as he may deem necessary during a period of
not to exceed three months for the purchase of items not to exceed in cost one
hundred fifty dollars for any one item, and immediately encumber such
appropriation with the amount of such advance authorization, and thereafter,
within the period specified, purchase orders for such items, to an aggregate
not exceeding such authorization, shall be valid without the prior approval of
the director of finance endorsed thereon, but each such purchase order shall be
charged against such authorization and no such purchase order, which together
with all such purchase orders previously charged within the period specified
shall exceed the amount of such authorization, shall be valid.
(e-1) Tender bills or statements for, collect and receive all moneys due
the city for taxes whether current or delinquent, subject to the statute of
limitations, assessments or fees or charges of every kind including charges for
the use of water, wastewater collection and treatment, gas and electricity, and
other sums payable to the city except as otherwise provided by this charter or
the general laws of the Commonwealth as the same may relate to the city. In so
doing he shall have power to employ any procedure that is now or may hereafter
be prescribed by law for the collection of state taxes or local taxes. There
shall be a lien, which shall have precedence over any other lien or encumbrance
thereon, on all real estate and on each and every interest therein, for the
city taxes assessed thereon, from the commencement of the year for which they
are assessed, including penalties and interest at such rate as from time to
time may be fixed by the General Assembly, on such taxes, which may be enforced
by the director of finance on behalf of the city in any manner provided by law.
All goods and chattels wheresoever found may be distrained and sold for taxes,
interest and penalties assessed and due thereon and for taxes, interest and
penalties assessed against the owner thereof, and no deed of trust or mortgage
upon goods or chattels shall prevent the same from being distrained and sold
for taxes or levies assessed against the grantor in such deed while such goods
and chattels remain in the grantor's possession; nor shall any such deed
prevent the goods and chattels conveyed from being distrained and sold for
taxes or levies assessed thereon, no matter in whose possession they may be
found.
(f) (c) Have custody of all funds belonging to the
city and the school board and deposit all funds coming into his hands to the
account of the city or the school board, as the case may be, in such banks or
savings and loan associations as may be designated for the purpose by the
council and the school board, respectively, and he Receive, deposit
in legal depositories, maintain custody of and disburse all funds of the city
or in the possession of the city, and prudently invest such funds as they are
available for investment. The director shall not be liable for any loss
sustained as to funds of the city or the school board that are on deposit
in such a designated bank or savings and loan association. The director of
finance in his discretion may authorize any department or agency of the city to
maintain a petty cash fund in an amount to be fixed by guidelines established
by council by ordinance. Any such fund authorized shall be reimbursed only
upon presentment of vouchers approved by the chief of the bureau of accounting
and control of funds so deposited.
(g) Audit before payment, for legality and correctness, all accounts,
savings and loan association account claims and demands against the city, and
no money shall be drawn from any bank account or savings and loan association
account of the city or school board except by warrant or check or draft payable
on demand, signed by the director of finance, based upon a voucher duly
approved by him as above provided.
(h) Have custody of all investments and invested funds of the city or in
its possession in a fiduciary capacity, unless otherwise provided by this
charter or by law, ordinance or the terms of any trust, and the safekeeping of
all bonds and notes of the city and the receipt and delivery of city bonds and
notes for transfer, registration and exchange.
(i) Submit to the city manager for presentation to the council and to the
superintendent of schools for presentation to the school board, not later than
the fifteenth day of each month, a statement concerning the financial
transactions of the city and each utility and of the school board,
respectively, prepared in accordance with accepted principles of municipal
accounting and budgetary procedure, and showing:
(1) The amount of each appropriation with transfers to and from the same,
the allotments thereof to the end of the preceding month, the encumbrances and
expenditures charged against such appropriation and the allotments thereof
during the preceding month, the total of such charges for the fiscal year to
the end of the preceding month, and the unencumbered balance remaining in such
appropriation and the allotments thereof;
(2) The revenue estimated to be received from each source, the actual
receipts from each source for the preceding month, the total receipts from each
source for the fiscal year to the end of the preceding month, and the balance
remaining to be collected.
(j) Furnish to the head of each department, court, board, commission,
office and agency of the city a copy of that portion of the statement relating
to such department, court, board, commission, office or agency.
(k) Prepare and submit to the city manager at the end of each fiscal year,
for the preceding year, a complete financial statement and report of the
financial transactions of the city, and to the school board a complete
financial statement and report of the financial transactions of the school
board.
(l) Designate, with the approval of the city manager, an employee of the
department of finance as deputy director of finance who during the temporary
absence or incapacity of the director of finance shall have and perform all the
powers and duties conferred or imposed upon the director of finance.
(m) Authorize the deputy director of finance and such other employees as
he may deem necessary, and under such rules and regulations as he may
establish, to affix his signature to checks and other documents.
(n) (d) Protect the interests of the city by withholding
the payment of any claim or demand by any person, firm or corporation against
the city until any indebtedness or other liability due from such person, firm
or corporation shall first have been settled and adjusted.
(o) Collect all taxes, special assessments, licenses, fees and other
revenues of the city or for whose collection the city is responsible and
receive all deposits and all other money receivable by the city from whatever
source.
(e) Administer all debt of the city to include its issue, registration, transfer and retirement or redemption.
(p) (f) Enforce the provisions of this charter and the
ordinances of the city with regard to licenses and license taxes and
examine and audit the books of all persons, firms and corporations where there
is reasonable cause to believe there is a liability to pay the tax
any financial matters of the city.
§ 8.10. Annual audit.
The council shall cause to be made annually an independent financial audit of all accounts, books, records and financial transactions of the city by the auditor of public accounts of the Commonwealth or by a firm of independent certified public accountants to be selected by the council. The audit shall be of sufficient scope to express an opinion as to whether the books and records and the financial statements prepared therefrom as contained in the annual financial report of the city present fairly the fiscal affairs of the city in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles of municipal accounting and applicable governing laws. The report of such audit shall be filed within such time as the council shall specify, and one copy thereof shall be always available for public inspection in the office of the city clerk during regular business hours.
§ 13.01. Department of public utilities; created; composition.
There shall be a department of public utilities which shall consist of the director of public utilities and such other officers and employees organized into such bureaus, divisions and other units as may be provided by ordinance or by the orders of the director consistent therewith. The director shall have power to make rules and regulations consistent with this charter and the ordinances of the city for the conduct of its business.
§ 13.05. Collection of bills.
There shall be a customer service division in the department of public
utilities, which shall be responsible for receiving inquiries concerning
charges for the use of water, wastewater, gas and electricity and other
services incident thereto and endeavoring to resolve same to the mutual benefit
of the customer and the city. The collection of unpaid bills may be
enforced in the manner now or hereafter prescribed by law or ordinance by
the division if so directed by ordinance, and water service may be
disconnected for nonpayment of landfill refuse fees.
§ 13.06. Each utility a separate enterprise.
The water, wastewater, stormwater, gas and electric utilities shall each be conducted as a separate enterprise, provided that nothing herein shall prevent the transfer of employees from one utility to another or the division of the time of any officer or employee between two or more of such utilities. To facilitate accurate analysis of the financial results of the operation of each utility:
(a) The customer service division shall, as directed by ordinance, bill for and collect on behalf of each utility not only the charges due from domestic, commercial and industrial users of its services but similar charges against the city and each department, board, commission, office and agency thereof, including the school board and each other utility. The rates to be charged for street lighting and for electric current furnished to the city and its departments, boards, commissions, offices and agencies, as well as any political subdivision, shall be fixed by the director of public utilities to generate such revenue as shall enable the utility to make a reasonable return on investment and meet retirement schedules and other debt service requirements in accordance with the provisions of any bond ordinance pursuant to which bonds have been issued to finance capital improvements of such utility and to comply with the terms and conditions of any documents securing any such bonds.
(b) Separate budgets shall be prepared for each utility annually at the time
and in the manner prescribed in Chapter 6 of this charter, which shall include
estimates of revenue and expense for the ensuing fiscal year. After the budget
of a utility has been adopted, should it appear that substantial sales of the
unit product of the utility can be made in excess of the sales of the unit
product contemplated by the budget which were not reasonably foreseen at the
time the estimates of revenue and expense were made, additional expenditures
may be authorized by the city manager from the funds of the utility in an
amount not exceeding the estimated cost of producing or purchasing additional
units of the product of the utility to be sold upon the justification of such
expenditure by and recommendation of the director of public utilities. The
city manager shall report to the council as soon as practicable any such
additional expenditures authorized by him/her and shall also report
any such additional expenditures to the director of finance, who shall adjust
the appropriation accounts accordingly. The expenditure of any other funds of
any utility shall be authorized only when an additional appropriation thereof
is made in accordance with § 6.17 6.16 of this
charter. The budget estimates of each department of the city shall include
items for gas, water, wastewater, stormwater, and electric current to be used
by them. An item for street lighting shall be included in the general fund
budget and shall be disbursed by the director of finance on the basis of bills
rendered by the customer service division.
(c) The accounting system of each utility shall conform to generally accepted principles of public utility accounting and shall be kept on an accrual basis. Expenditures shall be authorized and made in accordance with appropriations made by the council and in accordance with the provisions of Chapters 6, 8 and 13 of this charter. The records of revenues of each utility shall be kept so that the services rendered to each class of customer according to the rate schedules adopted by the council for each utility can be obtained. After the close of each fiscal year there shall be submitted to the city manager and the council a report as to the operation of each utility containing at least the following financial statements: (1) a comparative balance sheet showing the financial condition of the utility as of the beginning and close of the fiscal year and an analysis of the surplus account showing the factors of change in the account as reflected by the comparative balance sheet; and (2) a comparative profit and loss statement of the last two fiscal years; and a comparative detailed analysis of operating expense for the last two fiscal years according to functional grouping. The expense of operating each utility shall include: (1) taxes, if any, lawfully accruing during the fiscal year; and (2) except for the stormwater utility, taxes not actually accruing but which would have accrued had the utility not been municipally owned, and such taxes shall be paid annually into the general fund. For the purposes of this chapter, all indebtedness of the city incurred on account of each utility shall be considered as the indebtedness of such utility.
§ 13.08. Valuation of utilities.
At such times as it shall determine, the council shall cause to be
made a valuation of each of the three utilities, in accordance with
accepted valuation principles, by a competent firm of engineers to be selected
by the council on the recommendation of the city manager, showing in the case
of the water utility the proportion of its valuation properly allocable to fire
protection.
§ 13.10. No sale or lease of utilities except when approved by referendum.
There shall be no sale or lease of the water, wastewater, gas or electric utilities unless the proposal for such sale or lease shall first be submitted to the qualified voters of the city at a general election and be approved by a majority of all votes cast at such election.
§ 17.02. City planning commission, generally.
There shall be a city planning commission which shall consist of nine members. One member shall be a member of the council who shall be appointed by the council for a term coincident with his/her term in the council; one member shall be a member of the board of zoning appeals appointed by the board of zoning appeals for a term coincident with his/her term on such board; one member shall be the city manager or an officer or employee of the city designated from time to time by him/her; six citizen members shall be qualified voters of the city who hold no office of profit under the city government, appointed by the council for terms of three years. Vacancies shall be filled by the authority making the appointment, for the unexpired portion of the term. Members of the city planning commission, other than the member of council appointed to the commission and the city manager, or such officer or employee of the city as the city manager may designate to serve on the commission, shall be entitled to receive such compensation as may be fixed from time to time by ordinance adopted by the council.
§ 17.06. Adoption of master plan by commission and approval by council.
The commission may adopt the master plan as a whole by a single resolution or
may by successive resolutions adopt successive parts of the plan, said parts
corresponding to major geographical sections or geographical or topographical
divisions of the city or with functional subdivisions of the subject matter of
the plan, and may adopt any amendment or extension thereof or addition thereto.
Before the adoption of the plan or any such part, amendment, extension, or
addition, the commission shall hold at least one public hearing thereon at
least fifteen days' notice of the time and place of which shall be given by one
publication in a daily newspaper of general circulation published in the
city. Notice of the time and place of such hearing shall be given
in accordance with general law. The adoption of the plan or of any such
part, amendment, extension or addition shall be by resolution of the commission
carried by the affirmative vote of not less than a majority of the entire
membership of the commission. The resolution shall refer expressly to the maps
and descriptive matter and other matter intended by the commission to form the
whole or part of the plan adopted, which resolution shall be signed by the
chairman of the commission and attested by its secretary. An attested copy of
the resolution, accompanied by a copy of so much of the plan in whole or in
part as was adopted thereby, and each amendment, alteration, extension or
addition thereto adopted thereby shall be certified to the council, and at
least one public hearing shall be held thereon in accordance with general
law. Neither the master plan nor any part, amendment, extension or
addition thereto shall become effective until the action of the commission with
respect thereto set out in the resolution shall have been approved by the
council by ordinance or resolution. Upon the approval of the action of the
commission by the council, an attested copy of the resolution adopted by the
commission accompanied by a copy of so much of the plan in whole or in part as
was adopted thereby, and each amendment, alteration, extension or addition
thereto thereby adopted, together with the ordinance or resolution adopted by
the council shall be certified to the clerk of the Circuit Court, Division I
and Division II, of the city who shall file the same in his/her
respective offices, and shall index the same in the deed index book in the name
of the city and under the title: master plan of the city.
§ 17.11. Uniformity of regulations within a district; special use permits.
(a) The regulations and restrictions shall be uniform and shall apply equally
to all land, buildings, and structures and to the use and to each class or kind
thereof throughout each district; provided, however, the regulations
and restrictions applicable in one district may differ from those provided for
other districts.
(a1) The council may, by ordinance adopted after holding one or more public hearings concerning same, establish design overlay districts, providing for such design overlay districts, a design review process applicable to exterior changes within view from public right-of-ways in order to protect developed areas of the city which are characterized by uniqueness of established neighborhood character, architectural coherence and harmony, or vulnerability to deterioration, and council may assess a reasonable fee, not exceeding the actual cost of the review process, for a determination if proposed new construction, alterations, rehabilitation, or demolition conforms to general guidelines for a particular design overlay district established by the planning commission and urban design committee after holding a public hearing.
(b) The council shall have the power to authorize by ordinance adopted by not
less than six affirmative votes the use of land, buildings, and structures in a
district that does not conform to the regulations and restrictions prescribed
for that district and to authorize the issuance of special use permits
therefor, whenever it is made to appear that such special use will not be
detrimental to the safety, health, morals and general welfare of the community
involved, will not tend to create congestion in streets, roads, alleys and
other public ways and places in the area involved, will not create hazards from
fire, panic or other dangers, will not tend to overcrowding of land and cause
an undue concentration of population, will not adversely affect or interfere
with public or private schools, parks, playgrounds, water supplies, sewage
disposal, transportation or other public requirements, conveniences and
improvements, and will not interfere with adequate light and air. No such
ordinance special use permit shall be adopted until (1)
the ordinance has been referred to the city planning commission
for investigation of has conducted a public hearing to
investigate the circumstances and conditions upon which the council is
empowered to authorize such use and until the commission has reported to the
council the results of such public hearing and investigation and its
recommendations with respect thereto, and (2) until after a public hearing
in relation to such ordinance is held by the council the council has
conducted a public hearing on an ordinance to authorize such special use permit
at which the persons person in interest and all
other persons shall have an opportunity to be heard. At least fifteen
days' Notice of the time and place of such hearing public
hearings shall be given by publication thereof in a daily newspaper
of general circulation published in the city in accordance with
general law. The council shall have the power to require such other
greater notice as it may deem expedient. The city planning
commission may recommend and the council may impose such conditions upon the
use of the land, buildings and structures as will, in its opinion, protect the
community and area involved and the public from adverse effects and detriments
that may result therefrom.
§ 17.14. Adoption and amendment of zoning regulations and restrictions and establishment of district boundaries.
Subject to the other provisions of this chapter and general law, the
council shall have power by ordinance to adopt the regulations and restrictions
hereinbefore described and determine establish the
boundaries of the districts in which they shall apply, provide for their
enforcement, and from time to time amend, supplement or repeal the same. The
council shall also have authority to provide for the collection of fees to
cover costs involved in the consideration of any request for amendment,
supplement or repeal of any such regulation, restriction or determination
establishment of boundaries, to be paid to the department of
planning and community development by the applicant upon filing such request.
No such ordinance regulation, restriction or establishment of
boundaries shall be adopted until:
(a) The ordinance has been referred to the city planning commission and
approved by it, subject to overrule by the council, as provided in §
17.07 city planning commission has conducted a public hearing to
investigate the circumstances and conditions upon which the council is
empowered to authorize such regulation, restriction or establishment of
boundaries, and until the commission has reported to the council the results of
such public hearing and investigation and its recommendations with respect
thereto; and
(b) After a public hearing in relation thereto shall be held by The
council has conducted a public hearing on an ordinance to authorize such
regulation, restriction or establishment of boundaries at which the
parties person in interest and other persons shall have
an opportunity to be heard.
At least fifteen days' Notice of the time and place of such
hearing public hearings shall be given by
publication thereof in a daily newspaper of general circulation published in
the city in accordance with general law.
The procedures set forth in this section shall also apply to the adoption, amendment and repeal of historic district boundaries. All historic districts previously adopted by city council, except for the Church Hill North district adopted by Ordinance no. 90-197-194 and repealed by Ordinance no. 90-242-314, shall remain in full force and effect, shall be deemed to have been in continuous existence, and shall not henceforth be declared invalid by reason of a failure to follow the procedures set forth herein applicable to zoning districts.
§ 17.19. Appeals to Board of Zoning Appeals.
Appeals to the board may be taken by any person aggrieved, or by any officer, department, board, commission or agency of the city affected, by any decision of the administrative officer designated by the council to administer and enforce the ordinance dividing the city into districts and regulating and restricting the use of land, buildings and structures therein. Appeals shall be taken within such reasonable time as shall be prescribed by the board by general rule, by filing with the said administrative officer and with the board a notice of appeal specifying the grounds thereof. The administrative officer shall forthwith transmit to the board all the papers constituting the record upon which the action appealed from was taken. An appeal stays all proceedings in furtherance of the action appealed from unless the administrative officer from whose decision the appeal is taken certifies to the board that by reason of the facts stated in the certificate a stay would in his/her opinion cause imminent peril to life or property. In such case proceedings shall not be stayed otherwise than by a restraining order which may be granted by the board or by a court of record on application and on notice to the administrative officer and on due cause shown.
The board shall fix a reasonable time for the hearing of the appeal, give public notice thereof as well as due notice to the parties in interest and decide the issue within a reasonable time. At the hearing any party may appear in person, by agent or by attorney and shall be given an opportunity to be heard. The board may prescribe a fee to be paid whenever an appeal is taken which shall be paid into the city treasury.
§ 17.20. Powers of Board of Zoning Appeals.
The board shall have the following powers and it shall be its duty:
(a) To hear and decide appeals where it is alleged there is error in any order, requirement, decision or determination by the administrative officer in the administration and enforcement of the provisions of the ordinance.
(b) To grant variations in the regulations when a property owner can show that his/her property was acquired in good faith and where by reason of the exceptional narrowness, shallowness or shape of a specific piece of property at the time of the effective date of the ordinance or where by reason of the exceptional topographical conditions or other extraordinary or exceptional situation the strict application of the terms of the ordinance actually prohibit or unreasonably restrict the use of the property, or where the board is satisfied, upon the evidence heard by it, the granting of such variations will alleviate a clearly demonstrable hardship approaching confiscation as distinguished from a special privilege or convenience sought by the owner, provided, however, that all variations granted shall be in harmony with the intended spirit and purpose of this chapter and the ordinance.
(c) To permit, when reasonably necessary in the public interest, the use of land, or the construction or use of buildings or structures, in any district in which they are prohibited by the ordinance, by any agency of the city, county or state or the United States, provided such construction or use shall adequately safeguard the health, safety and welfare of the occupants of the adjoining and surrounding property, shall not unreasonably impair an adequate supply of light and air to adjacent property, shall not increase congestion in streets and shall not increase public danger from fire or otherwise affect public safety.
(d) To permit the following exceptions to the district regulations and restrictions, provided such exceptions shall by their design, construction and operation adequately safeguard the health, safety and welfare of the occupants of the adjoining and surrounding property, shall not unreasonably impair an adequate supply of light and air to adjacent property, shall not increase congestion in streets and shall not increase public danger from fire or otherwise unreasonably affect public safety and shall not diminish or impair the established property values in surrounding areas:
(1) Use of land or erection or use of a building or structure by a public service corporation for public utility purposes exclusively which the board finds to be reasonably necessary for the public convenience and welfare.
(2) The Use of land or construction or use of buildings and
structures in any district in which they are prohibited by the ordinance, for
cemetery purposes, airports or landing fields, greenhouses and nurseries and
the extraction of raw materials from land, such as rock, gravel, sand and
similar products.
(3) Use of land in dwelling districts immediately adjoining or separated from business, commercial or industrial districts by alleys, or widths to be specified in the ordinance, for parking of vehicles of customers of business, commercial or industrial establishments, provided such use shall not extend more than the distance specified in the ordinance from the business, commercial or industrial district.
(4) Use of buildings for dwelling purposes in districts specified in the ordinance for use for other purposes, where it can be shown that conditions in the specified districts are not detrimental to the health, safety, or welfare of the inhabitants of such buildings and on condition that the buildings will be removed within a time specified in the ordinance.
(5) Reconstruction of buildings or structures that do not conform to the comprehensive zoning plan and regulations and restrictions prescribed for the district in which they are located, which have been damaged by explosion, fire, act of God or the public enemy, to the extent of more than sixty per cent of their assessed taxable value, when the board finds some compelling public necessity for a continuance of the use and such continuance is not primarily to continue a monopoly, provided that nothing herein shall relieve the owner of any such building or structure from obtaining the approval of such reconstruction by the council or any department or officer of the city when such approval is required by any law or ordinance.
(e) To modify the interpretation and application of the provisions of the ordinance where the street layout actually on the ground varies from the street layout as shown on the map fixing the districts and their boundaries adopted with and as a part of the ordinance.
§ 18.03. Alternative procedures in condemnation.
The city may, in exercising the right of eminent domain conferred by the
preceding section, make use of the procedure prescribed by the general law as
modified by said section or may elect to proceed as hereinafter provided. In
the latter event the resolution or ordinance directing acquisition of any
property, as set forth in the preceding section, shall provide therein in a
lump sum the total funds necessary to compensate the owners thereof for such
property to be acquired or damaged. Upon the adoption of such resolution or
ordinance the city may file a petition in the clerk's office of a court
enumerated in the preceding section, having jurisdiction of the subject, which
shall be signed by the city manager and set forth the interest or estate to be
taken in the property and the uses and purposes for which the property or the
interest or estate therein is wanted, or when property is not to be taken but
is likely to be damaged, the necessity for the work or improvement which will
cause or is likely to cause such damage. There shall also be filed with the
petition a plat of a survey of the property with a profile showing cuts and
fills, trestles and bridges, if any, and a description of the property which,
or an interest or estate in which, is sought to be taken or likely to be
damaged and a memorandum showing names and residences of the owners of the
property, if known, and showing also the quantity of property which, or an
interest or estate in which, is sought to be taken or which will be or is
likely to be damaged. There shall be filed also with said petition a notice
directed to the owners of the property, if known, copies of which shall be
served on such owners or tenants of the freehold of such property, if known.
If the owner or tenant of the freehold be unknown or a nonresident of the state
or cannot with reasonable diligence be found in the state, or if the residence
of the owner or tenant be unknown, he/she may be proceeded against
by order of publication which order, however, need not be published more than
once a week for two successive weeks and shall be posted at a main entrance to
the courthouse. The publication shall in all other respects conform to
§§ 8-71, 8-72 and 8-76 8.01-316, 8.01-317 and
8.01-319 of the Code of Virginia.
Upon the filing of said petition and the deposit of the funds provided by the council for the purpose in a bank to the credit of the court in such proceedings and the filing of a certificate of deposit therefor the interest or estate of the owner of such property shall terminate and the title to such property or the interest or estate to be taken in such property shall be vested absolutely in the city and such owner shall have such interest or estate in the funds so deposited as he/she had in the property taken or damaged and all liens by deed of trust, judgment or otherwise upon said property or estate shall be transferred to such funds and the city shall have the right to enter upon and take possession of such property for its uses and purposes and to construct its works or improvements. The clerk of the court in which such proceeding is instituted shall make and certify a copy of the petition, exhibits filed therewith, and orders, and deliver or transmit the same to the clerk of the court in which deeds are admitted to record, who shall record the same in his/her deed book and index them in the name of the person or persons who had the property before and in the name of the city, for which he/she shall receive the same fees prescribed for recording a deed, which shall be paid by the city.
If the city and the owner of property so taken or damaged agree upon
compensation therefor, upon filing such agreement in writing in the clerk's
office of such court, the court or judge thereof in vacation
shall make such distribution of such funds as to it may seem right,
having due regard to the interest of all persons therein whether such interest
be vested, contingent or otherwise, and to enable the court or judge to make a
proper distribution of such money it may in its discretion direct inquiries to
be taken by a special commissioner in order to ascertain what persons are
entitled to such funds and in what proportions and may direct what notice shall
be given to the making of such inquiries by such special commissioner.
If the city and the owner cannot agree upon the compensation for the property taken or damaged, if any, upon the filing of a memorandum in the clerk's office of said court to that effect, signed by either the city or the owner, the court shall appoint commissioners provided for in §§ 25-46.19 and 25-46.20 of the Code of Virginia or as provided for in § 18.02, and all proceedings thereafter shall be had as provided in Chapter 1.1 (§ 25-46.1 et seq.) of Title 25 of the Code of Virginia insofar as they are then applicable and are not inconsistent with the provisions of this and the preceding section, and the court shall order the deposit in bank to the credit of the court of such additional funds as appear to be necessary to cover the award of the commissioners or shall order the return to the city of such funds deposited that are not necessary to compensate such owners for property taken or damaged. The commissioners so appointed shall not consider improvements placed upon the property by the city subsequent to its taking nor the value thereof nor the enhancement of the value of said property by said improvements in making their award.
§ 18.05. Unclaimed funds in condemnation cases.
Whenever any money shall have remained for five years in the custody or under
the control of any of the courts enumerated in § 18.02, in any
condemnation proceeding instituted therein by the city, without any claim
having been asserted thereto such court shall direct the same to be paid into
the treasury of the city, and a proper receipt for the payment taken and filed
among the records of the proceeding. The director of finance shall, in a book
provided for the purpose, keep an account of all money thus paid into the city
treasury, showing the amount thereof, when, by whom, and under what order it
was paid, and the name of the court and, as far as practicable, a description
of the suit or proceeding in which the order was made and, as far as known, the
names of the parties entitled to said funds. Money thus paid into the treasury
of the city shall be paid out on the order of the court having jurisdiction of
the proceeding, to any person entitled thereto who had not asserted a claim
therefor in the proceeding in which it was held, upon satisfactory proof that
he/she is entitled to such money. If such claim be
is established the net amount thereof, after deducting costs
and other proper charges, shall be paid to the claimant out of the treasury of
the city on the warrant of the director of finance. No claim to such money
shall be asserted after ten years from the time when such court obtained
control thereof; provided, however, if the person having such claim was an
infant, insane, or imprisoned at the time the claim might have been presented
or asserted by such person, claim to such money may be asserted within five
years after the removal of such disability.
§ 20.10. Courtrooms for courts of record and office space for constitutional officers.
It shall be the duty of the city to provide suitable courtrooms for the courts
of record of the city and suitable offices for the commissioner of the
revenue (through December thirty-one, nineteen hundred eighty-one), city
treasurer, and attorney for the Commonwealth. The office space
provided for the commissioner of the revenue and for the treasurer in the area
of the city south of the James River may be a place or places that council
deems convenient for serving the citizens of the city of Richmond residing
south of the James River.
§ 20.11. Posting of bonds by city unnecessary.
Whenever the general law requires the posting of a bond, with or without
surety, as a condition precedent to the exercise of any right, the city,
without giving such bond, may exercise such right, provided all other
conditions precedent be are complied with, and no officer
shall fail or refuse to act because the city has not filed or executed the bond
that might otherwise be required, and the city shall be bound to the same
extent that it would have been bound had the bond been given. This exemption
from the requirement of posting a bond shall also apply in cases involving a
city employee who has been sued in his official capacity, and to
whom liability coverage has been granted by the city.
2. That §§ 3.02, 3.03, 4.12, 5.08, 5.13, 5.13.1, and 5.13.2; Chapter 5-1 (§§ 5-1.1 through 5-1.5); §§ 6.15, 6.15.1, 6.15.2, 6.17, and 6.17.1; Chapter 7A (§§ 7A.01 through 7A.13); §§ 8.02, 8.06, 8.07, and 8.09; Chapter 9 (§§ 9.01 through 9.17); Chapter 10 (§§ 10.01 through 10.04); Chapter 11A (§§ 11A.01 through 11A.05); Chapter 11B (§§ 11B.01, 11B.02, and 11B.03); Chapter 11C (§§ 11C.01 and 11C.02); Chapter 12 (§§ 12.01 through 12.08); §§ 13.03 and 13.04; Chapter 14 (§§ 14.01 through 14.06); Chapter 15 (§§ 15.01 through 15.04); Chapter 16 (§§ 16.01 through 16.06); and §§ 17.03, 17.08, 17.17, 17.18, 17.27 through 17.35, 17.37:1 through 17.37:4 and 20.02 through 20.09 of Chapter 116 of the Acts of Assembly of 1948 are repealed.