NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL ASSEMBLY

1959 SESSION

 

 

CHAPTER 708

SENATE BILL 370

 

 

AN ACT TO AMEND CHAPTER 14 OF THE PRIVATE LAWS OF 1927 AND CHAPTER 37 OF THE 1947 SESSION LAWS OF NORTH CAROLINA RELATING TO THE CHARTER OF THE GASTONIA CITY ADMINISTRATIVE SCHOOL UNIT.

 

The General Assembly of North Carolina do enact:

 

Section 1. That Section 1 of Chapter 37 of the 1947 Session Laws of North Carolina, be and the same is hereby rewritten to read as follows:

"Section 1. That all the territory embraced within the present limits of the Gastonia City Administrative Unit, Gaston County, North Carolina, shall be and the same is hereby continued as a city administrative unit, with the right as such to receive its proportion of the general school fund from Gaston County, the State of North Carolina, or from any other source."

Sec. 2. That Section 2 of Chapter 37 of the 1947 Session Laws of North Carolina, be and the same is hereby rewritten to read as follows:

"Sec. 2. That the management of the public schools in said city administrative unit shall be vested in a board of education consisting of seven members to be elected by the qualified voters in said unit in the manner and for the term hereinafter provided."

Sec. 3. That Section 3 of Chapter 14 of the Private Laws of 1927, as amended by Section 3 of Chapter 37 of the 1947 Session Laws of North Carolina, be and the same is hereby rewritten to read as follows:

"Sec. 3. That the Gastonia City Board of Education shall be composed of members who reside in each of the seven geographical subdivisions of the Gastonia City Administrative Unit as follows: That portion of the Gastonia City Administrative Unit bounded on the North and East by the present line of said city administrative unit; on the South by the center of the tracks of the Southern Railroad; on the West by the center of North Marietta Street and the extension of the center of North Marietta Street over the old Gastonia-Dallas Highway to the present line of said city administrative unit shall be known as SUBDIVISION NO. 1. That portion of the Gastonia City Administrative Unit bounded on the North by the present line of said city administrative unit; on the East by the Center of North Marietta Street and the extension of North Marietta Street over the old Gastonia-Dallas Highway to the present line of said city administrative unit; on the South by the center of the tracks of the Southern Railroad; on the West by the present line of said city administrative unit, shall be known as SUBDIVISION NO. 2. That portion of the Gastonia City Administrative Unit bounded on the North by the center of the tracks of the Southern Railroad; on the West and South by the present line of the city administrative unit; on the East by a line beginning in the center of South Vance Street in the center of the tracks of the Southern Railroad and running thence in a southerly direction with the center of South Vance Street to the intersection of West Seventh Avenue and South Vance Street; thence South 5 degrees West to the present limits of said city administrative unit, shall be known as SUBDIVISION NO. 3. That portion of the Gastonia City Administrative Unit bounded on the North by the center of the tracks of the Southern Railroad; on the East by a straight line beginning at the center of the intersection of South King Street and West Franklin Avenue and extending due North to the center of the tracks of the Southern Railroad and due South to the present limits of said city administrative unit; on the South by the present limits of said city administrative unit; on the West by a line beginning in the center of South Vance Street in the center of the tracks of the Southern Railroad and running thence in a southerly direction with the center of South Vance Street to the intersection of West Seventh Avenue and South Vance Street; thence South 5 degrees West to the present limits of said city administrative unit, shall be known as SUBDIVISION NO. 4. That portion of the Gastonia City Administrative Unit bounded on the North by the center of the tracks of the Southern Railroad; on the East by the center of South York Street and extension of South York Street; on the South by the present line of said city administrative unit; on the West by a straight line beginning at the center of the intersection of South King Street and West Franklin Avenue and extending due North to the center of the tracks of the Southern Railroad and due South to the present limits of said city administrative unit, shall be known as SUBDIVISION NO. 5. That portion of said Gastonia City Administrative Unit bounded on the North by the center of the tracks of the Southern Railroad; on the East by the center of South Oakland Street and extension of South Oakland Street to the present limits of said city administrative unit; on the South by the present limits of said city administrative unit, and on the West by the center of South York Street and extension of South York Street, shall be known as SUBDIVISION NO. 6. That portion of said Gastonia City Administrative Unit bounded on the North by the center of the tracks of the Southern Railroad; on the East and South by the line of said city administrative unit; on the West by South Oakland Street and extension thereof, shall be known as SUBDIVISION NO. 7.

"That on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in March, 1961, an election shall be held in and for said Gastonia City Administrative Unit for the election of members of the Gastonia City Board of Education who reside in Subdivision No. 1 and Subdivision No. 3; that on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in March, 1963, an election shall be held in and for said Gastonia City Administrative Unit for the election of members of the Gastonia City Board of Education who reside in Subdivision No. 4 and Subdivision No. 7; that on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in March, 1965, an election shall be held in and for said Gastonia City Administrative Unit for the election of members of the Gastonia City Board of Education who reside in Subdivision No. 2, Subdivision No. 5 and Subdivision No. 6; and thereafter an election shall be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in March, biennially, to elect successors to those members whose terms are expiring. In the said elections, the candidate from each subdivision receiving the majority of votes cast shall be declared elected for a term of six (6) years and until his successor is elected and qualified."

Sec. 4. That Sections 4, 5, 6 and 8 of Chapter 14 of the Private Laws of 1927, as amended by Chapter 37 of the 1947 Session Laws of North Carolina, are hereby repealed, and the following substituted therefor; to be designated as Sec. 4:

"Sec. 4. That all elections held in the Gastonia City Administrative Unit shall be held under the following rules and regulations:

"A. POLLING PLACES. The Gastonia City Board of Education shall establish at least one polling place for each election, and may establish such additional polling places as the board may deem necessary.

"B. REGISTRARS AND JUDGES APPOINTED. The Gastonia City Board of Education shall select at least thirty days before any election one person as registrar and two persons as judges for each polling place. Such persons shall be residents of the area encompassed by the Gastonia City Administrative Unit, able to read and write, be of good character, and, who, before entering upon the discharge of their duties, shall take the oath hereinafter prescribed.

"C. OATH OF REGISTRARS AND JUDGES OR ASSISTANT TO JUDGES AND REGISTRARS. Before entering upon the duties of his office, each registrar, judge, or any person assisting said registrar or judge in the election, shall take the following oath to be administered by the City Superintendent of Schools in the Gastonia City Administrative Unit or by the registrar to the two judges or to such person assisting him, and/or by one of the judges to the registrar or to such person assisting him, such oaths to be reduced to writing and signed by the person taking the same and indicating before whom such oath was sworn to, which shall be kept on file in the office of the City Superintendent of Schools: 'I do solemnly swear that I will administer the duties of my office without fear or favor; that I will not in any manner request or seek to persuade or induce any voter to vote for or against any particular candidate or proposition, and that I will not keep or make any memorandum of anything occurring within the voting booths, except I be called upon to testify in the judicial proceeding for a violation of the election laws of this school district; so help me God.'

"D. PERSONS ASSISTING REGISTRARS AND JUDGES. The Gastonia City Board of Education may at any time prior to an election appoint additional persons to assist the registrar and judges in the conduct of the election, which persons shall be of good character, residents of the area encompassed by the Gastonia City Administrative Unit, able to read and write, and who, before entering upon the discharge of such duties, shall take the oath as hereinbefore prescribed.

"E. COMPENSATION FOR REGISTRARS, JUDGES AND PERSONS ASSISTING THEM: EXPENSES OF ELECTION. The Gastonia City Board of Education shall fix the compensation for registrars, judges, and any person assisting them in the election, and said board shall pay other expenses incurred in such election.

"F. REGISTRATION OF VOTERS. The modern looseleaf and visible registration system shall constitute the method of registration to be used for qualified voters in the Gastonia City Administrative Unit, and the registration shall be made and kept upon such form or forms as shall be prescribed by the Gastonia City Board of Education, and shall contain all the information necessary to show qualification of the registered voter and such other information as the Gastonia City Board of Education may require, and shall be signed and sworn to by the registering voter, witnessed by the registrar or City Superintendent of Schools.

"G. REGISTRATION BOOKS FURNISHED EACH REGISTRAR AND NEW REGISTRATION. The Gastonia City Board of Education shall cause to be furnished each registrar registration books showing the registered voters. The Gastonia City Board of Education may, in its discretion, order a new registration of voters, provided, that a new registration cannot be ordered any more frequently than every ten years, except where the original and duplicates of said registration may have been mutilated or destroyed. The City Superintendent of Schools shall have custody and be responsible for the safekeeping of all registration books and any required copies or duplicates of registration, except when the registration books are in use by the registrars, in which event the registrars shall be solely responsible for the safekeeping thereof. In the event any registration books or any part thereof, are destroyed, mutilated or lost, then the City Superintendent of Schools may make out a new registration or a new set of registration books from the duplicate master files which are authorized, certifying on each registration card, which is duplicated as result of said mutilation, destruction, or loss, that it is a true copy of the mutilated, destroyed, or lost original.

"H. NOTICE OF NEW REGISTRATION. In the event a new registration is ordered by the Gastonia City Board of Education, the Gastonia City Board of Education shall give at least thirty days' notice thereof by publication for once a week for four consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation published in the City of Gastonia, North Carolina, which newspaper shall be one qualified under the General Statutes of North Carolina to run legal publications, and also by posting such notice at the City Hall and at the door of the Gaston County Courthouse.

"I. REGISTRATION BOOKS REVISED. The Gastonia City Board of Education shall have the power to revise the registration books and require them to be purged of illegal or disqualified voters. When an order for revision is made by the Gastonia City Board of Education, it shall be directed to the City Superintendent of Schools to prepare from the registration books a list of names of registered voters, with their names and addresses as they appear on the registration books, who are, in the opinion of the City Superintendent of Schools, dead or disqualified by removal from said area encompassed by the Gastonia City Administrative Unit as a resident or otherwise, stating on said list the reason for such proposed removal. When such list is prepared, the City Superintendent of Schools shall thereupon cause to be mailed to each of the names on the list at his or her known address, or, if not known, then to such address as shown on the registration books, a notice requiring such person to appear at the office of the Gastonia City Board of Education before the City Superintendent of Schools on or before seven days from the date of said mailing, and show that they are legally entitled to vote in such school election, or in lieu of a personal appearance, such person may furnish such satisfactory evidence by mail, or otherwise, that he or she is qualified to vote in the city administrative school election. Upon failure of such person to make such personal appearance, or upon failure of such person to offer satisfactory evidence that he or she is qualified and entitled to vote in the school election, their names and cause for removal shall be reported to the Gastonia City Board of Education, who shall thereupon order their names stricken off the registration books. The City Superintendent of Schools shall keep a list of all names stricken off the registration books and causes for removal for a period of at least five years, after which such list may be destroyed; provided, however, in the event that any person, whose name has been removed from the registration books by order of the Gastonia City Board of Education as having been disqualified to vote in the school election, should appear at his polling place on election day and give satisfactory evidence to the registrar and judges that he is qualified to vote in that election, then such person's name shall be placed back on the registration book, and he shall be allowed to vote in said election.

"J. WHO QUALIFIED TO REGISTER, VOTE, OR RUN AS A CANDIDATE. Any person who is twenty-one (21) years of age on the date of election, who is not an idiot or lunatic, who has not been convicted or has confessed a guilt in open court upon indictment for any crime punishable by confinement in the State or Federal penitentiary unless having been restored to citizenship, is able to read and write any Section of the North Carolina Constitution in the English language, and who has been a resident and citizen of North Carolina for one year, and resided in the area encompassed by the Gastonia City Administrative Unit for thirty days, shall be qualified to register and vote in all elections held in the Gastonia City Administrative Unit. In addition to these requirements, in order to be eligible to run as a candidate for the Gastonia City Board of Education, a person must have resided continuously for a period of thirty days immediately preceding such election in the geographical subdivision of the Gastonia City Administrative Unit from which he is a candidate for office.

"K. ABSENTEE BALLOTS. No vote by absentee ballot shall be permitted in connection with any school election.

"L. OATH UPON REGISTRATION. Any person registering as a voter for any school election shall take the following oath to be administered by the registrar or by the City Superintendent of Schools

'I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support the Constitution of the United States and of North Carolina; that I have been a resident and citizen of North Carolina for one year, and a resident of the area encompassed by the Gastonia City Administrative Unit for thirty days; that I am twenty-one (21) years of age or will be on or before the date of the next election; that I can read and write the Constitution of North Carolina in the English language; and that I have not been convicted, or have confessed my guilt, in open court upon the indictment of any crime, the punishment of which is imprisonment in the State or Federal penitentiary, or if so convicted, or made confession of such guilt, I have been restored to citizenship.'

"M. CONTINUOUS REGISTRATION. Any person qualified to register as a voter may do so at any time by appearing before the City Superintendent of Schools and taking the required oath hereinbefore prescribed, and the City Superintendent of Schools shall thereupon enter registration of such person in the registration books; except, however, that no person shall be allowed to register before the City Superintendent of Schools during any registration period hereinafter provided where the registration books are in the custody and hands of duly appointed registrars, in which event any person qualified to register shall do so before the registrar.

"N. REGISTRATION BY REGISTRARS. Each registrar shall, between the hours of eight o'clock A. M. and five o'clock P. M., on the second, third and fourth Saturdays immediately preceding the election keep open the registration books at such polling place or polling places as may be established by the Gastonia City Board of Education for the registration of any new voters in the area encompassed by the Gastonia City Administrative Unit and entitled to register, and whose names are not then registered for a school election; provided, however, such registrars may register such person at other times and places on and from the fourth Saturday preceding the election to and including five o'clock P. M. of the second Saturday immediately preceding the election. On the second Saturday immediately preceding the election, the registration books shall be closed as of five o'clock P. M. and thereafter no registration shall be made of any new voter by either the registrar or the City Superintendent of Schools prior to the election, except as hereinafter provided.

"O. REGISTRATION AFTER REGISTRATION BOOKS ARE CLOSED. No registration shall be allowed after five o'clock P. M. on the second Saturday preceding and prior to the election, but if any person shall give satisfactory evidence to the registrar that he has attained the age of twenty-one (21) years, or otherwise become qualified to register and vote since the registration books were closed to registration, he shall be allowed to register after five o'clock P. M. on the second Saturday preceding the election and prior to or on the election day and vote in said election.

"P. BOOKS OPEN FOR CHALLENGE. On the first Saturday immediately before the election, the registration books shall be kept open at the polling place or places in the administrative unit for the inspection of the electors and voters and any of such electors and voters shall be allowed to object to the name of any person appearing on said registration books.

"Q. PRACTICE AND CHALLENGES. When a person is challenged, the registrar shall enter upon his books on the registration of the name of the person objected to the word 'challenged,' and the registrar shall appoint a time and place on or before Monday immediately preceding the election day, when he, together with the judges and the registrar of the election for that city administrative unit, shall hear and decide the objection, giving personal notice to the voter so objected to, who shall have the opportunity of being present at said hearing; and if for any cause personal notice cannot be given, then, it shall be sufficient to leave a copy of such notice at his residence. If any person challenged shall be found not duly qualified, the registrar shall remove his name from the registration books, noting thereon the reason therefor. The registrar and the judges shall hear and determine the cause of challenge under the rules and regulations prescribed by the general law regulating elections for members of the North Carolina General Assembly.

"R. VACANCIES IN THE OFFICE OF REGISTRAR OR JUDGES ON ELECTION DAY OR WITHIN SEVEN DAYS PRIOR THERETO. If any vacancy shall occur on the day of election in any office of registrar, or in any office of judges, or of persons appointed as assistants to the registrar or judges, or within seven days immediately preceding the election, such vacancy shall be filled by appointment of the City Superintendent of Schools; vacancies occurring at any other time shall be filled by the Gastonia City Board of Education.

"S. WHERE TO VOTE. All registered and qualified voters shall be required to vote at the polling place or polling places established by the Gastonia City Board of Education.

"T. WHEN POLLS OPEN AND CLOSE. The polls shall be open on the day of election from seven o'clock A. M. until seven o'clock P. M., eastern standard time, and no longer; each person whose name may be registered as hereinbefore provided shall be entitled to vote; provided, however, that any person who is in bounds of a polling place as of seven o'clock P. M. on the date of election and has not voted shall be allowed to vote.

"U. REGISTRATION BOOKS, WHERE DEPOSITED. Immediately after any election, the registrars shall deposit the registration books with the City Superintendent of Schools.

"V. BALLOTS COUNTED. When the election shall be finished, the registrar and judges of the election shall immediately thereafter open the boxes and count the ballots cast at their polling place, reading aloud the names of the persons who shall appear on each ballot; and the counting of votes shall be continued without adjournment until completed and the result thereof declared. When completed, the result shall be reduced to writing and certified to over the signatures of the registrar and judges of the election. The registrar and judges may designate citizens and qualified voters of the city to aid them in counting the ballots, which persons so designated, where possible, be of different favor to different candidates running against each other for the same office. If any ballot shall contain the names of more persons than the voter has a right to vote for, or shall be defaced, have a device or ornament thereon, or be mutilated, such ballots shall not be numbered in the counting.

"W. BOARD OF CANVASSES. The Gastonia City Board of Education shall appoint one registrar and two judges, serving in said election, to be members of the board of canvasses, of which board the City Superintendent of Schools shall be a member and chairman; however, the City Superintendent of Schools shall vote only in case of a tie. The board of canvasses shall declare the results of the election and shall so certify said results over their signature to the Gastonia City Board of Education, and the results thereon shall be incorporated into the minutes of said board of education. The board of canvasses shall meet immediately following the election, and not later than eight-thirty o'clock A. M. on the day following the election and shall hold said meeting for the purpose of canvassing said votes, and determining any matters that may be present as the result of said election, which meeting shall be open to the general public.

"X. FILING AS A CANDIDATE. Any person qualified to run as a candidate for the Gastonia City Board of Education shall file as a candidate for such office by five o'clock P. M. of the third Monday immediately preceding the date of the election and with said filing shall pay a fee of five dollars ($5.00). Any candidate for office shall file such notice with the City Superintendent of Schools and pay the five dollars ($5.00) filing fee with such notice, which said notice shall be substantially in the following form:

'I, ___________________ do hereby give notice that I reside at ______________________, that I am a candidate for election to the Gastonia City
      (Street address)

Board of Education, to be voted upon in an election to be held on Tuesday, March _____, 19_____, and I hereby request that my name be printed upon the official ballot as a candidate for the election to such office; and I hereby agree to be bound and to abide by the official results of said election.

                                                                        _____________________________________

                                                                                            (Signature of candidate)

Signed before me and filed, this ______ day of _____________, 19____.

________________________

(Superintendent of the Gastonia

City Administrative Unit, or

other official of the Gastonia

City Board of Education.)'

"Y. RESULT OF ELECTION. The candidate receiving the highest vote from each subdivision shall be elected to that office. The board of canvasses shall at their meeting and in the presence of such electors as choose to attend, open, canvass and judicially determine the result, making such counts or recounts as it determines, and shall make abstracts, stating the number of legal ballots cast for each office, the name of each person voted for, and the number of votes given to each person for each different office, and shall certify the same over their signatures to the Gastonia City Board of Education, which shall be recorded in the minutes of said board of education. The board of canvasses shall have power and authority to pass upon judicially all the votes relative to the election and judicially determine and declare the results of the same, and shall have power and authority to send for papers and persons and examine the latter upon oath.

"Z. NOTICE OF ELECTION. The Gastonia City Board of Education shall cause to be published a notice of the election once a week for four successive weeks preceding the date of election in a newspaper in general circulation in the City of Gastonia and by posting a like notice at the City Hall and at the door of the Gaston County Courthouse, which notice shall set forth and contain the date and hours of the election, the proposition to be voted on, or the officers to be elected, the names and addresses of the registrar and judges, the polling places, the dates and places the registration books will be open, when candidates must file notice, and the challenge date.

"AA. NOTICE OF SPECIAL ELECTIONS. No special elections shall be held for any purpose in the administrative unit unless notice as above provided is given.

"BB. BALLOTS: PRINTING, DELIVERY, ACCOUNTING FOR, ETC. The City Superintendent of Schools shall cause to be printed by at least six days prior to election the official ballots for the election, which shall contain the names of all candidates for election to each office who have filed as hereinbefore provided, or the questions or propositions to be voted on which shall be printed on white paper with black ink and in a number at least equal to the registered voters of the administrative unit. Sample ballots of the official ballots shall be printed in black ink on colored paper and with the words 'sample ballot' printed conspicuously thereon, and shall be printed in such number as the City Superintendent of Schools determines necessary to distribute for instructing voters.

"The City Superintendent of Schools shall cause to be delivered to the registrar, at least one day before the election, ballots equal at least in number to the voters registered, which shall be packaged and each package shall have written or stamped thereon the number of ballots contained in each package, and the registrar shall not open or unpackage said ballots until the date of the election and except at the polling place, and the registrars shall be responsible to safeguard the same until the election. Upon delivery of the ballots, the City Superintendent of Schools shall cause to be obtained a receipt therefor from each registrar.

"Upon completion of the election each registrar shall return to the City Superintendent of Schools all used ballots, as well as all unused and spoiled ballots, and shall render a full accounting of all ballots over his signature, showing the number of ballots received, number used, number spoiled, etc. Upon the close of the counting of the ballots as herein provided, the registrar shall replace the said ballots in the official ballot box, lock the same, and deliver it to the City Superintendent of  Schools, who shall retain in his custody said ballots for a period of sixty days following any election.

"CC. DISABILITY OR ABSENCE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS. In the event of the absence, sickness, disability, or death of the City Superintendent of Schools, or by direction of the Gastonia City Board of Education, the attorney for the school board or other designated person or persons shall have the power or authority to act in his place and stead.

"In all other respects, all elections held in the administrative unit shall be conducted as prescribed for the election of members of the General Assembly of North Carolina, where such rules and laws are not in conflict with the above."

Sec. 5. That Section 7 of Chapter 14 of the Private Laws of 1927, as amended by Chapter 37 of the 1947 Session Laws of North Carolina, be and the same is hereby renumbered and rewritten to read as follows:

"Sec. 5. That if the candidate in any subdivision fails to receive a majority of the votes cast, the Gastonia City Board of Education then in office shall immediately call another election for the purpose of electing a member from such subdivision or division; that only the two candidates receiving the highest number of votes in the first election shall be eligible to run in the second election. Such election shall be held under the same rules and regulations above prescribed, except that it shall be necessary to give notice of such election and registration only once a week for two weeks immediately preceding such election and the registration books shall be kept open only on the two Saturdays immediately preceding such election, and challenge day shall fall on the last Saturday immediately preceding such election."

Sec. 6. The Gastonia City Board of Education shall fill all vacancies occurring in their board by death, resignation, or otherwise, by appointment, until the next election, at which time the vacancy shall be filled for the remainder of the unexpired term.

Sec. 7. That Section 9 of Chapter 14 of the Private Laws of 1927, be and the same is hereby renumbered and rewritten to read as follows:

"Sec. 7. That within ten days after each biennial election of said board of education, or if it is necessary to hold a second election under the provisions of this Act, then after such second election said board of education shall hold a meeting and qualify and elect from among its number a chairman, a vice-chairman, and a treasurer. It shall be the duty of the chairman to preside at all meetings and generally to see that all orders of said board are carried out. In the absence of the chairman, the vice-chairman shall act in his stead. The treasurer shall receive and hold all school funds coming into his hands and disburse the same from time to time as may be directed by said board, and shall make monthly reports to said board of all receipts and disbursements by him during the preceding month. The said board shall require the said treasurer to give such bond as it may deem necessary for the sufficient protection of said school funds or other property entrusted in his care. The City Superintendent of Schools shall be ex officio secretary to the board of education and he shall record all proceedings of the board of education, issue all notices and orders that may be made by the board and otherwise be executive officer of the board."

Sec. 8. Section 10 of Chapter 14 of the Private Laws of 1927, is hereby renumbered and rewritten to read as follows:

"Sec. 8. That said board of education and its successors shall be, and it is hereby constituted, a body corporate by the name and style of The Gastonia City Board of Education. By that name it may sue and be sued, plead and be impleaded, contract and be contracted with, acquire by gift, purchase or devise, real and personal property, hold, exchange, or sell the same, and exercise such other rights and privileges as are incident to other corporations and may have a corporate seal."

Sec. 9. That Section 11 of Chapter 14 of the Private Laws of 1927, is hereby renumbered and rewritten to read as follows:

"Sec. 9. That said board of education shall establish, operate and maintain public schools in said city administrative unit, and shall appropriate and use the funds derived from special taxes or other sources in such manner as it may deem best."

Sec. 10. That Section 12 of Chapter 14 of the Private Laws of 1927, be and is hereby renumbered and rewritten to read as follows:

"Sec. 10. That said board of education shall have exclusive control of all public schools in the Gastonia City Administrative School Unit, free from the supervision and control of the City Council of the City of Gastonia, or other constituted city authorities as may thereafter have charge of the city affairs, under and by virtue of any laws which may be hereafter adopted, and all property, both real and personal, and funds, now or hereafter belonging to the public schools of said city administrative unit, or used for school purposes, while said school shall be operated, shall be vested in and controlled by the said Gastonia City Board of Education and its successors, and the same shall be held by it in trust for said public schools; it shall prescribe the qualifications, employ and fix the compensation of all officers and teachers of such schools, and other employees necessary to the proper operation of such schools, and shall exercise such other powers as may be necessary for the successful control and operation of said schools."

Sec. 11. That Chapter 92 of the Private Laws of 1921, and Chapter 14 of the Private Laws of 1927, as amended by Chapter 583 of the Session Laws of 1953, and all other laws and clauses of laws in conflict with this Act are hereby repealed.

Sec. 12. That this Act shall be in full force and effect from and after its ratification.

In the General Assembly read three times and ratified, this the 3rd day of June, 1959.