NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL ASSEMBLY
1967 SESSION
CHAPTER 1056
SENATE BILL 719
AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR A REFERENDUM IN HALIFAX COUNTY UPON THE QUESTION OF THE APPLICABILITY OF THE 1959 ANNEXATION LAWS.
WHEREAS, in 1947, the General Assembly enacted laws providing for the annexation of additional territories by cities and towns, which said laws applied to cities and towns in Halifax County; and
WHEREAS, under said 1947 Act which is now in force in Halifax County, the people have a right to vote on the incorporation of their property into the cities and towns of said county if at least fifteen per cent (15%) of them petition for the right to vote on the question of extending said corporate limits; and
WHEREAS, in 1959, the General Assembly enacted laws providing the additional and other methods for annexation; and
WHEREAS, the cities and towns in Halifax County were exempted from the 1959 municipal annexation laws by the representatives from Halifax County in the 1959 Session of the General Assembly; and
WHEREAS, under said 1959 municipal annexation laws, the right of the people to vote on the question of incorporating their property within the city and town limits was taken away in the counties which were not exempted from the 1959 Act of the General Assembly; and
WHEREAS, cities and towns in Halifax County now have and have had the power and authority to annex additional territory under the provisions of the 1947 laws; and
WHEREAS, notwithstanding the authority now vested in it, the City of Roanoke Rapids, through its mayor, requested of the State Senator and Representative from Halifax County that the exemption of Halifax County from the 1959 Extension Act relating to municipalities of 5,000 or more in population be repealed which, among other things, would enable the City of Roanoke Rapids to extend its corporate limits without a vote of the people within the area to be annexed; and in a recent public hearing conducted in Roanoke Rapids, said mayor stated that while he and the city board were particularly interested in repealing said exemption from said Extension Act of cities of 5,000 or more in population, yet they did not oppose cities and towns in Halifax County of less than 5,000 in population being given the same privileges; and
WHEREAS, Weldon, another town in said county, has, through its officials, indicated that Weldon should be treated the same as Roanoke Rapids insofar as annexation laws are concerned; and
WHEREAS, the removal of said exemption would also affect, in addition to Roanoke Rapids and Weldon, Littleton, Scotland Neck, Halifax, Enfield, and Hobgood, and is therefore not a local matter to Roanoke Rapids and Weldon alone; and
WHEREAS, the people of Halifax County who do not live within the corporate limits of any city or town would be directly and vitally affected by changing the annexation laws applicable to the county; and
WHEREAS, the effect of removing the exemption as requested by Roanoke Rapids would be to deprive the citizens who live outside the corporate limits of the right to be heard and to vote on whether or not they should be annexed; and
WHEREAS, the right of every qualified citizen to vote on matters which concern his property rights, way of living, freedom of choice, and fiscal responsibilities should never be abridged or taken away for mere political expediency or for any other reason, the right to be heard and to vote being one of the fundamental privileges and obligations of the citizens, and being his one great protection against ever expanding government and capricious action by politicians; and
WHEREAS, no city or town in Halifax County could be unreasonably damaged by submitting the question to a referendum of the people of the county, both within and without the corporate limits of the cities and towns, so that the citizens of Halifax County might express their wishes in the matter; and
WHEREAS, a vote of the people being the best way to determine the future of the people in this as in other important matters; and
WHEREAS, a special election has already been called, dealing with the county commissioners and board of education, for the same day as the primary elections in 1968, at which time the question on whether Halifax County's exemption from the 1959 annexation laws should be removed can be submitted to the people of the county without great expense and without undue delay: Now, therefore,
The General Assembly of North Carolina do enact:
Section 1. The Board of Elections of Halifax County shall conduct a special election on the same date as the 1968 primary election for county officers at which shall be submitted to the qualified voters of the county the question whether the 1959 municipal annexation laws, Parts 2 and 3 of Article 36 of Chapter 160 of the General Statutes, shall be made applicable to municipalities in Halifax County. No new or special registration shall be required for such special election, and the laws, rules, and regulations applicable to primary elections shall be applicable to the special election, insofar as is possible. At such special election there shall be provided ballots upon which appear the words "For 1959 annexation laws", and "Against 1959 annexation laws", with appropriate squares so that each voter may by his cross (X) mark indicate his preference. If a majority of the votes cast in such special election shall be cast "Against 1959 annexation laws", then Sections 2 and 3 of this Act shall have no force and effect.
Sec. 2. G. S. 160-453.12, as the same appears in the 1965 Supplement to the 1964 Replacement Volume 3D of the General Statutes, is hereby amended by striking out of the second line thereof the word and punctuation "Halifax,".
Sec. 3. G. S. 160-453.24, as the same appears in the 1964 Replacement Volume 3D of the General Statutes, is hereby amended by striking out of the second line thereof the word and punctuation "Halifax,".
Sec. 4. All laws and clauses of laws in conflict with this Act are hereby repealed.
Sec. 5. Subject to the provisions of Section 1 hereof, this Act shall be effective upon its ratification.
In the General Assembly read three times and ratified, this the 3rd day of July, 1967.