AN ACT CONSOLIDATING AND REVISING THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS ACTS.

(54 Vic., 1891.)
(CONTINUED.)

PUBLIC SCHOOL BOARDS IN CITIES, TOWNS AND INCORPORATED VILLAGES.

97. Every board of public school trustees in cities, towns and incorporated villages, elected as provided by this Act shall be a corporation by the name of "The Public School Board" (prefixing to words "Public School Board" the name of the city, town or incorporated village for which such trustees are elected), and shall have and possess all the powers usually possessed by corporations, so far as the same are necessary for carrying out the purposes of this Act.

98. Any ratepayer resident in the municipality of the full age of twenty-one years shall be eligible to be elected a public school trustee, and every trustee shall continue in office until his successor has been elected and the new board organized. R. S. O. c. 225, ss. 97, 106.

NOTE. A candidate for the office of school trustee does

not require to be an elector in order to qualify.

99. (1) In case any unincorporated village becomes incorporated, or in case a village, or town changes its corporate status, the trustees having jurisdiction over the school property situated within such village, or town, prior to its incorporation or prior to the change of its corporate status, shall exercise all the powers conferred by this Act upon the trustees of incorporated villages, towns or cities, until a new election of trustees is held, and such trustees shall call a meeting of the ratepayers of such incorporated

village, town or city within one month after the date of such incorporation for the election of a new public school board. (Amended.)

(2) In calling the meeting of the ratepayers of such newly incorporated village, town or city, the provisions of section 102 of this Act shall be complied with so far as the same are applicable. Where the trustees of the municipality whose corporate status was changed were elected by ballot, the provisions of section 103 of this Act shall apply to the election of trustees in such newly incorporated town or city. R. S. O. c. 225, s. 94.

NOTE. When the area embraced in the newly incorporated village, town or city formed parts of two or more school sections, provision should be made in the Act of incorporation for holding the first election of a public school board.

100.-(1) For every ward into which any city, town or incorporated village is divided there shall be two school trustees, each of whom, after the first election of trustees, shall continue in office for two years, and until his successor has been elected and the new board organized.

(2) One of the trustees in each ward (to be determined by lot at the first meeting of trustees after their election, which determination shall be entered upon the minutes) shall retire from office at the time appointed for the next annual school meeting, and the other shall continue in office one year longer and then retire, after which one trustee shall be elected annually for each ward.

(3) When any town or incorporated village is annexed to a city, the town or incorporated village so annexed shall, for all the purposes of this Act, be deemed to be part of the city. R. S. O. c. 235, s. 95, 97.

NOTE." The time appointed for the next annual school meeting" would be two years after the first election, and one trustee for each ward would hold office for three years.

101.-(1) In every incorporated village not divided into wards there shall be six trustees, each of whom, after the first election for trustees, shall continue in office for two years and until his successor has been elected and the new board organized.

(2) Three of the trustees (to be determined by lot at the first meeting of trustees after their election, which determination shall be entered upon the minutes) shall retire from office at the time appointed for the next annual school election, and the other three shall continue in office one year longer and then retire; after which three trustees shall be elected annually. R. S. O. c. 225, s. 96.

NOTE.-See note to section 100.

102.—The annual and other elections of public school trustees, unless otherwise ordered, as provided by section 103 of this Act, shall be subject to the following provisions :

1. A meeting of the ratepayers for the nomination of candidates for the office of public school trustee, shall take place at noon on the last Wednesday in the month of December, annually, or if a holiday on the day following, at such place as shall from time to time be fixed by resolution of the public school board, and in municipalities divided into wards, in each ward thereof, if the board in its discretion thinks fit.

2. The public school board shall by resolution before the second Wednesday in December each year name the returning officer or officers to preside at the meeting or meetings for the nomination of candidates, and also for holding the election in case of a poll, and in case of the absence of such officer the chairman chosen by the meeting shall preside, and the public school board shall give at least six days' notice of such meeting. (Amended.)

3. If at such meeting only the necessary number of candidates to fill the vacant offices are proposed and seconded, the returning officer or person presiding, after the lapse of one hour, shall declare such candidates duly elected, and shall so notify the secretary of the public school board; but if two or more candidates are proposed for any one office and a poll in respect of any such office is demanded by any candidate or elector, the returning officer or chairman shall adjourn the proceedings for filling such office until the first Wednesday of the month of January then next, or if a holiday, then to the day following, when a poll or polls shall be opened at such place or places, and in each ward, where such exist, as shall be determined by resolution of the trustees.

4. The poll or polls shall be opened at the hour of ten of the clock in the forenoon, and shall continue open until

five o'clock in the afternoon, and no longer, and any poll may close at any time after eleven o'clock in the forenoon, when a full hour has elapsed without any vote having being polled.

5. In cities, towns, incorporated villages, and in townships where public school boards exist, the clerk of the municipality shall furnish to the public school board, within three days after request in writing, The Voters' List,' of such municipality, annexing thereto a list of the names of persons being supporters of separate schools, and also a list of the names, alphabetically arranged, of all ratepayers not being already upon The Voters' List.' R. S. O. c. 225, s. 99.

6. The public school board shall provide each polling place with the list aforesaid, and also a poll book; and, at every election at which a poll is demanded, the returning officer or person presiding, or his sworn poll clerk, shall enter in such book in separate columns the names of the candidates proposed and seconded at the nomination, and shall, opposite to such columns, write the names of the ratepayers offering to vote at the election, and shall, in each column on which is entered the name of a candidate voted for by a voter set the figure 1' opposite the voter's name, with the residence of the voter. R. S. O. c. 225,

s. 101.

7. The returning officer or person presiding shall, on the day after the close of the election, return the poll book to the secretary or secretary-treasurer of the public school board, with his solemn declaration thereto annexed, that the poll-book has been correctly kept and contains a true record of the votes given at the polling place for which he was returning officer. R. S. O. c. 225, s. 98 (6).

8. The secretary-treasurer shall add up the number of votes for each candidate for any office, as appears from the poll book so returned, and shall declare elected, the candidate or candidates having the highest number of votes, and shall forthwith notify the candidates in writing of the number of votes polled for each of them respectively in said election. R. S. O. c. 225, s. 98 (7).

9. In case two or more candidates have an equal number of votes, the member of the board present at the first meeting thereof after such election and before the organization of the board, who is assessed highest as a ratepayer

on the last revised assessment roll, shall give a vote for one or more such candidates, so as to decide the election. R. S. O. c. 225, s. 98 (8).

NOTE.-Sub-section 5 provides for cases where ratepayers may have been omitted from the voters' list of the municipality for want of sufficient qualification as electors of the municipality or in consequence of their names appearing on the defaulters' list.

ELECTION BY BALLOT.

103.-(1) The board of public school trustees of any city, town, incorporated village or township may, by resolution, of which notice shall be given to the clerk of the municipality on or before the first day of October in any year, require the election of school trustees for such city, town, incorporated village, or township, to be held by ballot on the same day as municipal councillors, or aldermen are elected, as the case may be. In like manner any board of trustees may discontinue the use of the ballot in trustee elections on giving notice to the clerk of the municipality to that effect at the time herein before mentioned, and thereafter elections for the purposes of this Act shall be conducted as provided in section 102.

(2) Where any board of trustees require elections to be held by ballot, and elections are so held, no change shall be made in the mode of conducting such election for a period of three years, and should the mode of conducting the elections by ballot be discontinued at any time, then the provisions of section 102 shall apply for a period of three years at least after such discontinuance.

(3) In every case in which notice is given as aforesaid requiring the election of public school trustees to be held by ballot, such election shall thereafter be held at the same time and place, and by the same returning officer or officers, and conducted in the same manner as the municipal nominations and elections of aldermen or councillors are conducted, and the provisions of The Municipal Act respecting the time for opening and closing the poll, the mode of voting, corrupt or improper practices, vacancies, and declarations of office shall mutatis mutandis apply to the election of public school trustees.