Title 15.2, Title 15.2. Counties, Cities and Towns

A. The board of any county in which members of the board are elected from districts, may by resolution petition the circuit court for the county for a referendum on the question of whether there should be a chairman of the board elected at large, or the like referendum may be req…

The board shall be the policy-determining body of the county and shall be vested with all rights and powers conferred on boards of supervisors by general law, consistent with the form of county organization and government provided in this chapter.

The board of any county with a population of less than 100,000 operating under a county executive form of government may provide by ordinance for the regulation of exterior illumination levels of buildings and property.

The governing body of a county having the county executive form of government that is adjacent to a county having the urban county executive form of government may establish different terms of office for initial and subsequent appointments for those boards, authorities and commis…

The board may inquire into the official conduct of any office or officer under its control, and investigate the accounts, receipts, disbursements and expenses of any county or district officer. For these purposes it may subpoena witnesses, administer oaths and require the product…

The board shall, as soon as its members are elected and take office, provide for the performance of all the governmental functions of the county and to that end shall provide for and set up all necessary departments of government, consistent with this chapter and general law.

Whenever it is not designated herein what officer or employee of the county shall exercise any power or perform any duty conferred upon or required of the county, or any officer thereof, by general law, then any such power shall be exercised or duty performed by that officer or e…

The board shall appoint a county executive and fix his compensation. He shall devote his full time to the work of the county. He shall be appointed with regard to merit only, and need not be a resident of the county at the time of his appointment. No board member shall, during th…

The county executive shall not be appointed for a definite tenure, but may be removed at the pleasure of the board. If the board determines to remove the county executive, he shall be given, if he so demands, a written statement of the reasons alleged for the proposed removal and…

In case of the absence or disability of the county executive, the board may designate some responsible person to perform the duties of the office who meets the criteria of § 15.2-509.

The board shall appoint, upon the recommendation of the county executive, all officers and employees in the administrative service of the county except as otherwise provided in § 15.2-535 and except as the board may authorize the head of a department or office to appoint subordin…

All appointments of officers and employees shall be without definite term, unless for temporary service not to exceed sixty days. Any officer or employee of the county appointed pursuant to § 15.2-512 may be suspended or removed from office or employment either by the board of co…

The board shall, subject to the limitations of general law, establish a schedule of compensation for officers and employees which provides uniform compensation for like service and shall fix the compensation of all officers and employees of the county, except as it may authorize …

In any county with a population of at least 100,000, the board, by ordinance, may prohibit former officers and employees, for one year after their terms of office have ended or employment ceased, from providing personal and substantial assistance for remuneration of any kind to a…

The county executive shall be the administrative head of the county. He shall attend all meetings of the board and recommend such action as he deems expedient. He shall be responsible to the board for the proper administration of the affairs of the county which the board has auth…

The county executive may, if the board requires, act as the director or head of any department or departments, the directors or heads of which are appointed by the board, providing he is otherwise eligible to head such department or departments.

The activities or functions of the county shall, with the exceptions herein provided, be distributed among the following general divisions or departments: 1. Department of finance. 2. Department of social services. 3. Department of law enforcement. 4. Department of education. 5. …

The director of finance shall be the head of the department of finance and, as such, have charge of: (i) the administration of the financial affairs of the county, including the budget; (ii) the assessment of property for taxation; (iii) the collection of taxes, license fees and …

No money shall be drawn from the treasury of the county, nor shall any obligation for the expenditure of money be incurred, except pursuant to appropriation resolutions. Funds appropriated for multiyear capital projects and outstanding grants, however, may be carried over from ye…

A. The director of finance shall exercise all the powers conferred and perform all the duties imposed by general law upon commissioners of the revenue, not inconsistent herewith, and shall be subject to the obligations and penalties imposed by general law. B. The director of fina…

The director of finance shall also exercise the powers conferred and perform the duties imposed by general law upon county treasurers, and shall be subject to the obligations and penalties imposed by general law. All moneys received by any county officer or employee for or in con…

The director of finance shall (i) audit all claims against the county for goods or services; (ii) ascertain that such claims are in accordance with the purchase orders or contracts of employment from which the claims arise; (iii) draw all checks in settlement of such claims; (iv)…

The director of finance shall act as purchasing agent for the county, unless the board designates another officer or employee for such purpose. The director of finance or the person designated as purchasing agent shall make all purchases, subject to such exceptions as the board a…

The chief assessing officer shall be subject to the obligations and penalties imposed by general law upon commissioners of the revenue.

If the department of public works is established, the director of the department shall be a person who has training and experience in the management of the construction and maintenance of public projects. He shall exercise the powers conferred and perform the duties imposed by ge…

The local director of social services shall be head of the department of social services, and shall be chosen from a list of eligibles furnished by the Commissioner of Social Services. He shall have charge of poor relief and charitable institutions; may, at the discretion of the …

The department of law enforcement shall consist of such police as may be appointed pursuant to § 15.2-512, and police officers appointed by the board, pursuant to such section, including the chief of the department. All so appointed shall be conservators of the peace in the count…

The board may appoint a county attorney pursuant to § 15.2-1542, who shall serve at a salary as fixed by the board and who shall be accountable to the board.

The sheriff shall exercise the powers conferred and perform the duties imposed upon sheriffs by general law. He shall have the custody of, and be charged with the duty of feeding and caring for, all prisoners confined in the county jail. He shall perform such other duties the boa…

The department of education shall consist of the county school board, the division superintendent of schools and the officers and employees thereof. Except as herein otherwise provided, the county school board and the division superintendent of schools shall exercise the powers c…

The members of the county school board shall be appointed or reappointed, as the case may be, for terms of four years each, except that initial appointments hereunder may be for terms of one to four years, respectively, so as to provide staggered terms for such members. Notwithst…

Notwithstanding any contrary provisions of §§ 15.2-531 and 15.2-532, a county which has an elected school board shall comply with the applicable provisions of Article 7 (§ 22.1-57.1 et seq.) of Title 22.1.

The department of health shall consist of the health director, who shall be appointed as provided in the applicable provisions of Article 5 (§ 32.1-30 et seq.) of Chapter 1 of Title 32.1 and who shall be head thereof, and the other officers and employees of such department. The h…

The department of assessments, if and when established, shall be headed by a commissioner of the revenue or a supervisor of assessments, who shall exercise the powers conferred and perform the duties imposed by § 15.2-521 upon the director of finance. In addition to the powers an…

The county clerk, the attorney for the Commonwealth and the sheriff shall be selected in the manner and for the terms, and vacancies in such offices shall be filled, as provided by general law.

The following officers shall not, except as herein otherwise provided, be affected by the adoption of the county executive form: 1. Jury commissioners; 2. County electoral boards; 3. Registrars; 4. Judges and clerks of elections; and 5. Magistrates.

The board shall require an annual audit of the books of every county officer who handles public funds to be made by an accountant who is not a regular officer or employee of the county and who is thoroughly qualified by training and experience. An audit made by the Auditor of Pub…

Each year at least two weeks before the board must prepare its proposed annual budget, the county executive shall prepare and submit to the board a budget presenting a financial plan for conducting the county's affairs for the ensuing year. The budget shall be set up in the manne…

All county officers and employees shall be paid regular compensation and the fee system as a method of compensation in the county shall be abolished, except for those officers not affected by the adoption of this form of county organization and government. All such officers and e…

The county executive shall give bond in the amount of not less than $5,000. The director of finance shall give bond in the amount of not less than fifteen percent of the amount of money to be received by him annually. If the county executive serves also as director of finance, he…

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the county board, in order to ensure its competitiveness as an employer, may by ordinance provide for the use of funds, other than state funds, to provide grants, loans, and other assistance for county and school board employees, as wel…

The form of county organization and government provided for in this chapter shall be known and designated as the county manager form. The provisions of this chapter shall apply only to counties which have adopted the county manager form.

Any county may adopt the county manager form of government in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 3 (§ 15.2-300 et seq.) of this title.

The powers of the county as a body politic and corporate shall be vested in a board of supervisors ("the board"), to consist of not fewer than three nor more than nine members to be elected by the qualified voters of the county at large, or solely by the qualified voters of the r…

The governing body of any county which has adopted the county manager form of government, as provided in Chapter 368 of the Acts of 1932, at an election held for that purpose pursuant to the provisions of said chapter, may by resolution petition the circuit court of the county re…

The board of supervisors shall be the policy-determining body of the county and shall be vested with all rights and powers conferred on boards of supervisors by general law, consistent with the form of county organization and government herein provided.