An Act to amend and reenact § 3-91 of Chapter 358 of the Acts of Assembly of 1958, which provided a charter for the Town of Tazewell in Tazewell County, relating to town manager.
HB62 amends the Town of Tazewell’s local charter provision governing the town manager. The bill updates the charter language in § 3-91 to modernize terminology and clarify the town manager’s role as the administrative and executive head of the municipal government. It retains the council-manager structure, under which the town manager is selected by the town council based on executive and administrative qualifications rather than political beliefs.
The bill also revises residency language for the town manager. Under the amended provision, the manager need not be a resident of the town or the Commonwealth at the time of appointment, but is encouraged to reside within the town during the term of office and may live a reasonable distance outside the town limits with majority council approval. The measure continues existing restrictions on council interference in administrative appointments and preserves the rule that no council member may be appointed to the office during the member’s term or within one year after it ends.
HB62 changes a single local law: the charter of the Town of Tazewell. Its practical effect is to update and clarify the town manager section of the charter, including gender-neutral drafting and more flexible residency requirements, while leaving the basic powers and duties of the office intact. The bill affects the town council, the town manager, and municipal administration in Tazewell, but does not alter statewide law beyond this local charter amendment.
The available record suggests little to no controversy around the bill. There are no committee transcripts or recorded votes indicating opposition, and the bill was enacted as Chapter 14. The overall sentiment appears neutral to favorable, consistent with a technical charter update rather than a major policy change.
No specific points of contention are documented in the provided materials. The only provisions that might have drawn discussion are the residency flexibility for the town manager and the continued prohibition on council interference in appointments, but there is no evidence in the record of formal opposition or debate over those issues. The bill appears to have been treated as a local government housekeeping measure.