West Virginia Code 8-4-5 – Approval of charter; effective date; certification; judicial notice; recordation; effect of rejection
If the proposed charter shall be approved by a majority of the legal votes cast at the election thereon, the charter shall take effect on July 1 next after the date of the election. If approved as aforesaid, one of the signed copies of the charter on file with the recorder of the city, together with a certified copy of the declaration of the results of the election showing the total legal votes cast for and against approval, shall be certified forthwith by such recorder to the Clerk of the House of Delegates, in his capacity as keeper of the rolls. The same shall be preserved by said Clerk of the House of Delegates as an authentic public record. After the effective date of a charter so filed, all courts shall take judicial notice of its provisions.
Terms Used In West Virginia Code 8-4-5
- Charter: shall mean , except where specific reference is made to a particular type of charter, either a special legislative charter (whether or not amended under the provisions of former §. See West Virginia Code 8-1-2
- City: is a word of art and shall mean, include, and be limited to any Class I, Class II, and Class III city, as classified in section three of this article (except in those instances where the context in which used clearly indicates that a particular class of city is intended), heretofore or hereafter incorporated as a municipal corporation under the laws of this state, however created and whether operating under: (i) A special legislative charter. See West Virginia Code 8-1-2
- County commission: shall mean the governmental body created by section 22, article eight of the Constitution of this state, or any existing tribunal created in lieu of a county commission. See West Virginia Code 8-1-2
- Recorder: shall mean the recorder, clerk, or other municipal officer, by whatever name called, charged with the responsibility of keeping the journal of the proceedings of the governing body of the municipality and other municipal records. See West Virginia Code 8-1-2
If the charter is approved as aforesaid, a certified copy of the declaration of the results of the election showing the total legal votes cast for and against approval shall be forwarded by the recorder of the city to the clerk of the county commission for filing with the signed copy of the charter previously filed with him.
Rejection of the proposed charter by a majority of the legal votes cast shall have the same effect as a majority vote against the question of framing a charter as specified in section two of this article, and no further effort shall be made to have a charter approved until the question of framing a charter is again submitted to the qualified voters of the city and is approved by a majority vote, subject to the two-year limitation set forth in said section two of this article.