MUNICIPAL FUNCTIONS

Raleigh City Charter art. VI

in effect

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.1 DEPARTMENTS ENUMERATED.

Sec. 6.1 - DEPARTMENTS ENUMERATED. There shall be and there are hereby created the following departments of the City of Raleigh: (1) Department of Finance, which shall be headed by the City Accountant, who shall also have the title of Director of Finance. (2) Department of Public Safety, which shall be headed by the Director of Public Safety. (3) Department of Public Works, which shall be headed by the Director of Public Works. (4) Department of Planning, which shall be headed by the director of planning. (5) Department of Public Utilities, which shall be headed by the Director of Public Utilities. (6) Department of Parks and Recreation, which shall be headed by the Director of Parks and Recreation. (7) Health Department and such other departments as may be created from time to time by ordinance adopted by the City Council. Each of the departments and the department heads shall be under the supervision of and directly responsible to the City Manager. Department or division heads need not be resident[s] of the City when appointed, except as herein specifically otherwise provided.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.2 DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE; DIVISIONS.

Sec. 6.2 - DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE; DIVISIONS. The Department of Finance shall consist of the following divisions: (a) Accounting Division; (b) Collections Division; (c) Purchases and Contracts Division.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.3 DIRECTOR OF FINANCE, CITY ACCOUNTANT; APPOINTMENT; BOND.

Sec. 6.3 - DIRECTOR OF FINANCE, CITY ACCOUNTANT; APPOINTMENT; BOND. It shall be the duty of the City Council on or before the first day of June 1949, and biennially thereafter before the first day of June in each odd year, to appoint, upon the advice and recommendation of the City Manager some person of honesty and ability whose experience, training and qualifications have been approved by the Local Government Commission of the State of North Carolina, as City Accountant of the City of Raleigh, who shall also be known as the Director of Finance, and he shall hold such office or position at the will of the City Council or until such approval has been revoked by the Local Government Commission, or until the appointment of his successor. The City Accountant shall furnish bond annually in such amount as required by the City Council, which bond shall be approved both by the City Council and by the Local Government Commission, and shall be conditioned for the faithful performance of his duties imposed by law as City Accountant and Director of Finance.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.4 POWERS AND DUTIES.

Sec. 6.4 - POWERS AND DUTIES. The Director of Finance (City Accountant) shall have general charge of the administration of the financial affairs of the City and to that end he shall have the powers and the duties hereinafter set forth and such as may now or hereafter be prescribed by law. (1) He shall act as accountant for the City and its various departments in settling with all City officers, and shall be head of the accounting division. (2) He shall compile the current expense estimates for the budget for the City Manager. (3) He shall compile the capital estimates for the budget for City Manager. (4) He shall supervise and be responsible for the disbursement of all moneys and have control over all expenditures to insure that budget appropriations are not exceeded. (5) He shall maintain a general accounting system for the City government and each of its offices, departments and agencies; keep books for and exercise financial budgetary control over each office, department and agency; keep separate accounts for the items of appropriation contained in the City budget, each of which accounts shall show the amount of the appropriation, the amounts paid therefrom, the unpaid obligations against it and the unencumbered balance; require reports of receipts and disbursements from each receiving and spending agency of the City government to be made daily or at such intervals as he may deem expedient. (6) He shall keep a record of the date, source and amount of each item of receipt, and the date, payee or contractor, the specific purpose and the amount of the disbursement made. (7) He shall require officers and departments receiving or disbursing money of the City, or its subdivisions, to keep a record of the date, source and amount of each item of receipts, and the date, the payee or contractor, the specific purpose and the amount of the disbursement made, and shall require the officer or department to keep a copy of such contract. (8) He shall examine or test check once a month, and at such other times as the City Council may direct, all books, accounts, receipts, vouchers and other records of all City officers and employees and departments of the City administration receiving or expending public money. (9) He shall require all officers and employees of the City, whose duty it is to collect fines, penalties or other money, to be applied to public purposes, to file with him each month, or more often if the City Council so directs, a report of all fees collected by such officers. (10) He shall monthly, or as often as he may be directed by the City Council, file with the Council a complete statement of the financial condition of the City, and its subdivisions, showing receipts and expenditures of the different departments of the City. (11) He shall advise with the Mayor, City Manager, Treasurer and the various department heads of the City of Raleigh, and its subdivisions, and with the Local Government Commission of the State of North Carolina, and he shall inform himself as to the best and simplest methods of so doing so as to bring about, as far as possible, a simple, accurate and uniform system of keeping accounts of the City and its various departments. (12) He shall, in conjunction with the City Manager and Treasurer, submit to the City Council, at the proper time, an annual budget estimate and budget which shall be prepared in accordance with the provisions of the general laws of North Carolina as the same are now or may hereafter exist. (13) He shall perform such other duties as may be imposed upon him by the City Council and those which may be now or hereafter required of municipal accountants by the general laws of the State of North Carolina and as applicable to the City of Raleigh. (14) He shall certify on all contracts of the City as to whether or not funds of said City have been properly provided for the carrying out of said contracts on the part of the City.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.5 CERTIFICATE OF CITY ACCOUNTANT PREREQUISITE TO EXPENDITURE OF PUBLIC FUNDS.

Sec. 6.5 - CERTIFICATE OF CITY ACCOUNTANT PREREQUISITE TO EXPENDITURE OF PUBLIC FUNDS. (a) No contract or agreement requiring the payment of money, or requisition for supplies or materials, shall be made, and no warrant or order for the payment of money shall be drawn upon the treasury of the City unless provision for the payment thereof has been made by (a) an appropriation ordinance or resolution as required by law, or (b) through the means of bonds or notes duly authorized by the General Assembly and by the City Council, and further authorized, in all cases required by law or by the constitution, by a vote of qualified voters or taxpayers, or otherwise; nor shall such contract, agreement or requisition be made unless the unencumbered balance of such appropriation or provision remains sufficient for such payment. No contract or agreement or requisition requiring the payment of money shall be valid unless the same be in writing, and unless the same shall have printed, written or typewritten thereon a statement signed by the City Accountant as follows: "Provision for the payment of the moneys to fall due under this agreement has been made by appropriation duly made, or by bonds or notes duly authorized, as required by the Local Government Act." (b) Before making such certificate, the City Accountant shall ascertain that a sufficient unencumbered balance of the specific appropriation remains for the payment of the obligation, or that bonds or notes have been so authorized proceeds of which are applicable to such payment, and the appropriation or provision so made shall thereafter be deemed unencumbered by the amount to be paid on such contract or agreement until the City is discharged therefrom. No claim against the City shall be paid except by means of a warrant or order on the City Treasurer signed by the head of the department for which the expense was incurred, nor unless the bill or claim for which the warrant or order is given shall have been presented to and approved by the City Accountant, or in case of his disapproval of such claim or bill, by the City Council. The City Council shall not approve any claim or bill which has been disallowed by the City Accountant without entering upon the minutes of the City Council its reason for approving the same in such detail as may show the City Council's reason for reversing the City Accountant's disallowance. No warrant or order, except a warrant or order for payment of maturing bonds, notes or interest coupons thereto appertaining, and except a warrant or order for the payment of any bill or claim approved by the City Council over the disallowance of the City Accountant, as above provided, shall be valid unless the same shall bear the signature of the City Accountant below a statement which he shall cause to be written, printed or typewritten thereon containing the words: "Provision for the payment of this warrant (or order) has been made by an appropriation duly made or a bond or note duly authorized, as required by the Local Government Act."

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.6 SUPERVISION BY DIRECTOR OF FINANCE OF COLLECTIONS AND PURCHASES AND CONTRACTS.

Sec. 6.6 - SUPERVISION BY DIRECTOR OF FINANCE OF COLLECTIONS AND PURCHASES AND CONTRACTS. The Director of Finance shall have general supervision over the collection of all taxes, special assessments, license fees and other revenues of the City of Raleigh, but the responsibility for collecting taxes, special assessments, license fees and other revenues of the City and the responsibility for receiving and accounting for such moneys shall be that of the City Collector of Revenue, as hereinafter provided. The Director of Finance shall also have general supervision over the purchase, storage and distribution of all supplies, materials, equipment and other articles authorized to be purchased by the City Council, as well as all contracts relating to such purchases, but the direct responsibility for such purchases and contracts shall be imposed upon the City purchasing agent, who shall be the head of the Division of Purchases and Contracts, as hereinafter provided.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.7 DIVISION OF COLLECTION; CITY COLLECTOR OF REVENUE.

Sec. 6.7 - DIVISION OF COLLECTION; CITY COLLECTOR OF REVENUE. (a) The City Manager shall appoint a City Collector of Revenue, who shall have all of the powers and duties imposed by the general laws of North Carolina upon municipal tax collectors and who shall have the power and duty of collecting, receiving and properly accounting for all taxes, special assessments, license fees, penalties, interest and other revenues payable to the City of Raleigh. The City Collector of Revenue shall serve at the pleasure of the City Manager and may be removed from office as provided by law. The City Collector of Revenue shall, before entering upon his duties and annually on or before the first day of the fiscal year of the City of Raleigh, furnish to the City of Raleigh a bond in an amount of not less than fifty thousand dollars ($50,000), as may be prescribed and approved by the City Council, for the faithful performance of his duties and for a proper accounting of all funds coming into his hands by virtue of his office, or coming into his possession in connection therewith, for which he may be responsible, a new bond to be furnished annually, and he shall receive such compensation for his services as is fixed by the City Council. (b) In the event that provision shall be lawfully made for the collection of ad valorem taxes to be collected and received by any collector who collects both City of Raleigh and Wake County taxes, the City Collector of Revenue shall thereupon have no power or duties to collect such taxes, penalties, interest and revenues the responsibility for the collection and receiving of which shall be imposed upon such collector who collects both City and County taxes; in such event, the City Council may prescribe a bond for the City Collector of Revenue which may be less than the amount of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) as hereinabove provided for.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.8 POWERS, DUTIES AND OBLIGATIONS OF CITY COLLECTOR OF REVENUE; SPECIFIC ENUMERATION.

Sec. 6.8 - POWERS, DUTIES AND OBLIGATIONS OF CITY COLLECTOR OF REVENUE; SPECIFIC ENUMERATION. The powers, duties and obligations of the City Collector of Revenue shall in addition to powers, duties and obligations prescribed by the general laws or by other laws applicable to the City of Raleigh, be as follows: (1) He shall collect ad valorem taxes on real and personal property, street assessments, benefits assessed in condemnation proceedings, license privilege taxes, poll taxes, auto license taxes, dog licenses, and all other taxes of any nature or kind, privilege or otherwise required to be paid to the City of Raleigh and not herein otherwise specifically required to be collected by some other officer or department of the City of Raleigh. He shall keep a true and accurate account thereof and shall allocate the moneys received by him to the respective accounts designated in the levy of such tax assessments, and each day render a detailed statement of such collection to the Treasurer of the City of Raleigh accompanied by the duplicate bank deposit slip showing the deposit of such funds in a depository, or depositories, designated by the City Council for the deposit of such funds. (2) He shall be the custodian of the tax books and records, together with all tax sale certificates, street assessment books and records, and all moneys coming into his hands, until the same have been duly deposited in the depository, or depositories, named by the City Council. (3) He shall issue under the rules and regulations of the City Council all privilege licenses except those authorized to be issued by other officers or departments of said City upon the payment of the license or privilege fee required by the ordinances of the City of Raleigh. (4) Possession of the tax list or scroll, after having been placed in the hands of the City Collector of Revenue by the City Council, shall have the same force and effect of a duly docketed judgment and of an execution against the real and personal property of the persons charged with taxes on such list, and the collector of revenue is authorized to make seizure under said tax list as fully as if an execution issued from a court of competent jurisdiction, in the same way and manner as the sheriff may levy and execute upon an execution issued to him by a court of competent jurisdiction, and he shall, when necessary, institute in the name of the City, garnishment proceedings for the purpose of collection of taxes.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.9 COLLECTION OF WATER AND SEWER SERVICE CHARGES, CONNECTION FEES AND INSPECTION FEES.

Sec. 6.9 - COLLECTION OF WATER AND SEWER SERVICE CHARGES, CONNECTION FEES AND INSPECTION FEES. The City Council may impose upon the City Collector of Revenue the duty and responsibility for collecting, receiving and properly accounting for all water and sewer charges, rents and fees for services, all water and sewer connection charges or fees, and all other inspection fees and revenues due to the City in connection with the operation of its Public Utilities Department; provided, however, that the City Council shall have the power to provide for a special collector to collect such fees, charges, rents and other revenues, in which event there shall be no power or duty to collect the same conferred upon or imposed upon the City Collector of Revenue.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.10 DIVISION OF PURCHASES AND CONTRACTS.

Sec. 6.10 - DIVISION OF PURCHASES AND CONTRACTS. There shall be established in the Department of Finance a Division of Purchases and Contracts, the head of which shall be the City purchasing agent. The purchasing agent shall be appointed by the City Manager and shall serve at the pleasure of the City Manager. The City purchasing agent, pursuant to the provisions of this act and pursuant to rules and regulations established by ordinance adopted by the City Council, shall contract for, purchase, store and distribute all supplies, materials and equipment required by any office, department or agency of the City government. The purchasing agent shall also have the power and shall be required to: (1) Establish and enforce specifications with respect to supplies, materials and equipment required by the City government in cooperation with the heads of the various departments and divisions. (2) Inspect or supervise the inspection of all deliveries of supplies, materials and equipment and determine their quality, quantity and conformance with specifications. (3) Have charge of such general storeroofs and warehouses as the City Council may provide by ordinance. (4) Transfer to or between offices, departments or agencies, or sell surplus, obsolete, or unused supplies, materials, or equipment, subject to authorization and the direction of the City Council.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.11 PUBLIC CONTRACTS AND PURCHASES; PROCEDURE.

Sec. 6.11 - PUBLIC CONTRACTS AND PURCHASES; PROCEDURE. (a) No construction or repair work or purchase of apparatus, supplies, materials or equipment shall be performed by the City of Raleigh unless the applicable provisions of Article 8 of Chapter 143 of the General Statutes of North Carolina or any amendment thereof shall have been complied with. (b) Notwithstanding the provisions of said Article 8 or any other act in the purchase of apparatus, supplies, materials or equipment for the City of Raleigh, any personal property owned by the City of Raleigh may be exchanged or traded in as a condition of such purchase, provided the advertisement for bids shall specify the property to be exchanged or traded. (S.L. 1953, Ch. 193, §1; S.L. 1965, Ch. 218, §1)

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.12 REPORTS BY DEPARTMENT HEADS OF NEEDED SUPPLIES AND EQUIPMENT; ESTIMATES AND PURCHASES.

Sec. 6.12 - REPORTS BY DEPARTMENT HEADS OF NEEDED SUPPLIES AND EQUIPMENT; ESTIMATES AND PURCHASES. (a) It shall be the duty of all department heads to furnish to the City purchasing agent, when requested by him, on forms furnished by him, tabulated estimates of all supplies, materials and equipment needed and required by each respective department for such periods in advance as may be designated by the City purchasing agent, or as prescribed by the City Council. (b) The City purchasing agent shall compile and consolidate all such estimates of supplies, materials and equipment needed and required by the various departments to determine the total requirements for a given commodity during a fiscal year. If the total requirements for any given commodity will involve an estimated expenditure equal to or more than the amount which may be purchased on informal bids as provided in Article 8 of Chapter 143 of the General Statutes of North Carolina or an amendment thereof, the procedure prescribed by said article shall be followed. (c) All purchases made and contracts executed by the City purchasing agent shall be pursuant to a written requisition from the head of the office, department or agency whose appropriation will be charged, and no contract or order shall be issued to any vendor unless and until the Director of Finance (City Accountant) certifies that there is to the credit of such office, department or agency a sufficient unencumbered appropriation balance to pay for the supplies, materials, equipment or contractual services for which the contract or order is to be issued. (S.L. 1965, Ch. 218, §1)

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.13 CONTRACTS CONTRARY TO PROVISIONS OF ACT MADE VOID.

Sec. 6.13 - CONTRACTS CONTRARY TO PROVISIONS OF ACT MADE VOID. If any contract for construction or repair work or for the purchase of any supplies, materials or equipment within the meaning and application of this act, shall be made contrary to the provisions of this act, such contract shall be void and of no effect; and in such event, the officials and employees of the City authorizing or making, or purporting to authorize or to make, any such contract or purchase, shall be personally liable for the costs thereof, and if such work, supplies, materials or equipment are so unlawfully contracted for or purchased and paid for out of City moneys, the amount thereof may be recovered in the name of the City of Raleigh in an appropriate civil action instituted therefor. (S.L. 1965, Ch. 218, §1)

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.14 SALES OF PROPERTY OF THE CITY; PERSONAL.

Sec. 6.14 - SALES OF PROPERTY OF THE CITY; PERSONAL. The City Council shall have power at any time to sell any and all personal property belonging to the City of Raleigh after having authorized the sale thereof by resolution duly adopted and after having advertised the property for sale by publishing a notice at least once in a daily newspaper published in the City of Raleigh and qualified to publish legal advertising, at least seven (7) days prior to the date of the sale, which notice shall contain a brief description of the property to be sold and the date, hour and place of such sale. Such sale shall be by public auction or by sealed bids invited by advertisement which shall be publicly opened, or by a combination of sealed bids and public auction, as set forth in the said resolution and notice of sale or as prescribed by ordinance. The sale shall be subject to confirmation by the City Council, and the City Council shall have the right and power to reject any and all bids, or to authorize a sale to the highest bidder for cash if the Council determines in its discretion that the highest price bid is fair and reasonable. The Mayor, or other official authorized by the City Council, shall have power to make title to the purchaser.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.15 REAL.

Sec. 6.15 - REAL. The City Council shall have the power at all times to sell at public auction to the highest bidder, for cash, any real property belonging to the City of Raleigh, wheresoever situated, but only after having authorized the sale thereof by resolution, duly adopted, and after having advertised the same for sale at public auction at least once a week for at least two consecutive weeks prior to the sale in at least one daily newspaper published in the City of Raleigh and qualified to publish legal advertising, the first notice advertising the sale to be published at least fifteen days prior to the date of sale, which notice or advertisement shall describe the real estate to be sold and shall specify the date, hour, and place of such sale; provided, however, that before any bid shall be deemed to be accepted or any sale made, or any title passed by virtue of any such sale, the sale shall be confirmed by the City Council, and the City Council may, in its discretion, refuse confirmation; and when a sale has been duly confirmed and authorized by the City Council, a warranty deed for said real estate may be executed by the Mayor and attested by the City Clerk, with the corporate seal of the City attached; provided, that this section shall apply to all sales of all real estate belonging to the City of Raleigh, regardless of how such real estate may have been acquired by the City, whether by foreclosure of tax or assessment liens or otherwise, except, however, that this section shall not apply to the sale of cemetery lots owned by the City, which may be sold at private sale at such prices as the City Council may determine to be fair and reasonable, and deeds thereto executed as in case of other real estate. Incident to the power hereby granted to sell real estate at public auction, the City Council shall have power and authority to employ the services of an experienced real estate broker or agent to secure a responsible highest bidder at any such sale and to pay a reasonable fee or commission for such service in the event any such sale shall be made and confirmed to such bidder.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.16 DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS; CREATED; PERSONNEL; FUNCTION.

Sec. 6.16 - DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS; CREATED; PERSONNEL; FUNCTION. (a) There is hereby created a Department of Public Works of the City of Raleigh and said department shall consist of a Director of Public Works, who shall be its administrative head, and such other officers and employees as may be deemed necessary by the City Council and whose salaries shall be fixed by the City Council. (b) Subject to the control of the City Council, the Director of Public Works, under the direction and supervision of the City Manager, shall have control, management and direction of all public works not herein or otherwise expressly given to some other department of the City; all public grounds, bridges, viaducts, subways and buildings not otherwise assigned herein or by the City Council to some other department; the construction, cleansing, sprinkling, repair and maintenance of the streets and public places of the City; the erection of public buildings for the City; and the making, constructing, supervising and inspecting of all other improvements, paving, curbing, sidewalks, bridges, viaducts, and the repair thereof. The Director of Public Works shall have supervision and control and it shall be his duty to keep in good condition the streets, cemeteries and public grounds and parks of the City of Raleigh, subject to the legislative control of the City Council. (c) He shall have supervision of the enforcement of the provisions of law and the ordinances relating to streets, public squares and places and relating to all matters within the jurisdiction and control of his department. The Director of Public Works shall have supervision and direction of the location of railway tracks, telephone and telegraph wires, poles and other things placed by public service corporations in, along, under or over the streets in the City. Except as otherwise provided by ordinances of the City, the collection, removal and disposition of all waste, including but not being limited to garbage, rubbish and ashes, as defined by the City Council, shall be under the jurisdiction, management and direction of the Director of Public Works according to such rules and regulations as may be adopted from time to time by ordinance. (d) The Director of Public Works, through his department, shall have the duty and responsibility of keeping clean all streets, alleys and public places, in accordance with such regulations as may be prescribed from time to time by ordinances adopted by the City Council. The Director of Public Works shall also have supervision and management and control over the lighting system of the City of Raleigh and the management and direction of the lighting of the streets, alleys and other public places and grounds and all other places where City lights are placed. The Director of Public Works and the officials and employees of the Department of Public Works shall do and perform all other duties and services as prescribed from time to time by the City Council, or otherwise provided by law. He shall have charge and supervision of the electrical inspector, plumbing inspector and building inspector, and he shall have supervision and direction over all officers and employees in his department.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.17 DIVISIONS.

Sec. 6.17 - DIVISIONS. (a) Within the Department of Public Works and subject to the direction, supervision and management of the Director of Public Works, there shall be the following divisions: (1) Division of engineering, the administrative head of which shall be the City Engineer, who shall be a civil engineer graduated from some recognized college or university, and who may be the same person holding the position of Director of Public Works. (2) Division of Streets and Highways. (3) Division of Sanitation. (4) Division of Public Buildings. (5) Division of Shops. (6) Division of Cemeteries. (7) Division of Markets. (8) Division of Street Lighting. (9) Division of Park Maintenance. (10) Inspection Division. (11) Such other divisions as may be from time to time authorized by the City Council. (b) The powers and duties of the divisions with the Department of Public Works and the officials and employees thereof shall be such as from time to time granted, prescribed and defined by ordinance or resolution of the City Council. The City Council shall have the power to eliminate any of the foregoing divisions or to combine any two or more divisions. The powers and duties granted and prescribed for the Department of Public Works and for the various divisions thereof shall be in accordance with the provisions of this act and in accordance with the Constitution and Laws of the State of North Carolina.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.18 INSPECTION DIVISION.

Sec. 6.18 - INSPECTION DIVISION. The Inspection Division of the Department of Public Works shall be composed of a Chief Building Inspector, an electrical inspector, a plumbing inspector, and such other inspectors and employees as shall be deemed necessary by the City Council and whose salaries shall be fixed by the City Council. The inspectors and other employees of the division shall be under the supervision and direction of the Director of Public Works. (1) The Chief Building Inspector shall be the administrative head of the division and shall have control of the other inspectors and employees of said division under such rules and regulations as may be prescribed or authorized by the City Council, and all inspectors shall take an oath for the faithful discharge of their respective offices. (2) It shall be the duty of the Inspection Division to inspect all buildings which may be in the course of erection, alteration or repair and require inspection according to the building ordinances of the City; to examine and report on the condition of old buildings in said City; to supervise and inspect all electrical works and appliances used or intended for the use in the manufacture or supplying or receiving of electricity within the City, either for light, heat or power; to inspect all plumbing work, water fixtures and sewer connections constructed or being constructed in said City, or outside the City, where same is connected either to the water or sewer system of the City of Raleigh, and to require the same to conform with the ordinances of the City. No building or other structures shall be constructed or repaired within the limits of the City, unless and until a permit therefor has been issued by the Chief Building Inspector; provided, that the City Council may, by ordinance, regulate the requirements for building permits with reference to the construction or repair of buildings or other structures as to cost thereof. The City Council may require the payment of reasonable fees for the issuance and procurement of such permits which shall be payable at the time of the issuance of same. (3) The Chief Building Inspector and his assistants shall perform such other duties as may be required by the City Council, and they shall be vested with all the power now or hereafter granted by the general laws of the State of North Carolina to such municipal inspectors, and they shall see that all ordinances enacted by the City Council are complied with, with respect to this division. (4) Examinations for licensing of plumbers, electricians and other trades connected with the building industry shall be as prescribed by ordinances of the City Council, and the Inspection Division shall collect the application fees and shall deposit such funds according to the rules and regulations as given by the City Manager and City Accountant.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.19 DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY; CREATED; PERSONNEL; FUNCTION.

Sec. 6.19 - DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY; CREATED; PERSONNEL; FUNCTION. (a) There is hereby created a Department of Public Safety of the City of Raleigh, and said department shall consist of a Director of Public Safety, who shall be its administrative head, and such other officers and employees as may be deemed necessary by the City Council and whose salaries shall be fixed by the City Council, and there shall be such divisions within the department as may be established by this act and by the City Council. (b) Subject to the legislative control of the City Council, the Director of Public Safety, under the supervision and direction of the City Manager, shall have control, management and direction of: the Police Division, which may continue to be known as the Police Department; the Identification Bureau; the Fire Division, which may continue to be known as the Fire Department; and such other divisions as may be established by law or by the City Council. The Chief of Police, the Chief of the Fire Department, and the head of any other division within the Department of Public Safety shall be subject to the immediate direction and supervision of the Director of Public Safety. (c) If the City Council shall so determine by resolution or otherwise, the City Manager may exercise and perform the powers and duties of the Director of Public Safety, and that position shall not otherwise be filled until further authorized by the City Council.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.20 POWERS AND DUTIES OF DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC SAFETY.

Sec. 6.20 - POWERS AND DUTIES OF DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC SAFETY. (a) The Director of Public Safety shall have charge of the police force, subject to the supervision and direction of the City Manager, and shall have power to temporarily supplant the Chief of Police and take charge of the department, and shall at all times have power to give direction to the officers and employees in the Police Department, and his direction shall be binding upon all such officers and employees. (b) He shall have charge of the police stations, jails, and property and apparatus connected therewith, including City ambulance and patrol wagons used in connection with his department. (c) He shall have supervision and control, subject to the supervision and direction of the City Manager, of the Fire Department, of all firemen, officers and employees therein or connected therewith, and of all fire stations, property and apparatus used in connection with the Fire Department; and of the fire alarm system, and all property and apparatus connected therewith. (d) He shall have power to temporarily supersede the Chief of the Fire Department, and his orders to said department and all employees therein shall be binding upon said department. (e) He shall be charged with the duty of enforcing all ordinances and resolutions relating to traffic on the public streets, alleys, and public ways, on and across railway lines, and through and over the cemetery ways, public parks and other public places. (f) He shall be charged with the duty of enforcing all laws, ordinances, and others relating to public health and sanitation, and all health officers and employees of the City shall be under his supervision. It shall be the duty of the City Council to pass such ordinances, rules and regulations, and employ such persons as necessary to preserve and protect public health. He shall be charged, through his department, with the enforcement of all quarantine regulations, and with suppressing and removing conditions on private property within the City that are a menace to health or public safety. He shall coordinate his activities referred to in this paragraph with the Chief Health Officer. (g) He shall be authorized to enter upon private premises for the purpose of discharging the duties imposed upon him, and he shall cause to be abated all nuisances which may endanger or affect the health of the City, and generally do all things, subject to the legislative control of the City Council, that may be necessary and expedient for the promotion of health and the suppression of disease. (h) He shall perform all other services ordered by the City Council, or that may be ordered by the City Council, not herein expressly conferred upon some other department.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.21 POLICE DEPARTMENT; CREATED; PERSONNEL.

Sec. 6.21 - POLICE DEPARTMENT; CREATED; PERSONNEL. There is hereby created, within the Department of Public Safety, a Police Department (or division), which shall be composed of a Chief of Police, under the Director of Public Safety, and such other officers and employees as shall be deemed necessary by the City Council. The salaries of the Chief of Police and of the other officers and employees of the department or division shall be fixed by the City Council. The Chief of Police may or may not be chosen from the officers of the Police Department. (S.L. 1973, Ch. 319, §1(q))

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.22 POWERS AND DUTIES OF CHIEF OF POLICE AND MEMBERS OF DEPARTMENT.

Sec. 6.22 - POWERS AND DUTIES OF CHIEF OF POLICE AND MEMBERS OF DEPARTMENT. (a) The Chief of Police, acting under the Director of Public Safety, shall have the supervision and control of the police force, and it shall be his duty to report to the Director of Public Safety any failure of duty on the part of any member of the police force. It shall be the duty of the Chief of Police to see that all laws and ordinances of the City are enforced and to do all such things as may be required of him by ordinances adopted by the City Council or by the Director of Public Safety. The Chief of Police and each member of the police force shall have the same power and authority as are vested in sheriffs and constables for the preservation of the peace of the City; such power and authority to be exercised by them not only in the corporate limits, but within all territory extending one mile in all directions from and beyond the corporate limits of the City (and on any rights-of-way, easements, or property of the City without the corporate limits). They shall execute all process legally directed to them by any court and in the execution thereof shall have the same powers that sheriffs and constables have in the discharge of like duties. (b) The City Council may make rules and regulations for the government and direction of the police officers of the City or may delegate such power to the Director of Public Safety. The City Council may require the entire police force to wear badges, and to be so armed and uniformed as to be readily recognized by the public as peace officers; provided, that the Director of Public Safety, or the Chief of Police, when either deems it necessary, may authorize any such officer to be on duty in plain clothes. The police of the City shall have power to do whatever may be necessary to preserve the good order and peace of the City and secure the inhabitants from personal violence and their property from loss or injuries. (c) When funds shall have been appropriated for the purpose, and when considered expedient and in the public interest, the Chief of Police, subject to the approval of the City Manager, may employ temporarily, for a period of time not to exceed twelve (12) months, persons to obtain information regarding criminal activity within the City; provided, however, that there shall not be any re-employment of any such person at any time within a period of thirty (30) days immediately following the termination of a previous term of such temporary employment; provided, further, that such persons so employed may, but shall not be required to, take and subscribe the same oath required of regular police officers of the City and if so sworn shall have all of the powers, authority and duties of regular police officers of the City; provided, further, that such persons so employed shall not be subject to the Civil Service Act applicable to policemen and firemen of the City. Such persons so employed shall be subject to the orders and direction of the Director of Public Safety, Chief of Police and the City Manager. (d) The Director of Public Safety, Chief of Police, and each member of the police force, before entering upon the discharge of the duties of his office, shall be required to take and subscribe before the Mayor, or some other officers authorized to administer oaths in such cases, the oath prescribed for public officers, and an oath that he will faithfully and impartially discharge the duties of his office according to law, which said oath shall be filed with the City Clerk and entered in the book with the oaths of the members of the City Council and other officers of the City. (S.L. 1957, Ch. 107, §1; S.L. 1973, Ch. 319, §1(r))

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.23 COMMITMENTS TO COUNTY JAIL.

Sec. 6.23 - COMMITMENTS TO COUNTY JAIL. The keeper of the common jail of Wake County may receive into the common jail of said County, without a mittimus, any person taken up in the nighttime by the City police force, and to keep such person safely until the following morning, when such offender shall be brought out for trial; and for such services the jailer shall be entitled to have such fees as are allowed him by law in like cases; provided, the City may provide and use a prison for the confinement of prisoners as provided by law.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.24 FIRE DEPARTMENT.

Sec. 6.24 - FIRE DEPARTMENT. (a) There is hereby created, within the Department of Public Safety, a Fire Department (or division), which shall be composed of a Chief of the Fire Department (or division), and such other officers and employees as shall be deemed necessary by the City Council, whose salaries shall be fixed by the City Council. (b) The Chief of the Fire Department shall be responsible for the discipline and efficiency of the Fire Department. All orders shall pass through him and he shall see that all orders, rules and regulations applicable to the Fire Department are fully carried out and performed. Subject to the legislative control of the City Council, rules and regulations shall be made by the Chief and approved by the Director of Public Safety and the City Manager and the same shall be published and each member of the department shall familiarize himself with such rules and regulations. (c) The Fire Department shall protect the lives and property of the people. In case of an emergency, the Chief of the Fire Department may cause the blowing up, or pulling down or destroying of any house or houses, and no person shall be held liable civilly or criminally for acting in such cases in obedience to such order. (d) The Chief of the Fire Department and the other officers of the department shall have full police powers during fires, and are authorized to make arrests for interference with their operations. (e) In the event of an alarm of fire, the apparatus of the Fire Department shall have the exclusive right-of-way in and upon the streets, alleys, squares and railroad crossings in going to any fire. (f) The Fire Department shall have the same jurisdiction outside the City limits, as within, upon City owned, leased or controlled property, and as provided by the general laws of North Carolina. (g) The Chief of the Fire Department shall perform all duties under the general laws as the same are now or may hereafter be enacted with respect to the inspection of buildings. (h) The Chief of the Fire Department shall have authority to make promotions and demotions of members in the department subject to the Civil Service Act applicable to the Police and Fire Departments of the City of Raleigh.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.25 CIVIL SERVICE ACT NOT REPEALED.

Sec. 6.25 - CIVIL SERVICE ACT NOT REPEALED. Nothing in this act shall repeal or amend any of the provisions of Chapter Fifty of the Private Laws of North Carolina 1935, being the Civil Service Act relating to policemen and firemen of the City of Raleigh.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.26 DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC UTILITIES; CREATED; PERSONNEL; FUNCTION.

Sec. 6.26 - DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC UTILITIES; CREATED; PERSONNEL; FUNCTION. (a) There is hereby created a Department of Public Utilities of the City of Raleigh, which shall consist of a Director of Public Utilities, who shall be its administrative head, and such other officers and employees as may be deemed necessary by the City Council and whose salaries shall be fixed by the City Council. (b) The Director of Public Utilities shall have the management, and supervision of, and shall be responsible for the proper operation and control of, the entire waterworks system and sewerage system of the City of Raleigh, and any and all other public utility systems which the City may lawfully acquire, construct, maintain and operate. (c) He shall have charge of the watersheds from which the City takes its supply of water, pumping stations, pipe lines, filtering apparatus, and all other things connected with or incident to the proper supply of water and the disposal of sewage for the City of Raleigh. It shall be his duty to act for the City, subject to the legislative control of the City Council, in securing all lands, streams, and rights-of-way and easements connected with and necessary to the supply of water and to the disposal of sewage for the City. He shall have supervision and control of all buildings, grounds, and apparatus connected therewith and incident to the furnishing of water for the City and the operation of the sewerage system. (d) He shall superintend the erection of water tanks, and laying of water lines and sewer lines and the operation thereof. (e) The Director of Public Utilities and the other officers and employees of the department and of the various divisions thereof shall have such other powers and duties and functions as may be provided and required by the City Council and as may be otherwise provided by law.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.27 DIVISIONS.

Sec. 6.27 - DIVISIONS. (a) There shall be such divisions within the Department of Public Utilities as may be authorized by the City Council, including but not limited to the following divisions: administrative, engineering, water operations, sewer operations, water and sewer collections, and such other divisions as may be deemed necessary or expedient by the City Council; provided, that any division may be eliminated or may be combined with any one or more of the other divisions by appropriate action by the City Council. (b) In the event the City Council shall provide for a special collector to collect and receive fees, charges, rents and other revenues payable to the City in connection with the operation of the public utilities of the City, as authorized by §68 [6.9] of this Act, then such special collector shall be the administrative head of the Collections Division of the Department of Public Utilities and he and the employees of the division shall be under the direction and supervision of the Director of Public Utilities.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.28 CITY-OWNED UTILITIES; ESTABLISHMENT AND OPERATION OF WATER, SEWER AND OTHER UTILITY SYSTEMS.

Sec. 6.28 - CITY-OWNED UTILITIES; ESTABLISHMENT AND OPERATION OF WATER, SEWER AND OTHER UTILITY SYSTEMS. The City shall have the power to acquire, provide, construct, establish, own, maintain and operate its own light and waterworks system and sewerage system, and to furnish water, light and sewerage service to the citizens and residents of the City; and to furnish such services or any of them to any person, firm or corporation outside the corporate limits, where any such service is available, upon such terms and conditions as may be prescribed by the City Council, in its discretion; and the City Council shall have full and complete control, supervision and management of said public utility systems and each of them. The City is authorized to make special assessments following the procedures provided by the General Statutes against benefited property within its corporate limits for constructing, reconstructing, extending and otherwise building or improving water lines and sanitary sewer lines. The City shall not be under any legal obligation to extend or render any services to anyone outside the corporate limits, except as may be required by contract lawfully made by the City. Upon annexation of any area to its corporate limits, the City is authorized to make special assessments against benefited property for water lines and sanitary sewer lines which were extended to said area at any time prior to its annexation. The City shall not in any case be liable to any person, firm or corporation, resident or nonresident, for damages for a failure to furnish a sufficient supply or particular quality of either water, sewer service, or light for any purpose. The City Council shall have the power to adopt such rules and regulations as may be considered necessary or expedient, in the discretion of the City Council, to provide for the protection, maintenance, management and operation of such systems of the City, and may appoint special officers to enforce the ordinances, rules and regulations of the City of Raleigh, the laws of the State of North Carolina, and the applicable rules and regulations of the State Board of Health. Such special officers shall be vested with the authority of peace officers within, but only within, the area to which they are assigned. (S.L. 1957, Ch. 122, §1; S.L. 1975, Ch. 561, §9)

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.29 ACQUISITION OF RIGHTS-OF-WAY AND OTHER PROPERTY; CONDEMNATION POWERS.

Sec. 6.29 - ACQUISITION OF RIGHTS-OF-WAY AND OTHER PROPERTY; CONDEMNATION POWERS. The City Council shall have full power to acquire and hold rights-of-way, water rights, sewerage outlets, and other property necessary or proper in connection with the ownership, maintenance or operation of any of the above named utility systems, both within and without the corporate limits. The City shall have power to condemn rights-of-way, easements, water rights, lands, sewerage outlets, and other property within and without the corporate limits of the City for the purpose of obtaining, storing, maintaining and furnishing a pure and adequate water supply, and of furnishing lights for the City and its citizens, and for the purpose of furnishing sewerage disposal service and sewerage treatment services for the City and its citizens. The condemnation proceedings for any such purpose or purposes shall be the same as are provided for the condemnation of land for street purposes by this act or by the General Statutes of North Carolina.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.30 SAMECONNECTIONS WITH SEWERS.

Sec. 6.30 - SAMECONNECTIONS WITH SEWERS. The City Council may require all owners of improved property which may be located upon or near any line of the sewerage system of the City, within the corporate limits, to connect with such sewerage line or system all water closets, toilets, bathtubs, lavatories, sinks, and drains upon their respective properties or premises, so that their contents may be made to empty into such sewerage system.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.31 CHARGES FOR UTILITY SERVICES.

Sec. 6.31 - CHARGES FOR UTILITY SERVICES. The City Council is hereby authorized to fix and prescribe such rates of charges for water, light and sewerage service, and for connections with any water or sewer line, forming a part of or connected with the water or sewerage system of the City, and for inspection services, such rates of charges to be prescribed in the discretion of the City Council; provided that the rates may be graduated according to classes of service, quantity of consumption, or otherwise, as determined by the City Council, but the rates within any particular classification shall be uniform and applicable alike to all consumers within any such classification; provided, further, however, that for connections, inspections and/or service supplied to persons, firms and corporations outside the corporate limits of the City, the City Council may fix and prescribe a different and higher rate and charge from that charged within the corporate limits.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.32 SUFFICIENCY OF CHARGES; ACCOUNTING PRACTICES.

Sec. 6.32 - SUFFICIENCY OF CHARGES; ACCOUNTING PRACTICES. (a) The City Council shall fix and prescribe such rates and charges as will provide annually for the payment of the annual debt service requirements on existing bonded debt for such waterworks system, sewerage system and lighting system, and repairs, maintenance, enlargement, extension, and operation of any such system or systems. (b) It shall be the duty of the City Council and the City Accountant, the City Treasurer and other officers and employees handling moneys derived from the operation of the public utilities of the City, to keep a separate statement and account of the moneys received by the City from the waterworks system, sewerage system, and any other utility system operated by the City; and it shall be the duty of the City Council to give preference to the waterworks, sewerage, and other City utility systems over the other departments of the City in such fund; provided, however, that the City Council may take reasonable appropriations annually from the revenues received from the operation of the water, sewer, and other utilities of the City to the General Fund account of the City, based, however, upon services rendered to the Department of Public Utilities by the various officials, employees, and departments whose compensation and operating costs and expenses are payable from General Fund revenues of the City, as determined by the City Council.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.33 COLLECTION OF CHARGES.

Sec. 6.33 - COLLECTION OF CHARGES. (a) The City Council shall fix the time or times when the water and/or sewer service charges shall become due and payable, and in case any such charge is not paid within ten days after it becomes due, the same shall become a lien upon the property where said water is used and with which said water and/or sewer connections are made; and the same may at any time therefore be collected, either by suit in the name of the City or by the collector of taxes for the City, by the sale of the property upon which said lien attaches, at the courthouse door in the City of Raleigh, after advertising the same thirty days in some newspaper published in the City of Raleigh; and the said sale shall be made under the same rules and regulations, and subject to the same costs and penalties and to the same rights of redemption as are provided for the foreclosure of the lien on real estate for taxes. Upon failure of the owner of the property for which water or sewer is furnished, under the rules and regulations of the City Council, to pay charges when due, then the City Council, or its agent or employees, may cut off the water from the said property; and when so cut off it shall be unlawful for any person, firm, or corporation, other than the City Council, or its agents or employees, to turn on said water to said property, or to use the same in connection with the said property, without having first paid said charges and obtained permission from the City, through its Department of Public Utilities, to turn on said water; and any person, firm, or corporation convicted of the violation of any one of the provisions contained in this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall be fined not exceeding fifty dollars ($50) or imprisoned not exceeding thirty days. (b) Where the water may be cut off under the provisions of this section for the failure of the occupant of the premises to pay the charges for water and/or sewer service, and the occupant is not the owner of the premises but occupies the premises as a tenant, there shall be no lien against the premises, and it shall not be lawful for the City to require payment of such delinquent bill before turning on the water at the instance of a new and different tenant or occupant of said premises, but this provision shall not apply in cases where the premises are occupied by two or more tenants serviced by the same water meter.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.34 DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION.

Sec. 6.34 - DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION. (a) There is hereby created a Department of Parks and Recreation of the City of Raleigh which shall consist of a Director of Parks and Recreation and other such officers and employees and divisions as may be deemed necessary by the City Council, and whose salaries shall be fixed by the City Council, such officers and employees may include persons appointed to enforce ordinances of the City of Raleigh and Statutes of the State of North Carolina on those properties under control of the Department of Parks and Recreation; and on said property said employees when duly appointed and sworn shall have the same power and duty as would any peace officer. There may be such divisions as established from time to time by the City Council in its discretion. (b) Subject to the direction and supervision of the City Manager, and subject to the legislative control of the City Council, the Director of Parks and Recreation and his said department shall have the following powers and duties: To control, manage, and operate the amusement and recreation parks and playgrounds of the City in accordance with the rules, regulations and ordinances adopted by the City Council; to plan, organize, supervise, and sponsor programs of public recreation for the best interests of the City and its citizens; and to operate swimming pools, baseball grounds, tennis courts, and such other facilities for recreation or play as may be authorized and directed by the City Council; and to have such other powers and perform such other duties as may be authorized and directed by the City Council or as otherwise by law provided. (c) The City Council shall have power to create and appoint members to a parks and recreation advisory commission or committee, which shall have such powers and functions and be constituted as to membership, terms and organization, as may be prescribed by the City Council by ordinance or resolution. (S.L. 1971, Ch. 1209, §1(c))

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.35 HEALTH DEPARTMENT.

Sec. 6.35 - HEALTH DEPARTMENT. (a) The City is hereby authorized to create, pursuant to the general laws of North Carolina, a Health Department, which when created shall have as its administrative head a Chief Health Officer, and such other officers and employees as may be deemed necessary by the City Council, and whose salaries shall be fixed by the City Council. (b) The Chief Health Officer shall have in his charge all matters pertaining to the health of the City and shall perform the duties required of him under such general rules and regulations as may be prescribed by the City Council, and he, and any members of his department, shall have full power and authority to enter all premises affecting the health of the citizens of Raleigh, within or without the corporate limits of the City of Raleigh, and he shall be responsible for enforcing the laws and ordinances made for the general public health of the City. (c) The Chief Health Officer, the Chief of Police, or other officer or officers who may be designated for this purpose by the City Council or the City Manager, shall have power summarily to remove, abate, or remedy, or cause to be removed, abated, or remedied, everything within or without the City limits which is dangerous or prejudicial to the public health of the citizens of the City of Raleigh, and the expenses of such action shall be paid by the person in default, and if not paid shall be a lien upon the land or premises where the trouble arose, and shall be collected as unpaid taxes. (d) The Chief Health Officer of the City of Raleigh shall also perform such other duties as may be required by the City Council, and he is hereby vested with the powers and obligations conferred and imposed upon municipal officials by the general laws of the State of North Carolina as the same now are or may be hereafter enacted.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.36 HEALTH AND SANITATION; POWERS OF CITY COUNCIL.

Sec. 6.36 - HEALTH AND SANITATION; POWERS OF CITY COUNCIL. The City Council is hereby given, within the corporate limits of the City of Raleigh (and when exercised so as not to conflict with the rules and regulations of the Wake County Health Department and health officer within one mile in all directions beyond the boundaries of the City), all the power and authority that is now or may hereafter be given by law to the County Board of Health or County Health Officer or physician, and such further powers and authority as will best preserve the health of the citizens. The City Council is hereby given power to make such rules and regulations, not inconsistent with the constitution and laws of the State, for the preservation of the health of the inhabitants of the City as to the City may seem right and proper. The City Council may establish and maintain a hospital or hospitals, or pesthouses, slaughterhouses, rendering plants, incinerators and crematories in the City of Raleigh, or within three (3) miles thereof; may stop, detain, examine, or keep in a pesthouse or houses of detention persons having or suspected of having any infectious, contagious, or other communicable disease; may quarantine the City or any part thereof; may cause all persons in the City limits to be vaccinated; may, without incurring liability to the owner, remove, fumigate or destroy furniture, bedding, clothing, or other property which may be found to be tainted or infected with any contagious or infectious disease, and may do all other proper and reasonable things to prevent or stamp out any contagious or infectious disease, and to better preserve the health of the citizens; and all expenses incurred by the City in disinfecting or caring for any person or persons, by authority of this section, may be recovered by it from the person, persons, or property cared for; and when expense is incurred in caring for property, same shall become a lien on said property. Any person who shall attempt by force, or by threat of violence, to prevent his removal, or that of any other person, to the pesthouse, house of detention, or hospital, or who shall in any way interfere with any officer while performing any of the duties allowed by this act, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.37 ZONING AND PLANNINGDEPARTMENT OF PLANNING.

Sec. 6.37 - ZONING AND PLANNINGDEPARTMENT OF PLANNING. (a) There is hereby created a Department of Planning of the City of Raleigh, and said department shall consist of a director of planning, who shall be its administrative head, and such other officers and employees as may be deemed necessary by the City Council and whose salaries shall be fixed by the City Council. The Director of Planningshall be appointed by the City Manager and he shall be a graduate civil and planning engineer. (b) Subject to the legislative control of the City Council and subject to the direction and supervision of the City Manager, the Director of Planningshall have the following powers and duties: To make a careful study of the resources, possibilities and needs of the City of Raleigh, particularly with respect to conditions which may be injurious to the public welfare and to make plans for the development of the City; to draft plans, compile population trends; to consult with and cooperate with civic organizations, subdivision developers, industrial organizations and other private business and individual enterprises; to obtain and prepare engineering cost and statistical information necessary or advisable in connection with proposed plans of construction, repair and maintenance; to make surveys and comparisons for the purpose of recommending the needs for and appropriate locations of Fire Department stations, fire hydrants and other fire fighting and prevention services, police headquarters, stations, and services, sewer outfalls and lines, water lines, streets and sidewalks, utility services, to make surveys, studies and recommendations relating to drainage, and any other matters affecting the public interest and public safety, health and welfare, to the end that the activities and projects of all of the agencies of the City may be correlated and carried out under a comprehensive, definite plan and purpose rather than as separate disintegrated and disassociated fragments; and to perform such other duties as may be required by the City Council. (c) The Director of Planningshall have no authority over the operation of any other department of the City, and the several operating departments of the City shall continue to make plans for their respective spheres of activity; but the Department of Planning is created for the purpose of over-all planning designed to assist the several operating departments of the City in formulating a public policy which will treat the problems of the community and of the municipal government as a closely knit whole. The Department of Planning and its director shall have the duty of integrating the plans and projects of the several operating departments of the City government and the projects and plans of private business organizations, individuals and citizens and organizing and directing a systematic program in which the plans of each department of the City and of private enterprise, organizations and citizens may be directed, to the end that the future development and planning of the City will promote the public interest, welfare, health and safety. (d) It shall be the duty of the director of planning to study the existing zoning ordinances and regulations; to prepare or to have prepared, a land use plan, and then to make recommendations to the City Council as to any changes, alterations, additions or revisions of the zoning ordinance. (e) The Director of Planningshall consult with and advise and otherwise cooperate with the members of the City Planning Commission. (f) The Director of Planningshall from time to time make surveys and investigations to determine whether the provisions of the Zoning Ordinance of the City of Raleigh are being violated; and it shall be his duty, when violations are discovered, to take necessary and proper proceedings to enforce or require enforcement of the zoning ordinances. (g) The City Council, by ordinance, may adopt such additional rules and regulations as considered necessary for the control and functioning of the Department of Planning and its director. (S.L. 1973, Ch. 319, §1(s))

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.38 SAMEPLANNING COMMISSION.

Sec. 6.38 - SAMEPLANNING COMMISSION. (a) There is hereby created the City Planning Commission of the City of Raleigh, which shall consist of five (5) members, who shall be appointed by the City Council from among the citizens of the City (none of whom shall hold any other public office or position within the City), whose terms shall be four (4) years. Any vacancy during the unexpired term of any member shall be filled by the City Council for the remainder of the term. The members shall serve without compensation, except that the City Council may prescribe and authorize the payment of a per diem allowance for attendance upon meetings not to exceed ten dollars ($10.00) per member, per meeting. (b) The City Planning Commission, as soon as practicable after its original appointment, shall meet and organize by electing one of its members as Chairman and one of its members as secretary, each of whom shall serve for a term of one (1) year and until his successor shall be elected and qualified. During the month of July of each year the City Planning Commission shall elect a Chairman and secretary, each of whom shall serve for a term of one year and until his successor has been elected and qualified. The City Planning Commission may establish its own rules governing meetings and procedures, subject to the legislative control of the City Council; and the City Planning Commission shall meet at least once a month at such time and place as may be determined by the commission for the transaction of its business and the commission may meet at such other times as its members may determine. (c) The City Planning Commission shall have no power to incur any debt or obligation on behalf of the City of Raleigh nor shall it have any power to make any expenditure of funds of the City of Raleigh unless such funds are specifically provided for in the budget of the City of Raleigh and appropriation made for such purposes by the City Council. (d) The City Planning Commission shall study the resources, possibilities and needs of the City and shall have power to propose and recommend plans and maps for the systematic future development and betterment of the City, and from time to time shall have power to recommend changes in the same when changes are considered advisable; and to this end the City Planning Commission shall have power to recommend that the City be subdivided into districts or zones and shall cause to be prepared maps and plans of same, specifying and regulating the location, height, bulk, number of stories and size of buildings and other structures, the per centage of a lot that may be occupied, size of yards, courts, and other open spaces, the manner of construction of the buildings thereafter to be erected, altered or reconstructed in such district or zone, the density of population and the location and uses of buildings, structures and lands for trade, industry, business, residence or other purposes, and establishing rules governing building lines, and the City Planning Commission shall submit the same to the City Council for its approval and adoption, either in whole or in part as may be determined by the City Council in its discretion, and with such amendments as the City Council may deem proper. The City Planning Commission is authorized to make a study of the existing parks of the City and to submit plans for the development of same, and locate new areas for park purposes and recommend to the City Council the acquisition of same, and to submit plans for the development of existing playgrounds and to make recommendations for the acquisition and development of new playgrounds. (e) The City Planning Commission may make recommendations for the promotion of the economic and industrial prosperity and the enhancement of the health, comfort and convenience of the citizens of the City of Raleigh. It may study and in its discretion recommend ways and means which will tend to prevent or relieve congestion, either of population or traffic, to control the fire hazard, to preserve the natural and historic features of the City, and to beautify the same. The commission may investigate, prepare surveys of and make recommendations on any matter which will, in its opinion, make the community a better place in which to live or work. Plans may be recommended by the commission for new streets, roads, boulevards, alleyways, viaducts, bridges, subways, parks, playgrounds, aviation fields, rail and bus terminals, tunnels, markets, public utilities, public buildings or any public improvements. Wherever any of the foregoing shall exist, then the City Planning Commission may make recommendations as to their respective removal, relocation, widening or extension, as occasion may suggest or necessity require. (f) The City Council shall have power at any time to request the City Planning Commission to give an opinion and make recommendations upon any matter pertaining to the powers and duties of the City Planning Commission. (g) Before any new street is opened, or any existing street is extended, or before any new subdivision for residence, business or industrial uses is made, the person or persons opening such street or proposing such new subdivision for residence, business, industrial or other purposes shall submit a detailed plan with blue prints and other necessary data to such City Planning Commission. It shall be the duty of said commission to carefully examine the plans for such subdivisions as regards their nature and purpose, the number, width, character, and location of streets and alleys, and the size, material, and manner of laying of water mains and sewer lines; and transmit such application, with all data, to the governing body, with its recommendations in writing. The jurisdiction of such commission concerning the regulation of subdivisions shall extend one mile beyond the corporate limits of the City. The commission shall have the right to make recommendations for the correction, widening, or relocating of any interior street to the governing body. (h) The City Council is hereby authorized and empowered, but shall not be required, to make provision in the City budget and to make appropriations for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this section. (i) The City Council, in its discretion, is hereby authorized and empowered in the exercise of the police powers of the City, to pass and adopt and to amend and/or repeal all ordinances and resolutions, and to do all things necessary, to carry out the recommendations that may be made by the City Planning Commission, under the provisions and powers of this section, where not contrary to law. (S.L. 1973, Ch. 319, §1(t))

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.39 ZONING REGULATIONS.

Sec. 6.39 - ZONING REGULATIONS. (a) For the purpose of promoting the health, safety, morals or general welfare of the City, the City Council is hereby authorized and empowered by ordinance to regulate and restrict the location, height, bulk, number of stories and size of buildings and other structures, the per centage of a lot that may be occupied, the size of yards, courts, and other open spaces, the density of population and the location and uses of buildings, structures, and land for trade, industry, business, residence or other purposes, including off-street parking of vehicles. Such ordinances may provide that the board of adjustment may, in appropriate cases and subject to appropriate principles, standards, rules, conditions and safeguards set forth in the ordinance, make special exceptions to the terms of the zoning regulations in harmony with their general purpose and intent. Such ordinances may provide that the board of adjustment may authorize variances from the strict application of the regulations in such situations and subject to such limitations as may be set forth in the ordinance. (b) For any and all said purposes and under a comprehensive plan, the City Council may divide the municipality into districts of such number, shape and area as may be deemed best suited to carry out the purpose of this section; and within such districts the City Council may regulate and restrict the erection, construction, reconstruction, alteration, repair and use of buildings, structures, and land. All such regulations shall be uniform for each class or kind of building throughout each district, but the regulations in one district may differ from those in other districts; however, the City Council may provide for the creation of conditional use zoning districts, and overlay zoning districts and transitional zoning regulations, in addition to general use districts. It is the purpose and intent of this section to permit the City to create, through the legislative process, general use districts, in which a variety of uses are permitted; conditional use districts, in which limited uses are permitted only upon approval by the City; and overlay zoning districts, which are applied coincidental with a general or conditional use district. Said overlay zoning districts may impose additional regulations on some property within the underlying general or conditional use district and not on all properties within those districts. A person petitioning for rezoning of a tract of land where conditional use districts or overlay districts are authorized by ordinance, may elect to request a general use district, a conditional use district, or an overlay district for the tract. If the petitioner elects to petition for the general use or overlay district zoning, and if the petition is approved, the rezoned property may be used for any of the uses permitted in the applicable general use or overlay district. If the petitioner elects to petition for conditional use district zoning, the petition must specify the actual use or uses, and all other development regulations authorized by State law, which are intended for the property specified in the petition. The intended use or uses and development regulations must be permitted in the corresponding general use district. If the petition is for conditional use district zoning, the City Council is to approve or disapprove the petition on the basis of the specific use or uses and development regulations requested. (c) Such regulations shall be made in accordance with a comprehensive plan and designed to lessen congestion in the streets; to secure safety from fire, panic and other dangers; to promote health and the general welfare; to provide adequate light and air; to prevent the overcrowding of land; to avoid undue concentration of population; to facilitate the adequate provision of transportation, water, sewerage, schools, parks and other public requirements. Such regulations shall be made with reasonable consideration, among other things, as to the character of the district and its peculiar suitability for particular uses, and with a view to conserving the value of buildings and encouraging the most appropriate use of land throughout such municipality. (d) The City Council shall by ordinance provide for the manner in which such regulations and restrictions and the boundaries of such districts shall be determined, established and enforced, and from time to time amended, supplemented or changed. No such regulation, restriction or boundary or any amendment, supplement or change therein shall become effective until the same shall have been submitted to the City Planning Commission for its recommendations and until such recommendations have been made to the City Council, and until after a public hearing in relation thereto shall be held by and before the City Council at which parties in interest and citizens shall have an opportunity to be heard. A notice of such public hearing shall be published once a week for two (2) successive calendar weeks, immediately preceding the date of such hearing, in a newspaper published in the City and qualified to publish legal advertising, said notice to be published the first time not less than fifteen days prior to the date fixed for said hearing. (e) Such regulations, restrictions and boundaries may from time to time be amended, supplemented, changed, modified or repealed. In case, however, of a protest against such change filed at or before the public hearing by the governing body of the municipality, required to be held by G.S. 160-175 (G.S. 160A-381385), and signed by the owners of twenty per cent or more of the area of the lots included in such proposed change, or of those immediately adjacent thereto, either in the rear, in the front, or on either side thereof extending one hundred feet therefrom, or of those directly opposite thereto across a street therefrom, extending one hundred feet from the street frontage of such opposite lots, such amendment shall not become effective except by a favorable vote of three-fourths of all the members of the City Council. The provisions of this section relative to public hearings and official notice shall apply equally to all changes or amendments. (f) The City Planning Commission shall have power to make recommendations concerning the boundaries of the various districts and appropriate regulations to be enforced therein. The City Planning Commission shall hold public hearings on proposed regulations, restrictions and boundaries, and proposed amendments, changes and modifications therein before submitting its final report thereon to the City Council, and the City Council shall not take action until it has received the final report of the City Planning Commission. (S.L. 1953, Ch. 194, §1; S.L. 1959, Ch. 812, §1; S.L. 1985, Ch. 49, §1)

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.40 SAMEBOARD OF ADJUSTMENT.

Sec. 6.40 - SAMEBOARD OF ADJUSTMENT. The City Council shall have the power to create and appoint the members of a board of adjustment for the City of Raleigh pursuant to the provisions of G.S. 160-178, as amended from time to time.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.41 CARE FUND FOR CEMETERIES.

Sec. 6.41 - CARE FUND FOR CEMETERIES. The City Council is authorized to create a fund to be known as the perpetual care fund for the cemetery or cemeteries, for the purpose of perpetually caring for and beautifying the cemetery or cemeteries, and said fund shall be kept by the City as is provided for bequests and gifts for cemetery purposes; and the City Council may make contracts with plat or space owners in the cemetery or cemeteries, obligating the City to keep up and maintain said lots or spaces, in perpetuity, upon payment of such sum or sums as may be fixed by the City Council; and the City Council is further authorized and empowered to accept gifts and bequests for such purposes, or upon such other trusts as the donors may prescribe; and the City Council is authorized to set aside for said perpetual care fund an amount not exceeding twenty-five (25) per cent of the proceeds of sale of cemetery lots. The principal of said funds so appropriated by the City Council for the caring for the cemetery or cemeteries shall be held by the City Council for caring for and beautifying the cemetery or cemeteries, and improving the same. The income from the said fund heretofore or hereafter made shall be used for such purpose of carrying out contracts with the individual plat or space owners for perpetual care of individual plats and spaces. Any gift heretofore or hereafter made to and received by the City, or any of its officers, shall be held and used as a sacred trust fund for the purpose and upon the conditions named in such gifts or bequests, and any and all such funds shall be kept or invested separate and shall not be used for any other purpose, or by the City in its other affairs. The City Treasurer shall keep a separate account of the cemetery funds, and a still further separate account of all special gifts or bequests made by persons for and in connection with the cemetery or cemeteries, and particular lots therein. The City Council shall have the power to make rules and regulations and adopt ordinances for the carrying out of the duties imposed by this section.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.42 TAXATION.

Sec. 6.42 - TAXATION. (a) It shall be the power of the City of Raleigh and the duty of the City Council of the City of Raleigh, annually, to levy taxes that will raise sufficient funds for the operation and management of the affairs of the City, and shall levy and collect the same in accordance with the provisions as now or may hereafter exist under the general laws of the State of North Carolina; and said City shall have the further power to levy and collect such further taxes as may be approved by a vote of the electorate, and in accordance with such authority with respect thereto as may now or hereafter be granted to said City; provided, all polls and property taxable within the City of Raleigh shall be listed and valued and all property assessed as provided for in the listing, valuation and assessing of the same under the laws which may now or hereafter be applicable to Wake County and/or the City of Raleigh, and said City may levy and collect such license and privilege taxes as may be provided by law and ordinances of the City Council. (b) The ad valorem taxes levied by the City of Raleigh shall constitute a lien upon personal and real property, as provided by the general laws of the State of North Carolina, as the same may now or hereafter be enacted, and the City of Raleigh shall enforce and perfect the same upon personal and real property under the provisions and procedure which may now or hereafter be outlined and provided for in the general laws of the State of North Carolina; provided, further, that in the event that the City of Raleigh shall become the purchaser and owner of any real property in the enforcement of such tax liens, said real property so acquired may be sold at public sale at any time thereafter by the City of Raleigh.

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.43 CONDEMNATION POWERS AND PROCEDURES.

Sec. 6.43 - CONDEMNATION POWERS AND PROCEDURES. (a) In addition to the foregoing powers and as alternative powers and methods of procedure for the exercise of the power of eminent domain, the City of Raleigh is hereby authorized to use, in the exercise of the power of eminent domain for any lawful purpose, the procedure and authority prescribed in Article 9 of Chapter 136 of the General Statutes of North Carolina, as now or hereafter amended; provided, that whenever therein the words "commission" or "highway commission" or "state highway commission" appear, they shall be deemed to include the "City of Raleigh," and whenever therein the words "director," "Chairman," or "Director of Highways" or "Director of the Highway Commission" or "Chairman of the Highway Commission" appear, they shall be deemed to include the "City Manager." (b) The exercise of eminent domain power under this section shall not apply to property of public utilities. (S.L. 1955, Ch. 145, §1; S.L. 1973, Ch. 319, §1(u))

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.44 STREETS, SIDEWALKS, DRIVEWAYS, ETC.

Sec. 6.44 - STREETS, SIDEWALKS, DRIVEWAYS, ETC. (a) Petition Unnecessary. In addition as now or may hereafter be granted to the City for making street or sidewalk improvements, the City Council is hereby authorized to order such improvements and to assess the total cost thereof against abutting properties without the necessity of a petition of property owners. (b) Sidewalk Repairs. The Council is further authorized to order or to make sidewalk repairs and driveway repairs across sidewalks according to standards and specifications of the City, and to assess the total cost thereof against abutting properties without the necessity of a petition of property owners. (c) Sidewalk on One Side of Street. If a sidewalk is constructed on only one side of the street, the cost thereof may be assessed against the property abutting on both sides of the street, unless there already exists a sidewalk on the other side of the street, the total cost of which was assessed against the abutting property. (d) Notice to Property Owners. Before the City Council shall order improvements to be made pursuant to subsection (a) or (b) of this section it shall hold a public hearing thereon, and shall give the owners of the property to be assessed, written notice of such public hearing and the proposed action. (e) Assessment Procedure and Effect. In ordering street or sidewalk improvements or sidewalk repairs and assessing the cost thereof, the Council shall follow the procedures provided by the General Statutes for street and sidewalk improvements, except those provisions relating to the petition of property owners and the sufficiency thereof. The effect of levying assessments pursuant to this act shall for all purposes be the same as if they were levied under authority of the General Statutes. (f) Duty of Maintenance for Driveways and Sidewalks. It is the duty of every property owner to maintain the sidewalks and driveways abutting his property in good repair and safe condition. (g) Payment of Assessments. Any special assessment of the City for any purpose amounting to less than one hundred dollars ($100.00) shall be paid in cash within ninety (90) days of confirmation rather than in annual installments, and shall bear interest as taxes. (h) Assessment Where Street Is City Limit Line. In those instances where the City limit line runs along a street or road the City Council may order the improvements and assess the cost thereof against property abutting on both sides of the street as if all the abutting property were within the corporate limits. Regardless of whether the improvement is ordered pursuant to this section or other general law. (i) Assessments Against Cemeteries. Assessments shall not be made against property owned or held for the sole purpose of burial of the dead unless the City of Raleigh assumes and pays for such assessment. (j) Supplementary Authorization. The procedure herein outlined shall be supplementary in addition to all other procedure authorized by law relating to improvements or special assessments. (S.L. 1953, Ch. 96, §1; S.L. 1953, Ch. 747, §1; S.L. 1955, Ch. 672, §1; S.L. 1955, Ch. 863, §1; S.L. 1957, Ch. 489, §1; S.L. 1963, Ch. 15, §1; S.L. 1965, Ch. 221; S.L. 1965, Ch. 434, §1; S.L. 1965, Ch. 612, §1; S.L. 1971, Ch. 1209, §1(d); S.L. 1975, Ch. 561, §10; S.L. 1969, Ch. 974, §1)

Raleigh City Charter, art. VI, § 6.45 BUDGET; APPROPRIATIONS; BONDS AND NOTES; AND OTHER FINANCIAL POWERS AND FUNCTIONS.

Sec. 6.45 - BUDGET; APPROPRIATIONS; BONDS AND NOTES; AND OTHER FINANCIAL POWERS AND FUNCTIONS. (a) The City Council of the City of Raleigh, the City Manager, the City Accountant, the City Clerk and the City Treasurer, are respectively vested with all of the powers and authority, and are respectively charged with the functions and duties, and are subject to the restrictions and limitations of the following general laws of the State of North Carolina, as amended: (b) The Municipal Finance Act, the Fiscal Control Act, the Local Government Act, the Revenue Bond Act, the Municipal Capital Reserve Act, and all other general laws of the State applicable to the financial powers, duties and functions of municipalities and municipal financial and accounting officers. (c) It shall be the ultimate responsibility of the City Manager to prepare and submit to the City Council the budget estimate as required by the Fiscal Control Act.

Source: City of Raleigh, North Carolina, City Code and City Charter (Municode Library, library.municode.com)URL: https://library.municode.com/nc/raleigh/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=DIVICH_ARTVIMUFUFetched: 11/1/2026