33.1-70.01 - Annual meeting with county officers; six-year plan for secondary highways; certain reimbursements required.
§ 33.1-70.01. Annual meeting with county officers; six-year plan forsecondary highways; certain reimbursements required.
The governing body of each county in the secondary system may, jointly withthe representatives of the Department of Transportation as designated by theCommonwealth Transportation Commissioner, prepare a six-year plan for theimprovements to the secondary highway system in that county. Each suchsix-year plan shall be based upon the best estimate of funds to be availableto the county for expenditure in the six-year period on the secondary highwaysystem. Each such plan shall list the proposed improvements, together with anestimated cost of each project so listed. Following the preparation of theplan, the board of supervisors or other governing body shall conduct a publichearing after publishing notice in a newspaper published in or having generalcirculation in the county once a week for two successive weeks, and postingnotice of the proposed hearing at the front door of the courthouse of suchcounty 10 days before such meeting. At the public hearings, which shall beconducted jointly by the board of supervisors and the representative of theDepartment of Transportation, the entire six-year plan shall be discussedwith the citizens of the county and their views considered. Following suchdiscussion, the governing body, together with the representative of theDepartment of Transportation, shall finalize and officially adopt thesix-year plan which shall then be considered the official plan of the county.
At least once in each calendar year representatives of the Department ofTransportation in charge of the secondary system of highways in each county,or some representative of the Department designated by the CommonwealthTransportation Commissioner, shall meet with the governing body of eachcounty in a regular or special meeting of such governing body for the purposeof preparing a budget for the expenditure of improvement funds for the nextfiscal year. The representative of the Department of Transportation shallfurnish the governing body with an updated estimate of funds and the boardand the representative of the Department of Transportation shall jointlyprepare the list of projects to be carried out in that fiscal year taken fromthe six-year plan by order of priority, and following generally the policiesof the Commonwealth Transportation Board in regard to the statewide secondaryhighway system improvements. Such list of priorities shall then be presentedat a public hearing duly advertised in accordance with the procedurehereinbefore outlined, and comments of citizens shall be obtained andconsidered. Following this public hearing, the board, with the concurrence ofthe representative of the Department of Transportation, shall adopt, asofficial, a priority program for the ensuing year, and the Department ofTransportation shall include such listed projects in its secondary highwaysbudget for the county for that year.
At least once every two years, following the adoption of the originalsix-year plan, the governing body of each county, together with therepresentative of the Department of Transportation, shall update the six-yearplan of such county by adding to it and extending it as necessary so as tomaintain it as a plan encompassing six years. Whenever additional funds forsecondary highway purposes become available, the governing body may request arevision in such six-year plan in order that such plan be amended to providefor the expenditure of such additional funds. Such additions and extensionsto each six-year plan shall be prepared in the same manner and following thesame procedures as outlined herein for its initial preparation. Where thegoverning body and the representative of the Department of Transportationfail to agree upon a priority program, the governing body may appeal to theCommonwealth Transportation Commissioner. The Commissioner shall consider allproposed priorities and render a decision establishing a priority programbased upon a consideration by the Commissioner of the welfare and safety ofcounty citizens. Such decision shall be binding.
Nothing in this section shall preclude a governing body, with the concurrenceof the representative of the Department of Transportation, from combining thepublic hearing required for revision of a six-year plan with the publichearing required for review of the list of priorities, provided that noticeof such combined hearing is published in accordance with procedures providedin this section.
All such six-year plans shall consider all existing highways in the secondaryhighway system, including those in the towns located in the county that aremaintained as a part of the state secondary highway system, and shall be madea public document.
If any county cancels any highway construction or improvement projectincluded in its six-year plan after the Commonwealth Transportation Board hasadopted the location and design for the project, such county shall reimbursethe Board the net amount of all funds expended by the Board for planning,engineering, right-of-way acquisition, demolition, relocation, andconstruction between the date on which project development was initiated andthe date of cancellation. To the extent that funds from secondary roadallocations pursuant to § 33.1-23.4 have been expended to pay for a highwayconstruction or improvement project, all revenues generated from areimbursement by the county shall be deposited into that same county'ssecondary allocation. The board may waive all or any portion of suchreimbursement at its discretion.
The provisions of this section shall not apply in instances where less than100 percent of the right-of-way is available for donation for unpaved roadimprovements.
For purposes of this section, "cancellation" means complete elimination ofa highway construction or improvement project from the six-year plan.
(Code 1950, § 33.1-70; 1970, c. 322; 1977, c. 578; 1979, c. 64; 1981, c. 240;1993, c. 802; 2001, cc. 105, 130; 2005, c. 645.)