NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL ASSEMBLY
1967 SESSION

CHAPTER 828
SENATE BILL 586 

AN ACT TO REVISE AND REWRITE THE CHARTER OF THE TOWN OF BESSEMER CITY IN GASTON COUNTY.

The General Assembly of North Carolina do enact.

Section 1. That the inhabitants of the present Town of Bessemer City, in the County of Gaston, State of North Carolina, shall continue to be and constitute a body politic incorporated within the boundaries as established in Section 3 of this Charter, or as hereafter established in the manner provided by law, may have and use a corporate seal, and shall have perpetual succession and shall be a City under the name and style of "Bessemer City" and as such shall have all franchises, powers, property, and rights of property, privileges and immunities which now belong to the Town of Bessemer City under this or any other name or names and shall be subject to all its present liabilities; and, under this name shall have, acting through its City Council, among other things, power to make and provide for the execution of such ordinances for Bessemer City as they may deem proper, not inconsistent with the laws of the land, and Bessemer City shall have, in addition to the power now or hereafter granted to municipalities under the general law of the State of North Carolina, and is specifically granted, the following powers:
(1)	Those prescribed by Statute and those necessarily implied by law;
(2)	To sue or be sued;
(3)	To acquire and hold such estates for municipal purposes as may be devised, bequeathed, sold, leased, purchased, or in any manner conveyed to it involuntarily or by condemnation, both within or without its corporate limits;
(4)	To manage, invest, sell, lease, or dispose of such estates, as shall be deemed advisable by the proper authorities of Bessemer City and in conformity with this Charter and the laws of North Carolina;
(5)	To contract or be contracted with;
(6)	To levy, assess, and collect such taxes and special assessments as are authorized by law;
(7)	To purchase, hire, construct, own, maintain, and operate or lease local public utilities and to furnish local public services both within and without the corporate limits of Bessemer City and to grant public utility franchises and to regulate the exercise thereof;
(8)	To condemn land required for any governmental purpose, both within and without the corporate limits, and in such excess as may be required to protect or preserve same, under the same procedure as now or hereafter provided in Chapter 40, Eminent Domain, Article 2, General Statutes of North Carolina;
(9)	To issue and sell bonds on the security of any such excess property, or of any public utility owned by the City, or of the revenue thereof, or of both, including the case of a public utility, if deemed desirable by the City, a franchise stating the terms upon which, in case of foreclosure, the purchaser may operate such utility;
(10)	To adopt and enforce within its corporate limits and within one mile thereof police, sanitary, and other police power regulations not inconsistent with the General Statutes of North Carolina and all amendments thereto, including extraterritorial zoning authority as authorized by North Carolina G. S. 160-181.2, which is hereby declared to be applicable to Bessemer City. North Carolina G. S. 160-181.2 is hereby amended by adding the following language to the last paragraph: "Provided, however, that this Section shall apply to Bessemer City in Gaston County."
(11)	To borrow money within the limits prescribed by law;
(12)	To appropriate the money of the City for all lawful purposes;
(13)	To make and set the rate or charges for furnishing water or other local public utilities supplied by Bessemer City. Deposits may be required in connection with any installation or service, and the same shall not draw any interest;
(14)	To provide for the payment of existing legal indebtedness and of any binding obligation that may be made from time to time by the City and to appropriate funds and levy taxes for that purpose;
(15)	To pass ordinances for the due observance of Sunday and for maintenance of order in the vicinity of churches, schools, and public buildings;
(16)	To own, establish, regulate and operate one or more cemeteries and to regulate the burying of the dead;
(17)	To prescribe fines, forfeitures, and penalties for the breach of any ordinance enforcing the powers granted in this Charter or by general law and to provide for recovery of such fines and forfeitures and cost of enforcement of such penalties;
(18)	To pass such ordinances as are expedient for maintaining peace, good government, and the welfare of the City and the morals and happiness of its citizens, and for the performance of all municipal functions;
(19)	To own, operate, maintain, or cease to maintain, parks, hospitals, auditoriums, swimming pools, community centers, playgrounds, stadiums, athletic parks and fields, and such other facilities for the benefit and welfare of its citizens and to finance same out of tax revenue or any portion of the general fund; provided, however, the City Council shall not appropriate more than ten per cent (10%)	of the gross tax receipts during any fiscal year for these purposes;
(20)	To require that all property owners provide adequate drainage facilities to the end that their premises be kept free of standing water and permit the natural flow of water thereon to be taken care of, and that in case of failure on the part of such owner or owners to provide the same, after due notice, to go upon their premises and construct the necessary facilities and charge the costs thereof against said premises to be collected as in the case of taxes;
(21)	To control, regulate, or prohibit the licensing and operating of junk yards and auto wrecking companies in the City of Bessemer City;
(22)	To issue and sell bonds of the City for the purposes and according to the methods prescribed in the laws of the State of North Carolina for the issuance of bonds by municipalities in any amount deemed appropriate by the City and to provide for the payment thereof as authorized or provided by such laws;
(23)	To do and perform all other duties and powers authorized by law;
(24)	To require all inhabitants to use the sanitary sewer system of the City if same are available, and to prohibit the continued use of septic tanks if City sewerage is available.
No liability shall accrue to Bessemer City for the failure of said City or its officers and employees to perform any duty or exercise any power above enumerated.
Except as otherwise provided in this Act, or the laws of North Carolina, the City Council shall have authority to determine by whom and in what manner the powers granted by this Section shall be exercised.
Sec. 2. The enumeration of particular powers, rights, privileges, franchises, and immunities by this Charter shall not be held or deemed to be exclusive, but in addition to the powers enumerated or implied therein, or appropriate to the exercise thereof, the City shall have and may exercise all other powers which under the Constitution and law of North Carolina are now granted or may be granted in the future to municipalities. The powers herein granted are in addition to and not in substitution for existing powers or powers hereafter granted to municipal corporations under the Constitution and law of North Carolina. Except as limited or restricted or prohibited by the Constitution of North Carolina or this Charter, Bessemer City shall have and may exercise all municipal powers, functions, rights, privileges, and immunities of every name and nature whatsoever. All ordinances of the Town of Bessemer City that are in effect upon the ratification of this Act shall continue in full force and effect until amended or repealed by the City Council of Bessemer City.
Sec. 3. The corporate limits of Bessemer City shall be identical to the corporate limits now in existence. The City Manager, if any, or Mayor shall at all times maintain a map in his office showing the boundary lines of the corporate limits of Bessemer City and this shall be open to inspection to any person at any time during normal business hours. Provided, however, that Bessemer City shall have authority to extend its corporate limits in any fashion as provided for by the law of North Carolina.
Sec. 4. Except as otherwise provided for in this Charter, all powers and the general management and control of Bessemer City shall be vested in a City Council of six members and a Mayor elected by and from the qualified voters of the City of Bessemer City in the manner hereinafter provided, who shall exercise their power or powers in conformity to the provisions in this Charter and the provisions of the general law with reference to the powers and privileges of municipalities wherein no provision has been made in this Charter with respect thereto.
Sec. 5. The terms of office for all elected officials shall be for two years and until their successors are elected and qualified. Only qualified voters of the State of North Carolina and of Bessemer City shall be eligible to hold such offices. A vacancy shall exist when an elected officer shall fail, without good cause, to qualify within 30 days after his election, shall die, resign, remove himself from Bessemer City, be convicted of, or submit to, a felonious charge, be judicially declared a lunatic, or be removed for cause by a court of competent jurisdiction, or by operation of law. Every such vacancy shall be filled for the remainder of the unexpired term by a majority vote of the remaining members of the City Council in regular or special meeting. The City Council shall have authority to fill any vacancy resulting from a failure of candidates filing.
Sec. 6. Upon ratification of this Act, the Board of Town Commissioners shall be known as the City Council, and the City Council and present Mayor shall continue in such office until the first Monday in July, 1967.
Sec. 7. On the first Monday in July, 1967, at 9:00 a.m. and biennially thereafter, the newly elected Mayor and members of the City Council shall meet at its usual place for holding its meetings in the City Hall in Bessemer City and the newly elected Mayor and members of the City Council shall take their oath of office and assume the duties of their office. Thereafter the City Council shall fix suitable times for its regular meetings by resolution or ordinance and shall convene for at least one regular meeting each month. The Mayor, or in the absence of the Mayor the Mayor Pro Tempore, or a majority of the City Council may at any time call a special session of the City Council by causing written notice of such special meeting to be given to all members of the governing body at least 24 hours before such special meeting. Meetings may also be held at any time the Mayor and all members of the City Council are present or consent thereto. A majority of the City Council shall constitute a quorum; in determining whether a quorum is present, the Mayor shall be counted as a member of the City Council. All meetings shall be public, and the Mayor, who shall be the official head of the City, shall preside, if present, but shall have no vote except in the case of a tie. A majority of the members present shall be sufficient to pass any motion, resolution, or ordinance unless otherwise set out herein. In the absence of the Mayor, the Mayor Pro Tempore, who shall be chosen at the first regular meeting following the regular municipal election by the City Council from its members, shall preside and shall vote when so presiding as herein provided for the Mayor, and in the absence of both, a Chairman Pro Tempore shall be chosen to preside at such meeting. The Clerk shall speak first to the governing body and shall keep records of the meeting. The governing body shall sit with open doors at all of its legislative sessions, and shall keep a journal of its proceedings, which shall be a public record.
Sec. 8. The City Council shall be the judge of the elections and qualifications of its members and the Mayor, and in such cases shall have power to subpoena witnesses and compel the production of all pertinent books, records, and papers; but the decision of the City Council in any case shall be subject to review by the court. The City Council shall determine its own rules and order of business.
Sec. 9. The City Council of Bessemer City, in its discretion, is authorized and empowered to appoint a City Manager, whose duties shall be as set forth in North Carolina G. S. 160-349; however, the City Manager shall not have any authority to hire or fire the City Clerk, City Attorney, Solicitor or Chief of Police. Said City Manager shall hold office at the will and pleasure of the City Council, and shall receive such compensation as fixed by the Council.
Sec. 10. The salaries and compensation of the officers and employees of the City shall be fixed by the City Council and they shall perform such duties as may be required of them by the City Manager or City Council.
Sec. 11. The City is hereby divided into six wards, being described as follows:
Ward 1: BEGINNING at the intersection of Virginia Avenue and 12th Street and running westerly along said Avenue to Skyland Avenue; thence continuing westerly a straight line to where the northerly line of the City limits is intersected by Highway No. 1403 commonly known as Ramseur Road; thence easterly along the northerly City limits line to Highway No. 1448; thence southerly along said Highway and 12th Street to the BEGINNING.
Ward 2: BEGINNING at the intersection of Mickley Avenue and the southerly line of the City limits and running westerly along said City limits line to the southwesterly corner of the City limits line; thence northerly along the City limits line to the northwesterly corner of the City limits line; thence easterly along the City limits line to where it is intersected by Highway No. 1403; thence easterly a straight line to the westerly end of Virginia Avenue in the Mountain Road; thence southerly along the Mountain Road to Mickley Avenue; thence southerly along Mickley Avenue to the BEGINNING.
Ward 3: BEGINNING at the intersection of Virginia Avenue and 12th Street and running southerly along 12th Street to the southerly City limits line; thence westerly along the City limits line to Mickley Avenue; thence northerly along Mickley Avenue to the Mountain Road; thence northerly along the Mountain Road to the westerly end of Virginia Avenue; thence easterly along Virginia Avenue to the BEGINNING.
Ward 4: BEGINNING at the intersection of Virginia Avenue and 12th Street and running easterly along Virginia Avenue to 8th Street; thence southerly along 8th Street to the southerly City limits line; thence westerly along the City limits line to 12th Street; thence northerly along 12th Street to the BEGINNING.
Ward 5: BEGINNING where the southerly City limits line is intersected by 8th Street and running northerly along 8th Street to the northerly end of the street and continuing northerly a straight line to the northerly City limits line; thence easterly along the City limits line to the northeasterly corner of the City limits line; thence westerly along the southerly City limits line to the BEGINNING.
Ward 6: BEGINNING at the intersection of 8th Street and Virginia Avenue and running westerly along Virginia Avenue to 12th Street; thence northerly along 12th Street and Highway No. 1448 to the northerly City limits line; thence along the old and new City limits line to a point in the City limits line northeasterly from the northerly end of 8th Street; thence a straight line along 8th Street in a southerly direction to the BEGINNING.
Sec. 12. The qualified voters of the City, voting at large, shall elect one Councilman from each of the six wards. Each voter in the City shall be entitled to vote for one candidate from each ward, and the candidate from each ward who receives the largest number of votes cast for Councilman from his ward shall be declared elected. Regular elections shall be held on the last Monday in June of each odd-numbered year.
Sec. 13. G. S. 160-31, insofar as it requires a separate polling place in each ward, shall not apply to Bessemer City. The City Council shall establish one polling place. There shall be one ballot prepared.
Sec. 14. Any qualified elector of the City who has been a resident of the ward from which he or she is elected for at least four months prior to election shall be eligible to serve as City Councilman. If a vacancy occurs on the Council by reason of the death of a member, or if a member moves from the ward from which he has been elected, the vacancy shall be filled by the remaining members of the Council, who shall elect some qualified person of the ward in which the vacancy occurred.
Sec. 15. All ordinances, except ordinances making appropriations and ordinances codifying or rearranging existing ordinances or enacting a code of ordinances shall be confined to one subject, and the subject, or subjects of all ordinances making appropriations shall be confined to the subject of appropriations. The ayes and nays shall be taken upon the passage of all ordinances and resolutions and entered upon the journal of the proceedings of the City Council. The enacting clauses of all ordinances shall be: "Be it ordained by the City of Bessemer City:". All ordinances and resolutions passed by the City Council shall take effect at the times indicated therein.
Sec. 16. Upon its passage each ordinance or resolution shall be authenticated by the signature of the City Clerk, and shall be recorded in a journal kept for that purpose. Within 10 days after passage, a notice setting forth in brief the substance of each ordinance shall be published or posted at least once in such manner as the City Council may prescribe; provided, however, that the provisions of this Section shall not apply to an ordinance authorizing bonds to the City of Bessemer City under the provisions of the Municipal Finance Act, 1921, as amended, but such ordinances shall be published as required by Section 160-384 of the General Statutes.
Sec. 17. That for the purpose of electing a Mayor, the several Councilmen and all other elective officers of the City of Bessemer City, there shall be held in said City, on the last Monday in June, 1967, and biennially thereafter, a regular municipal election. The City Council may, by resolution, order a special election, fix the time for holding the same, and provide all means for holding such special election, including rules and regulations governing registration of voters.
Sec. 18. Any qualified voter of Bessemer City who desires to become a candidate for the office of Mayor or City Councilman shall file a notice of his candidacy, together with a filing fee of five dollars ($5.00) with the City Clerk, not less than 15 days prior to the day of the election. No person's name shall be placed upon the general municipal election ballot unless he has complied with the conditions herein set out. Each qualified elector who desires to become a candidate shall file, with the City Clerk, a statement of such candidacy, in substantially the following form, which shall be furnished by the City Clerk:
"STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA	CITY OF BESSEMER CITY
COUNTY OF GASTON 	NOTICE OF CANDIDACY
I, 	, hereby certify that I reside at 	 Street, Ward No. 	, Bessemer City, County of Gaston, State of North Carolina, and that I qualify in all respects as a candidate for municipal office in the City of Bessemer City.
I hereby give notice that I am a candidate for election for the office of Mayor, City Council (strike one) to be voted upon in the municipal election for the City of Bessemer City to be held on 	, the .................. day of 	, 19 	. .
I hereby request that my name be printed on the official ballot as a candidate for the office of Mayor, Councilman (strike one).
	(signed)
	(date)
STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA
COUNTY OF GASTON
I, 	, a Notary Public, do hereby certify that 	personally appeared before me this day and acknowledged the due execution of the foregoing Notice of Candidacy for elective office in the City of Bessemer City.
Witness my hand and notarial seal, this 	 day of 	, 19 	 .
	 (SEAL)
	Notary Public
My commission expires: 	
(Place Notary Public Seal here)
This Notice of Candidacy for the office of Mayor, Councilman (strike one) of the City of Bessemer City together with the filing fee of five dollars ($5.00), were filed with the undersigned City Clerk on this 	day of 	,19	 .
		 (SEAL)
	City Clerk"
Any candidate may withdraw his statement of candidacy not later than the last day for filing such statement but shall forfeit his filing fee, said filing fees to be applied to the expenses of the City.
The City Clerk shall preserve the name and address of each candidate and each Notice of Candidacy until the expiration of the term of office to which the candidate aspired or was elected.
Sec. 19. The full names of all candidates for Mayor and all candidates for the City Council, except such as have withdrawn, died, or become ineligible, shall be printed on the official ballots in the alphabetical order of the surnames in rotation without party designation. Provided, however, a candidate may use a nickname in filing his Notice of Candidacy and said nickname shall be used on the official ballot provided the use of said nickname on the ballot is in compliance with the general election laws for the State of North Carolina. There shall be printed as many sets of ballots as there are candidates for the City Council. Each set of ballots shall begin with the name of a different candidate, the other names being arranged thereafter in alphabetical order commencing with the name next in alphabetical order after the one that stands first upon such set of ballots. When the last name is reached in alphabetical order, it shall be followed by the name that begins with the first letter represented in the list of names of the candidates and by the others in regular alphabetical order. Provided, however, the City Council may provide the order in which the names of the candidates shall appear on the ballots.
Sec. 20. Each Councilman shall receive a salary of three hundred dollars ($300.00) per year during his term in office, payable semiannually, and the Mayor shall receive a salary of five hundred dollars ($500.00) per year during his term in office, payable semiannually.
Sec. 21. Said election shall be conducted as far as possible in all things and in all details in accordance with the general election laws pertaining to municipal elections and particularly in accord with Article 3 of Chapter 160 of the General Statutes of North Carolina. However, where the General Statutes of North Carolina hereinbefore referred to are in conflict with any provision in this Charter, then and in that event said provision of this Charter shall supersede the general laws of North Carolina.
Sec. 22. The City Council may appoint a Treasurer, a Tax Collector, an Accountant, a City Attorney, a Chief of Police, a Fire Chief, a Judge and Vice Recorder of the Municipal Recorder's Court, Solicitor and Assistant Solicitor of the Municipal Recorder's Court, and a Clerk of the Recorder's Court, none of whom need be a resident of the City or of Crowder's Mountain Township; provided, that the City Council may appoint one person to fill any two or more such positions, save and except for the position of Judge of the Municipal Recorder's Court and Solicitor of the Municipal Recorder's Court. Such employees or officers shall serve at the pleasure of the City Council. The City Council shall fix all salaries for these officers and employees and all other employees, prescribe bonds, and require such oaths as they may deem necessary.
Sec. 23. The City Council may choose a City Clerk; and a Deputy City Clerk, whose powers shall be identical to the City Clerk's. The City Clerk shall keep the records of the City Council and perform such other duties as may be required by law or the City Council. The City Clerk may hold one or more of the positions enumerated in Section 22.
Sec. 24. The Recorder's Court of the City of Bessemer City, as authorized by Chapter 64 of the Private Laws of North Carolina, 1933, shall continue in existence and in operation with the identical powers, rights, and jurisdiction previously held by and conferred upon it prior to the ratification of this Charter so long as said prior powers and Acts do not conflict with this Charter. Specifically, the provisions of Chapter 1070 of the 1959 Session Laws of North Carolina and Chapter 224 of the 1959 Session Laws of North Carolina shall continue in full force and effect.
Sec. 25. The duties of the Clerk of the Recorder's Court shall be the same as are authorized by the General Statutes of North Carolina.
Sec. 26. Before making any purchase or contract for supplies, materials, equipment or contractual services, opportunity shall be given for competition, under such rules and regulations and with such exceptions as the City Council may prescribe by ordinance. All expenses for supplies, materials, equipment or contractual services involving more than two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500.00) shall be made on a written contract, and such contract shall be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder after such public notice and competition as may be prescribed by ordinances.
Sec. 27. Any City improvement costing more than three thousand five hundred dollars ($3,500.00) shall be executed by contract except where such improvement is authorized by the City Council to be executed directly by a City Department in conformity with detailed plans, specifications, and estimates. All such contracts for more than three thousand five hundred dollars ($3,500.00) shall be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder, after such notice and competition as may be prescribed by ordinance, provided the City Council shall have the power to reject any or all bids and exercise their discretion in the selection of a bid.
Sec. 28. The City Council shall order an independent, audit made of all accounts of the City government by a Certified Public Accountant selected by the City Council and said Accountant shall have no personal interest directly or indirectly in the financial affairs of the City government or its officers. This audit shall be made annually at the end of the fiscal year. The City Council shall have the authority to order an independent audit at any other time they should so desire. The annual audit herein provided for shall be made available for public inspection at the office of the City Clerk.
Sec. 29. It shall be the power of the City of Bessemer City and the duty of the City Council in the City of Bessemer City, annually, to levy taxes that will raise sufficient funds for the operation and management of the affairs of the City, including the payment of all lawful indebtedness of said City and shall levy and collect the same in accordance with the provisions as now or may hereafter exist under the general laws of the State of North Carolina; and said City shall have the further powers to levy and collect such further taxes that have been or may be approved by a vote of the electorate, and in accordance with such authority with respect thereto as may now or hereafter be granted said City. Also, it may levy and collect such privilege and license taxes as may be provided by law in the ordinances of the City of Bessemer City.
Sec. 30. The City Council shall have authority to revoke Sections 11, 12, and 14 of this Charter by appropriate resolution to the end that all members of the City Council shall be elected from the City as a whole. The Council is hereby allowed until September 1 of each year in which to adopt a financial budget for the next year.
Sec. 31. Before any person, firm, or corporation shall connect in any manner, except a sewer or water lateral from the meter to the premises, any privately owned water or sewer line or lines with any water or sewer line or lines of the City of Bessemer City, such person, firm, or corporation shall, by proper instrument, in consideration of making such connection and the benefits to be derived therefrom, dedicate, give, grant, and convey such water or sewer line or lines to Bessemer City whether such connection and line or lines be within or without the City of Bessemer City. No connection to any water or sewer line or lines or any other local public utility shall be made without the express approval of the City, nor shall such connection be effected except by the forces or employees of the City of Bessemer City, for which a reasonable charge may be made. Should any person, firm, or corporation connect any privately owned water or sewer line or lines with any City water or sewer line or lines without first dedicating, giving, granting, and conveying same to the City, the act of connecting such water or sewer line or lines to the water or sewer line or lines of the City of Bessemer City shall be conclusively deemed and held to be a dedication, gift, grant, and conveyance of such water or sewer line or lines to the City of Bessemer City; provided that the City of Bessemer City may enter into contracts, when authorized by a majority of the whole City Council, with any person, firm, or corporation whereby sewer or water lines may be laid within or without the City and connected to the system of said City under such terms as may be agreed upon, notwithstanding any provisions of this Section.
Sec. 32. That all records and accounts in every office and department of the City shall be open for inspection by any citizen or representative of the press at all reasonable times and under reasonable regulations established by the City Council, except records of documents the exposure of which would tend to defeat the lawful purpose which they are intended to accomplish.
Sec. 33. That every officer of the City shall before entering upon the duties of his office take and subscribe to the following oath or affirmation, to be filed with and kept by the office of the City Clerk: "I solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support the Constitution and will obey the laws of the United States and the State of North Carolina, and that I will, in all respects, observe the provisions of the Charter and the ordinances of the City of Bessemer City and will faithfully discharge the duties of the office of	.
		 (SEAL)
Signature
I,	, a person empowered to administer oaths, do hereby certify that 	. personally appeared before me this day and acknowledged the due execution of the foregoing oath, being by me first duly sworn.
Witness my hand and seal, this 	day of 	
19	 .
	
	Signature of Person Administering Oath"

Sec. 34. All contracts entered into by the City, or for its benefit, prior to the taking effect of this Charter, shall continue in full force and effect. Public improvements for which legislative steps have been taken under laws of the Charter provisions existing at the time this Charter takes effect may be carried to completion in accordance with the provisions of such existing laws and Charter provisions.
Sec. 35. The City Council shall have a right to require a surety bond, in any amount they shall deem sufficient, from any officer or employee of the City who shall handle public funds.
Sec. 36. The City Council shall have authority to enact any reasonable ordinances regulating air pollution. These ordinances shall have full force and effect within the City of Bessemer City and for a radius of one mile of the corporate limits of said City.
Sec. 37. All ordinances of the City of Bessemer City not inconsistent with the provisions of this Charter shall remain in full force and effect until altered, amended, or repealed by the City Council.
Sec. 38. All laws and clauses of laws in conflict with this Act and Charter are hereby repealed and specifically any provision, Charter, or amendment thereto to the City of Bessemer City in conflict are specifically repealed. No such repeal shall effect any act done or any right accruing or accrued or established or any suit had or commenced in any case before the time when such appeal shall take effect; provided, that no law heretofore repealed shall be revived by the repeal of any Act repealing such law; provided, that all persons who at the time that said repeal shall take effect shall hold any office under any of the Acts hereby repealed shall continue to hold the same according to the tenure thereof, except those as to which a different provision shall have been made by this Charter.
Sec. 39. If any part of this Charter shall be declared invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, such judgment shall not invalidate the remainder of this Charter but shall be confined in its operation to the clause, phrase, Section, subsection, or sentence affected and declared invalid or unconstitutional.
Sec. 40. It shall be the duty of the Mayor to attend all meetings when possible and to faithfully discharge the duties of his office.
Sec. 41. The City Council is hereby authorized and empowered to reimburse any City official for expense incurred while upon official business previously authorized by the City Council upon the submission by said person of an itemized expense account.
Sec. 42. This Act shall apply only to the City of Bessemer City in Gaston County.
Sec. 43. This Charter shall be in full force and effect from and after its ratification.
In the General Assembly read three times and ratified, this the 20th day of June, 1967.