Powers and Duties of Commissioners. 7. The commissioners appointed under the Act of 1894 shall be called the library commissioners for the city, borough, town, or township for which they are appointed, and shall have all the powers and perform all the duties conferred and imposed on the urban authority by the Public Libraries Act, except the power of borrowing money and of levying rates. Expenses of Commissioners. 8. The amount required by the commissioners to defray the expenses incurred by them in carrying the Public Libraries Acts into execution shall be paid to the commissioners or their treasurer, by the treasurer of the urban authority from time to time on the order of the commissioners (which may be in the Form F. in the schedule hereunto annexed) out of moneys in his hands, or next received by him and placed to the credit of the urban authority, but such amount shall not exceed in any one year the sum which would be produced by the rate leviable for the purposes of the Public Libraries Acts in the urban district during such year, and which shall be notified to the urban authority and to their treasurer by the Local Government. Board. Tenure of Office of Commissioners. 9. The commissioners shall hold office for such time as the Local Government Board shall by order determine, but not exceeding three years from the date of their appointment. Accounts of Commissioners. 10. The accounts of the receipts and expenditure under the Public Libraries Acts of the commissioners and of their officers shall be made up in such form and to such day or days in every year as may be approved by the Local Government Board in each case and shall be audited in like manner, and with the like power to the officer auditing the same, and with the like incidents and consequences, as the accounts of receipts and expenditure of a sanitary authority under the Public Health (Ireland) Act, 1878.* First Meeting of Commissioners. 11. The first meeting of the commissioners shall be held at the time and place prescribed by the order of the Local Government Board appointing them. * 41 & 42 Vict. c. 52. Chairman of Commissioners. 12. At the first meeting of the commissioners they shall by the majority of the votes of the commissioners present, elect one of their body to be their chairman during their term of office; and in case the chairman die, or resign, or otherwise become disqualified to act as such, the commissioners present at the meeting next after such vacancy shall have been notified to them shall choose some other of their body to fill such vacancy, and the chairman so elected shall continue in office so long as the person in whose place he was elected would have been entitled to continue chairman; and if at any meeting of the commissioners the chairman be not present, one of the commissioners present shall be elected chairman of such meeting by the majority of the votes of the commissioners present at such meeting. Voting at Meetings of Commissioners. 13. At all meetings of the commissioners the questions there considered shall be decided by the votes of the majority present, but in no case shall the chairman or commissioner acting as chairman at such meeting have, in addition to his own vote as commissioner, a second or casting vote; provided that if at any such meeting there be an equality of votes in the election of the chairman, it shall be decided by lot which of the commissioners having an equal number of votes shall be chairman. Monthly and Special Meetings of Commissioners. 14. The commissioners shall meet at least once in every month, and at such other times as they think fit, at some convenient place, on such day and hour in each month as the commissioners shall from time to time appoint, and when any such appointment is made notice thereof shall be given to each of the commissioners. Any one commissioner may summon special meeting by causing three clear days' notice in writing to be given to each commissioner, specifying therein the purpose for which the meeting is called, and of the time and place of such meeting. Business shall not be transacted at any meeting of the commissioners unless at least three of them are present. Adjournment of Meetings of Commissioners. a 15. The commissioners present at such first meeting, or at any monthly meeting, or at any adjourned meeting, may, from time to time, adjourn such meeting to the same or any other place within the limits of the urban district or adjacent thereto, and if at any meeting of the commissioners there be not three commissioners present within one half hour after the time appointed for such meeting the commissioner or commissioners present, or their clerk, if no commissioner be present, may adjourn such meeting to another day at the same or any other place within the limits of the urban district or adjacent thereto. Notices of Monthly Meetings of Commissioners. 16. At least seven clear days' notice shall be given to each commissioner of the business to be transacted at each monthly meeting, and of the time and place of such meeting. All notices of any meeting of the commissioners shall be in writing or in print, or partly in writing and partly in print, and shall be by the clerk delivered or sent, by the post or otherwise, to the usual place of abode or place of business of each of the commissioners; and no business shall be transacted at any meeting except such as is stated in the notice thereof. Revocation or Alteration of Resolutions of the Commissioners. 17. No resolution at any meeting of the commissioners shall be revoked or altered at any subsequent meeting unless notice of the intention to propose such revocation or alteration be given by the clerk to each of the commissioners seven clear days at least before holding the meeting. Expenses of Meetings of the Commissioners. 18. At all meetings of the commissioners they shall defray their own expenses except what may be incurred for the use of the room in which the meeting is held, and for books, stationery, fire and light. Vacancies not to invalidate Proceedings of Commissioners. 19. No proceeding of the commissioners or of any committee shall be invalidated or be illegal in consequence only of there being a vacancy in the number of commissioners at the time of such proceeding. Informalities in Appointment of Commissioners not to 20. All proceedings of the commissioners, notwithstanding it be afterwards discovered that there was some defect in the appointment of any such commissioners, or that they or any of them were disqualified, shall be as valid as if every such person had been duly appointed, and was qualified to be a missioner. Offices of Commissioners. com 21. The commissioners may from time to time provide and maintain fit and convenient public offices, together with all necessary and proper furniture for the same, for holding the meetings and transacting the business of the commissioners, and for the use of their officers; and for such purpose the commissioners may purchase or hire any lands or buildings which the commissioners think necessary. Attendance of Clerk at Office of Commissioners. 22. The commissioners shall require their clerk, or some person duly authorised by them in that behalf, to attend at their office at such times as they may appoint, for the purpose of receiving notices and transacting the business of the commissioners. Notice of the days and hours of attendance shall be affixed to the outer door of such office. Record of Proceedings of Commissioners. 23. All orders and proceedings of the commissioners and the names of the commissioners who shall be present at each meeting shall be entered in books to be kept for that purpose, which shall be kept by the clerk under the superintendence of the commissioners, and shall be signed by the chairman of the meeting at which such orders were made and proceedings took place; and all such orders and proceedings so entered and purporting to be so signed shall, unless the contrary is proved, be deemed original orders and proceedings, and such books may be produced and read as evidence of all such orders and proceedings upon any judicial proceedings. Officers of Commissioners. 24. The commissioners may from time to time appoint and employ a treasurer and a clerk, and any such other officer as they shall think necessary and proper for the purpose of carrying these rules into effect, and may from time to time remove any of such officers, and appoint others in the room of such as shall be so removed or as may die, resign, or discontinue their offices; and the commissioners may pay such salaries and allows ances to the said officers, respectively, as the commissioners shall think reasonable. Security of Officers. 25. Before any person entrusted by the commissioners with the custody or control of moneys by virtue of his office shall enter upon such office, the commissioners shall take sufficient security from him for the faithful execution thereof. The same person shall not be appointed to the office both of clerk and treasurer, and the commissioners shall in all cases appoint some bank or banking company to act as their treasurer, and it shall not be necessary for them to require from such bank or banking company any security for the due execution of such office. Drafts drawn by Commissioners. 26. The drafts to be drawn on the treasurer on account of the said commissioners shall be drawn at a meeting of the commissioners, and there signed by the chairman and two other commissioners, and no drafts on the said account shall be drawn for any private purpose on any pretence whatever, nor for any other purpose than the payments which shall from time to time be authorised by the commissioners for the purposes of the Public Libraries Acts, as the same shall be certified to the treasurer by the clerk of the commissioners who shall countersign all such drafts. Contracts of Commissioners. 27. All contracts to be entered into for the purposes of the Public Libraries Acts shall be made and entered into by the commissioners in the following manner : Any contract, which if made between private persons would be by law required to be in writing and under seal, may be made under the hands and seals of the commissioners, or any two of them, acting by the direction and on behalf of the commissioners, and in the same manner may vary or discharge the same: Any contract which if made between private persons would be by law required to be in writing, and signed by the parties to be charged therewith, the commissioners may make in writing, signed by the commissioners or any two of their number, acting by the direction and on behalf of the commissioners, and in the same manner may vary or discharge the same: Any contract, which if made by private persons would by law be valid, although made by parol only and not reduced into writing, the commissioners or any two of them, acting by the direction and on behalf of the commissioners, may make by parol only, without writing, and in the same manner may vary or discharge the same. Tenders to be required by Commissioners in case of Contracts. 28. The commissioners shall require tenders to be made in some sealed paper for the supply of all lighting, fuel, furniture, or other goods, materials, and articles the cost of which may be reasonably estimated to exceed ten pounds. Any work or repairs to be executed in any premises under their control or any fittings to be put up therein which shall respectively be reasonably estimated to exceed the cost of twenty pounds shall be contracted for by the commissioners in the manner herein prescribed. |