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Local Government

Act (Vic.), s. 50.

Municipalities.

convicted of felony or perjury, or any infamous crime; no person of unsound mind, nor any person under composition with his creditors

See 59 Vict., 10, s. 54. by any deed of assignment or arrangement under or by virtue of the Bankruptcy Act, 1892, or any amending Act, duly executed by him, shall be capable of being or continuing a mayor, auditor, or councillor of any municipality.

Disqualification

the ground of interest.

on

42. NO person holding any office or place of profit under or in the gift or disposal of the council of any municipality, or concerned or participating in any manner, whether directly or indirectly, in any 59 Vict., No. 10, s. 54. contract or employment with any municipality or in any works to be done under the authority of any such council, shall be capable of being or continuing mayor or councillor of the municipality: Provided that such disqualification shall not extend to any mayor or councillor by reason of his being beneficially interested in any newspaper in which the council inserts advertisements, or by reason of being a proprietor or shareholder, or a shareholder in any duly incorporated company, having at least twenty bona fide shareholders, during a contract or contracts with any council, or who, in the ordinary course of business, and not pursuant to any written contract bona fide sells goods to or does work for such municipality; but no mayor or councillor being such proprietor or shareholder, or selling goods to or doing work for, as aforesaid, shall take part in any discussion, or vote on any question relating to any such matters as aforesaid in which he is interested.

Qualification and dis

43. THE disqualification for the office of auditor shall be the qualification of audi- same as in the case of a mayor or councillor.

tors.

No mayor, councillor,

or auditor to enter on office till he has

taken oath.

See ibid., s. 97.

44. NO person elected to be mayor, councillor, or auditor under this Act shall be capable of acting as such until he has first taken the oath of allegiance to Her Majesty, Her Heirs and successors as follows:—“I, A.B., do sincerely promise and swear that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Victoria as lawful Sovereign of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and of this Colony of Western Australia. So help me

God." And in like manner has made and subscribed the declaration following (that is to say): "I, A.B., having been elected mayor (or one of the auditors or councillor, for

as the

case may be), do hereby declare that I take the said office upon myself, and will duly and faithfully fulfil the duties thereof according to the best of my judgment and ability." And in case any person elected as mayor, councillor, or auditor does not within two months after his election take such oath and make and subscribe such declaration, his seat shall become vacant. The said oaths shall be taken by reading the same aloud in the municipal chamber or other place

Municipalities.

place used for the meeting of the council, and subscribing the same, in the case of the mayor, before his predecessor as such mayor, or a Justice of the Peace, and in the case of a councillor or auditor, before the mayor of the municipality: Provided that if the taking of an oath is according to the religious belief of any person so elected unlawful, such person may make and subscribe the following affirmation, which shall be made and subscribed in like manner and in the same place and at the same time as the oath is by this section required to be taken and subscribed:-" I, A.B., do solemnly declare that the taking of an oath is according to my religious belief unlawful, and I do sincerely promise and affirm that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Victoria as lawful Sovereign of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and of this Colony of Western Australia." And whensoever the demise of Her present Majesty (whom may God long preserve) or of any of Her successors shall be notified by the Governor to the Council, the members of the Council shall, before they shall be permitted to sit and vote therein, take and subscribe the like oath or affirmation of allegiance to the successor for the time being to the Crown.

Supervening dis

45. ANY person holding the office of mayor or councillor, being adjudicated bankrupt, or having executed any deed of assign- qualification. ment, or arrangement with his creditors under the Bankruptcy Act, See ibid., s. 93. 1892, or any amending Act, or being absent without leave from the meetings of the council for more than four ordinary meetings, or ceasing to be qualified as required by section forty, shall thereby become disqualified, and shall cease to hold such office: Provided, however, that every person becoming disqualified by reason of being adjudicated bankrupt or the execution of any deed of assignment or arrangement as aforesaid, shall, on obtaining his certificate, or on payment of his debts in full, or obtaining a release from his creditors, be capable of being re-elected.

46. EVERY person who acts as a mayor, councillor, or auditor, Penalty for acting being incapacitated under the provisions of this Act to be or continue when disqualified. such, or before he has made and subscribed the declaration as afore- See ibid., s. 31. said, shall, save in the case of incapacity proceeding from unsoundness of mind, be guilty of an offence against this Act, and liable for every such offence to a penalty of Fifty pounds, and such penalty may be recovered by any person, with full costs of suit, before any two Justices; and in every such action the person sued shall prove that at the time of so acting he was qualified under the provisions of this Act, and had made and subscribed the declaration, or shall be adjudged to pay the said penalty and costs without any other evidence being required from the plaintiff than that such person had acted as a mayor, councillor, or auditor under this Act.

All

Mayor, councillors,

and auditors, when

to enter on office.

See ibid., ss. 91, 92.

Councillors when to
resign office.
Ibid., s. 92.

Extraordinary vacancy.

See ibid., s. 93.

Municipalities.

All acts and proceedings of any person elected and acting as mayor, councillor, or auditor shall, notwithstanding that any such person has not been or is not duly qualified. be as valid and effectual as if such person had been duly qualified.

Division 2.- Retirement and Vacancies.

47. THE mayor, councillors. and auditors, when elected, shall enter upon their duties on the first day of December following the annual election: Provided that where an election is held for the first time, or where an additional number of councillors are elected, or an extraordinary vacancy occurs under the provisions of this Act, councillors shall enter upon their duties immediately after election. Any mayor or auditor elected on or after the first day of July in any year shall remain in office until the thirtieth day of November in the year following the election.

48. THE councillors shall go out of office in the following order: that is to say, in case the municipality is not divided into wards, if the number of councillors be divisible by three, or, if divided into wards, one-third of the councillors shall go out of office on the thirtieth day of November following the first election, another one-third on the thirtieth day of November succeeding, and the remaining one-third on the thirtieth day of November after that. Where, under the provisions of this Act, an additional number of councillors have been elected, one of such councillors shall go out of office on the thirtieth day of November following their election, another on the thirtieth day of November succeeding, and the other on the thirtieth day of November following. After the first election all councillors shall be elected for a term of three years. Where the municipality is not divided into wards, and the number of councillors consists of not more than six, one-third shall go out of office on the thirtieth day of November following the first election, and another one-third on the thirtieth day of November after that; and the remaining one-third on the thirtieth day of November following. The councillors to go out of office shall always be those who have been longest in office without re-election, and in cases where two or more councillors are elected on the same day, as between themselves, those having the smallest number of votes at such election shall be deemed the longest in office for this purpose; and as between any councillors who may be elected by an equality of votes or without a poll it shall be determined by lot in what rotation, as between themselves, such councillors shall retire.

49. IF any mayor, councillor, or auditor shall die or resign his office, or shall neglect or refuse to accept such office in the manner and within the time prescribed, or shall, by any rule or

order

Municipalities.

order of the Supreme Court to be made as hereinafter provided, be declared ousted of such office, or shall otherwise become disqualified, then the office of the same shall become vacant, and every such vacancy shall be deemed an extraordinary vacancy.

50. EVERY person elected to fill an extraordinary vacancy for councillor, shall be deemed, for the purpose of retirement, to have been elected when his immediate predecessor in office was elected, and shall retire accordingly: Provided always, that such person so retiring shall be capable of being re-elected, if duly qualified.

Duration of office ordinary vacancy. See ibid., s. 96.

on election on extra

51. EVERY person elected as mayor, councillor, or auditor may at any time resign, and the resignation shall be held to be Power to resign. complete from the date of its being received by the town clerk. Ibid., s. 98.

Division 3.-Municipal Roll.

52. EVERY British subject of the full age of twenty-one

years, being resident within the Colony and not subject to any legal Qualification of incapacity, who—

electors.

See ibid., s. 37

(1.) On the first day of September in any year is seised of altered.
or in occupation of any ratable land within the limits
of any municipality or city; and

(2.) Has, on or before the 1st day of September, paid all sums
due and payable by him in respect of Health Rates, and
any rates and assessments ordered to be struck by the
council for the current year,

shall be entitled to have his name inserted in the municipal electoral
list for such municipality, and the ward electoral list for each
and every ward in which any such land is situated; provided that
in no case shall the owner of land and the person in occupation
thereof be both separately enrolled or inserted in such list in respect
of such land, or any part thereof; and provided also that the person
in occupation of any ratable land shall be entitled to be enrolled
in respect of such land instead of the owner thereof.

53. WHEN a corporation or firm is liable to be rated in respect of land in any municipality, such corporation or firm may, by letter, delivered on or before the first day of September in any year to the town clerk, appoint a person to be enrolled in the place of such corporation or firm, and such person shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed liable to be rated in respect of land in such municipality of equal ratable value to that for which the corporation or firm is liable to be rated.

54.

Power to corpor

ations to nominate a

person to be placed on the roll.

Joint owners may appoint one of their number to be enrolled.

Mayor and auditors by whom elected. Ibid., s. 38.

See ibid., s. 39.
Third Schedule.

Municipalities.

54. WHERE more persons than one are jointly liable to be rated in respect of land in any municipality, such persons may, by writing under their hands, delivered on or before the first day of September in any year to the town clerk, appoint one of their number to be enrolled in respect of such land, and such person shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed liable to be rated in respect of such land.

55. THE mayor and auditors shall be elected by the persons whose names are on the municipal electoral list in force for the time being within the municipality, and at any such elections, and also in voting upon the question of any proposed loan, as hereinafter mentioned, each person shall have a number of votes proportionate to the ratable value of the land of which such person is seised or possessed as owner or occupier, set against his name on the said list, according to the following scale:

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The councillors for each ward shall be elected by the per sons whose names are on the ward electoral list in force for the time being within such ward; and at any such election each person shall have one or two votes proportionate to the ratable value of the land of which such person is scised or possessed within such ward, as owner or occupier, set against his name on the said ward electoral list according to the following scale:

RATABLE VALUE OF LAND.

Fifty pounds and under

Exceeding fifty pounds

NUMBER OF VOTES.

One.

Two.

56. ON or before the twentieth day of September in each year the town clerk shall make out, according to the form given in the Third Schedule to this Act, a list to be called "The Voters' List," of the names of all persons entitled to have their names inserted in the ward electoral list as voters at the election of councillors for such ward; and also of all persons entitled to have their names inserted in the municipal electoral list, as voters at the election of a mayor and auditors, and shall arrange such

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