CHAPTER 745
An Act to amend and reenact §§ 1, 3, and 5 of Chapter 871 of the Acts of Assembly of 1988, relating to the Tappahannock-Essex County Airport Authority.
Approved April 18, 2012
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §§ 1, 3, and 5 of Chapter 871 of the Acts of Assembly of 1988 are amended and reenacted as follows:
§ 1. Definitions.-As used in this act the words and terms herein shall have the following meanings, unless the context shall indicate another or different meaning or intent:
A. The word "Authority" shall mean the Tappahannock-Essex
County Airport Authority hereinafter created or, if the authority shall be
abolished, the board, body, commission, or agency succeeding to the
principal functions thereof or upon whom the powers given by this act to the
Authority shall be conferred by law. The Authority is the same political
subdivision formerly known as the Tappahannock-Essex County Airport Authority.
As such, the Authority has all rights, obligations, and duties of the
Tappahannock-Essex County Airport Authority, including but not limited to all
leases, contracts, grants-in-aid, bonds, and all other agreements of whatsoever
nature; holds title to all realty and personalty held by the former
Tappahannock-Essex County Airport Authority; and may exercise all powers that
might at any time past have been exercised by the Tappahannock-Essex County
Airport Authority.
B. The word "project" shall mean an airport for general, commercial, and private use acquired, maintained, constructed, or reconstructed by the Authority under the provisions of this act, together with all necessary and convenient approaches, air navigation equipment, roads, and streets used in connection with such airport.
C. The term "cost of the project" shall embrace the
cost of acquisition, construction or reconstruction (including improvements),
landscaping, and conservation,; the cost of acquisition of
all land, rights-of-way, property, rights, easements, and interests
acquired by the Authority for the operation of the project,; the
cost of demolishing or removing any buildings or structures on land acquired,
including the cost of acquiring any land to which such buildings or structures
may be moved,; the cost of all machinery and equipment, financing
charges, interest prior to and during construction or reconstruction,
and, if deemed advisable by the Authority for a period not exceeding one year
after completion of the project, the cost of traffic estimates and of
engineering and legal services, plans, specifications, surveys, estimates of
cost and of revenues, provision for working capital and a reserve for interest,;
other expenses necessary or incident to determining the feasibility or practicability
of the project,; administrative expenses,; and such
other expenses as may be necessary or incident to the project, the financing,
and the placing of the project in operation.
D. The word "bonds" or the words "revenue bonds" shall mean revenue bonds or refunding bonds of the Authority, notes, interim certificates and any other evidences of indebtedness issued under the provisions of this act.
§ 3. "Tappahannock-Essex County Airport
Authority."-There is hereby created and constituted a political subdivision
of the Commonwealth to be known as the "Tappahannock-Essex County
Airport Authority." The exercise by the Authority of the powers conferred
by this act in the acquisition, construction, reconstruction, operation,
and maintenance of the project authorized by this act shall be deemed and held
to be the performance of an essential governmental function.
The Until July 1, 2013, the Authority shall consist
of seven members; three members shall be appointed by the Tappahannock Town
Council, and four members shall be appointed by the Board of Supervisors of
Essex County. As of and after July 1, 2013, the Authority shall consist of
seven five members; three of these members shall be appointed by
the Tappahannock Town Council and four members who shall be
appointed by the Board of Supervisors of Essex County with at least one
member residing in the Town of Tappahannock; on that date, the terms of members
previously appointed by the Tappahannock Town Council shall be deemed expired,
but the terms of members previously appointed by the Board of Supervisors of
Essex County shall not be affected hereby, with two members' terms to end June
30, 2013; one member's term to end June 30, 2014; one member's term to end June
30, 2015; and the new member residing in the Town of Tappahannock to be
appointed by the Board of Supervisors shall have an initial term expiring June
30, 2014. All appointments shall require only a simple resolution
motion passed by majority vote of the body concerned. Members shall
be subject to removal from office under provisions of Article 1.1, Chapter 6,
Title 24.1, Code of Virginia, 1950 as amended.
Members of the Authority shall serve for a term of three years;
except that, to insure membership continuity, initial appointments by the two
governing bodies shall be delegated as follows: one of the three members from
the Town of Tappahannock shall be appointed for a term ending on June 30, 1988,
one member for a term ending on June 30, 1989, and one member for a term ending
on June 30, 1990; one of the four members from the County of Essex shall be
appointed for a term ending on June 30, 1988; one member for a term ending on
June 30, 1989; one member for a term ending on June 30, 1990; and one member
for a term ending on June 30, 1991; with succeeding appointments to be for a
full three-year term, thus requiring the appointment or reappointment of one
member of the Authority by each governing body every year and may be
reappointed. Interim vacancies occurring in the membership of the Authority
due to deaths, resignations, etc., will be filed only for the unexpired term of
that member. A member shall continue to serve until his successor shall be duly
appointed and qualified.
The Authority shall annually in July elect one of its members as chairman and another as vice-chairman and shall also elect annually a secretary-treasurer, who may or may not be a member of the Authority.
The secretary-treasurer shall keep a record of the proceedings of the Authority and shall be custodian of all books, documents and papers filed with the Authority and of the minute book or journal of the Authority and of its official seal. He shall have authority to cause copies to be made of all minutes and other records and documents of the Authority and to give certificates under the official seal of the Authority to the effect that such copies are true copies, and all persons dealing with the Authority may rely upon such certificates.
Four Three members of the Authority shall
constitute a quorum and the affirmative vote of four members shall be
necessary for any action taken by the Authority. No vacancy in the
membership of the Authority shall impair the right of a quorum to exercise all
the other rights and perform all the duties of the Authority, and no vacancy in
the membership of the Authority shall impair the validity of any bonds or other
evidences of indebtedness issued by the Authority.
The Authority shall meet at least monthly, at a time and place
to be determined by the members and at such other duties times as
the members may deem necessary or appropriate; minutes of all meetings shall be
recorded with copies provided to each governing body the Board of
Supervisors of Essex County.
Each governing body will provide interim administrative
support until such time as the Authority is fully organized and
self-sufficient.
Before the issuance of any revenue bonds under the
provisions of this act the secretary-treasurer of the Authority shall execute a
surety bond in the penal sum of $50,000, such surety bond to be conditioned
upon the faithful performance of the duties of his office, to be executed by a
surety company authorized to transact business in the Commonwealth as surety
and to be approved by the Attorney General and tiled in the office of the
Secretary of the Commonwealth.
The members of the Authority shall be entitled to reimbursement for their expenses incurred in attendance upon the meetings of the Authority or while otherwise engaged in the discharge of their duties, but otherwise shall serve without compensation.
§ 5. Acquisition of property.-A. The Authority is hereby
authorized and empowered to acquire by eminent domain in accordance with the applicable
provisions of Chapters 1.1 and 6 of Title 25 § 5.1-34 and
Title 25.1 of the Code of Virginia, as amended, or by purchase from funds
provided under the provisions of this act, and such other moneys as may be
provided by federal, state and local governments or by gift, such lands,
structures, property, rights, rights-of-way, franchises, easements and other interests
in lands as it may deem necessary or convenient for the project, upon such
terms and conditions as may be considered by it to be reasonable and can be
agreed upon between it and the owner thereof.
All public agencies and commissions of the Commonwealth, with
the approval of the Governor, and, notwithstanding any contrary provisions of
law, general or special, the Town of Tappahannock and the County of
Essex and all other local governments of the Commonwealth, without the
necessity for any advertisement, order of court, or other action or
formality, are hereby authorized and empowered to lease, lend, grant, give,
transfer, or convey to the Authority at its request upon such terms and
conditions as may be mutually agreed upon any real, personal, or mixed
property, including money, which may be necessary or convenient to the
effectuation of the authorized purposes of the Authority, including public
highways and other property already devoted to public use. Four-sevenths of
required local appropriation shall be provided by the County of Essex, and
three-sevenths of any required local appropriation shall be provided by the
Town of Tappahannock. All agreements or arrangements entered into by the
Town of Tappahannock and the County of Essex to provide support for bonds or
other obligations of the Authority issued or incurred before July 1, 2013, are
hereby continued and shall remain in force and effect in accordance with their
terms, provided that four-sevenths of any payment made pursuant to any such
agreement or arrangement shall be provided by the County of Essex and
three-sevenths of any such payment shall be provided by the Town of
Tappahannock.
B. Title to any property acquired by the Authority shall be taken in the name of the Authority.