PRINTER'S NO. 3332
No. 2482 Session of 1988
INTRODUCED BY SWEET, DeLUCA, GAMBLE AND DUFFY, MAY 23, 1988
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT, MAY 23, 1988
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of June 24, 1931 (P.L.1206, No.331), entitled
2 "An act concerning townships of the first class; amending,
3 revising, consolidating, and changing the law relating
4 thereto," further providing for the time for holding
5 organizational meetings.
6 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
7 hereby enacts as follows:
8 Section 1. Section 701 of the act of June 24, 1931
9 (P.L.1206, No.331), known as The First Class Township Code,
10 reenacted and amended May 27, 1949 (P.L.1955, No.569) and
11 amended May 29, 1968 (P.L.131, No.69), is amended to read:
12 Section 701. Organization; Failure to Organize.--The
13 township commissioners shall organize on the first Monday of
14 January of each even-numbered year. If the first Monday is a
15 legal holiday the meeting shall be held the first day following.
16 They shall assemble for such purpose at their place of meeting
17 at [seven-thirty o'clock] a time convenient to the governing
18 body, post meridian. Until otherwise designated by ordinance,
19 the place of meeting shall be the oldest polling place in the
1 township.
2 The board shall organize by the election of one of their
3 number as president and one as a vice-president, who, as long as
4 they continue to be commissioners, shall hold office until their
5 successors are elected and qualified. The president, or, in his
6 absence, the vice-president, shall preside at all meetings of
7 the board, and perform such other duties as are specified in
8 this act or which may be prescribed by ordinance.
9 If a majority of the commissioners shall not attend at the
10 organization meeting, those present may adjourn the meeting from
11 day to day until a majority attend.
12 If the township commissioners of any township shall fail to
13 organize within ten days from the time prescribed by this
14 section, the court of quarter sessions, upon the petition of ten
15 registered electors, verified by the affidavit of one of the
16 petitioners, shall issue a rule upon the delinquent
17 commissioners to show cause why their seats should not be
18 declared vacant. The rule shall be returnable not less than five
19 days from the time of its issue, and after hearing, the court
20 may declare the seats of any delinquent vacant, and appoint
21 others in their stead to hold office for the respective
22 unexpired terms.
23 The meeting under this section may be considered as a regular
24 monthly meeting for the transaction of such business as comes
25 before it. The first order of business at this meeting shall be
26 organization of the board. Any action taken or business
27 transacted other than organization of the commissioners as a
28 board at any organization meeting held prior to the effective
29 date of this amending act, which is invalid for the reason that
30 the action was taken or business transacted at an organization
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1 meeting, is hereby validated and confirmed.
2 Section 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
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