CHAPTER 410
AN ACT TO AMEND AN ACT BEING CHAPTER 197, VOLUME 54, LAWS OF DELAWARE, AS AMENDED, ENTITLED "AN ACT REVISING THE PRIOR CHARTER OF THE CITY OF REHOBOTH BEACH AND ESTABLISHING A NEW CHARTER THEREFOR AND PRESCRIBING THE POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE COMMISSIONERS OF REHOBOTH BEACH" TO PERMIT CERTAIN LEASEHOLDERS TO HOLD ELECTIVE OFFICE, TO DEFINE THE TERM LEASEHOLDER, TO PERMIT CERTAIN LEASEHOLDERS TO VOTE IN THE ANNUAL MUNICIPAL ELECTION, TO CHANGE THE DATE WHEN THE TAX RATE IS SET, TO CHANGE THE DATE WHEN THE BUDGET IS ADOPTED, TO PERMIT THE BORROWING OF FUNDS AGAINST ANTICIPATED REVENUES, TO ESTABLISH A SALARY FOR THE ELECTED OFFICERS.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Delaware (two-thirds of all members elected to each House thereof concurring therein):
Section 1. Subsection a, Section 3, Chapter 197, Volume 54, Laws of Delaware, as amended, is hereby further amended by striking out all of said Subsection a, Section 3, Chapter 197, Volume 54, Laws of Delaware, as amended, and substituting in lieu thereof the following:
a. The government of The City and the exercise of all power conferred by this Charter, except as otherwise provided herein, shall be vested in The Commissioners of Rehoboth Beach. The Commissioners of Rehoboth Beach shall consist of seven (7) members, to be chosen as hereinafter provided. One of said Commissioners shall have the title of Mayor of The City of Rehoboth Beach, with duties hereinafter to be prescribed, and who shall also be President of The Commissioners of Rehoboth Beach. Each of the seven (7) Commissioners of Rehoboth Beach, at the time of the approval of his qualifications by The Commissioners as hereinafter provided or at the time of his appointment as the case may be, and throughout his term of office, shall have attained the age of twenty-one (21) years of age, be a non-delinquent taxable of The City and a freeholder or leaseholder of The City. Three (3) of the said Commissioners shall reside outside the corporate limits of The City and three (3) of the said Commissioners shall be bona fide residents of The City. The Commissioner with the title of Mayor of The City of Rehoboth Beach shall also be a bona fide resident of The City. If any one of The Commissioners shall, during his term of office, cease to be a freeholder or leaseholder of The City, he shall ipso facto vacate his office. If any one of the resident Commissioners or if The Commissioner with the title of Mayor of The City of Rehoboth Beach shall cease during his term of office to be a bona fide resident of The City of Rehoboth Beach, he shall ipso facto vacate his office. If any one of the non-resident Commissioners shall become a resident of The City by reason of moving within the corporate limits of The City or by annexation or otherwise, he shall, ipso facto, vacate his office. The Commissioners shall be the judges of the qualifications of their members. For all purposes of this Charter, a "freeholder" shall be deemed to include any person who holds fee simple title to real property in his own name, or who holds title to an undivided interest in real property or who holds title to real estate as a tenant by the entirety. For all purposes of this Charter, a "leaseholder" shall be deemed to include any person holding land under a valid lease either in his own name or who is the owner of an undivided interest in a leasehold or who holds title to a leasehold with his or her spouse for an original term of not less than ten (10) years whose lease is recorded in the office of the Recorder of Deeds, in and for Sussex County, and who is the owner of an improvement erected upon the leasehold having an assessed valuation of at least One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00).
Section 2. Subsection d, Section 7, Chapter 197, Volume 54, Laws of Delaware, as amended, is hereby further amended by striking out all of said Subsection d, Section 7, Chapter 197, Volume 54, Laws of Delaware, as amended, and substituting in lieu thereof the following:
d. At such annual election, every person, male or female, who shall have attained the age of twenty-one (21) years and who shall have been a freeholder or leaseholder in The City of Rehoboth Beach for a period of three (3) months immediately preceding such election whether or not a resident of the State of Delaware or of The City of Rehoboth Beach and also every person, male or female, who shall have attained the age of twenty-one years on the date of election and who shall be a bona fide resident of the State of Delaware for a period of one (1) year and of The City of Rehoboth Beach for at least three (3) months on the date of the annual election shall have one (1) vote provided he or she has registered on the "Books of Registered Voters" of The City of Rehoboth. The Commissioners of Rehoboth Beach shall provide two registers to be known as the "Books of Registered Voters" which are to be kept at the office of the City Manager. The Books of Registered Voters shall contain the following information for each registrant: The names of the voters arranged in alphabetical order, the permanent address of the voter, the local address of the voter, the birth-date of the voter, the date the registrant became a resident of the State of Delaware, the date the registrant became a resident of The City of Rehoboth Beach, the date when the registrant became a freeholder of The City of Rehoboth Beach, the date the registrant became a leaseholder of The City of Rehoboth Beach, and other pertinent information. No person shall be registered upon the Books of Registered Voters unless he will have acquired the qualifications to vote in the annual election for the year in which he registers. A person shall only be required to register one time; provided, however, that if a registered voter fails to vote in two consecutive annual elections, his name shall be removed from the Books of Registered Voters and notice sent to said registered voter at his last known address by registered mail with return receipt requested advising that his name has been removed from the list of registered voters and that it will be necessary to register again in order to be eligible to vote in the annual election. The Books of Registered Voters shall be maintained at the office of the City Manager and shall be conclusive evidence of the right of any person to vote at the annual election. A person may register at the office of the City Manager during the regular office hours on any day and on the day of election by completing such forms as be provided by The City.
Section 3. Subsection a, Section 24, Chapter 197, Volume 54, Laws of Delaware, as amended, is hereby further amended by striking out the word "May" as it appears in the first line of said Subsection a, Section 24, Chapter 197, Volume 54, Laws of Delaware, as amended, and substituting in lieu thereof the word "June."
Section 4. Subsection c, Section 24, Chapter 197, Volume 54, Laws of Delaware, as amended, is hereby further amended by striking out the word "July" as it appears in the first line of said Subsection c, Section 24, Chapter 197, Volume 54, Laws of Delaware, as amended, and substituting in lieu thereof the word "June."
Section 5. Subsection b, Section 25, Chapter 197, Volume 54, Laws of Delaware, as amended, is hereby further amended by striking out all of said Subsection b, Section 25, Chapter 197, Volume 54, Laws of Delaware, as amended, and substituting in lieu thereof the following:
b. All taxes so laid or imposed by The Commissioners of Rehoboth Beach in such annual tax list, shall be and constitute a lien upon all the real estate of the taxable and upon any improvements located on land under a lease for an original period of at least ten (10) years which said lease has been recorded in the office of the Recorder of Deeds, in and for Sussex County, for a period of ten (10) years, against or upon whom such taxes are laid or imposed, of which such taxable was seized or possessed, at any time after such taxes shall have been levied and imposed, that is situated in The City of Rehoboth Beach. Such lien shall have preference and priority to all other such liens on real estate or upon improvements located on land under lease, as aforesaid, created or suffered by said taxable although such other lien or liens be of a date prior to the time of the attaching of such lien for taxes.
Section 6. Subsection b, Section 28, Chapter 197, Volume 54, Laws of Delaware, as amended, is hereby further amended by striking out all of said Subsection b, Section 28, Chapter 197, Volume 54, Laws of Delaware, as amended, and substituting in lieu thereof the following:
b. Annually each year and not later than May 1st, the City Manager shall prepare a rough draft of a City Budget. From this rough draft, the Commissioners of Rehoboth Beach shall, not later than the regular meeting held in May of each year, prepare the City Budget, containing the financial plan for conducting the affairs of The City for the ensuing fiscal year.
Section 7. Subsection a, Section 29, Chapter 197, Volume 54, Laws of Delaware, as amended, is hereby further amended by adding at the end of said Subsection a, Section 29, Chapter 197, Volume 54, Laws of Delaware, as amended, a new Paragraph designated as Paragraph 43 to read as follows:
43. To borrow money in anticipation of revenues on the full faith and credit of The City of Rehoboth Beach sum or sums not exceeding One Hundred Thousand Dollars ($100,000.00) in any one year when, in the opinion of a majority of the Commissioners of Rehoboth Beach, the needs of The City require it. Any sum so borrowed shall be secured by promissory notes of The City of Rehoboth Beach duly authorized by a Resolution adopted by the Commissioners of Rehoboth Beach and signed by the Mayor of The City of Rehoboth Beach and attested by the Secretary of the Commissioners of Rehoboth Beach with the corporate seal affixed and no officer or Commissioner shall be liable for the payments of such notes because it is signed by them as officers of The City and is authorized by the Resolution of the Commissioners of Rehoboth Beach; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, that the total sum outstanding at any one time shall not exceed One Hundred Thousand Dollars ($100,000.00); AND PROVIDED FURTHER, that any sum of money so borrowed, as aforesaid, in any fiscal year shall be paid from the general fund of The City and shall be completely repaid at any time but must be completely paid at the end of ten (10) fiscal years following the first fiscal year when said sum or sums were borrowed with interest thereon; and PROVIDED FURTHER, that such ad valorem taxes shall be levied as are necessary to pay the principal of and interest on said bonds as is required without regard to any other limitation concerning the maximum rate of taxation and such notes and the interest thereon shall be exempt from all taxation by the State of Delaware or by any political subdivision, agency or subdivision thereof.
Section 8. Section 5, Chapter 197, Volume 54, Laws of Delaware, as amended, is hereby further amended by adding at the end of said Section 5, Chapter 197, Volume 54, Laws of Delaware, as amended, a new Subsection designated as Subsection e, as follows:
e. The Mayor shall receive a salary of One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) per annum. The Secretary of the Commissioners of Rehoboth Beach shall receive a salary of Seven Hundred Fifty Dollars ($750.00) per annum. Each of the other members of the Commissioners of Rehoboth Beach shall receive a salary of Six Hundred Dollars ($600.00) per annum; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, that no salary shall be paid until September 1, 1971.
Approved May 6, 1970.