This Charter shall become effective on the thirtieth day following
its adoption, except as otherwise specifically provided in the Transitional
Provisions (Article X) of this Charter.
The Public Local Laws of Harford County and all rules, regulations,
resolutions, and ordinances of the County Commissioners in force at
the time of the effective date of this Charter are hereby repealed
to the extent that they are inconsistent with the provisions of this
Charter, but no further; and to the extent that they are not hereby
repealed because of such inconsistency, all such public local laws,
rules, regulations, resolutions, and ordinances shall continue in
full force and effect until repealed or amended.
All appointed officers and employees of the County government
holding office at the effective date of this Charter, except the officers
holding the offices specifically abolished by this Charter, shall
continue to be employed at their existing compensation subject to
the provisions of this Charter.
All references in the Constitution and the laws of this state
to the County Commissioners shall, at such time as the elected members
of the first Council and the first County Executive take office, be
construed to refer to the Council and to the County Executive whenever
such construction would be reasonable. The Council shall succeed to
all legislative powers vested heretofore in the County Commissioners
and the County Executive shall succeed to all executive and administrative
powers heretofore vested in the County Commissioners by the Constitution
and laws of this state except as provided in this Charter.
[Amended by Bill Nos. 80-60; 12-29]
Amendments to this Charter may be proposed by legislative act
of the Council. Amendments may also be proposed by petition filed
with the President of the Council and signed by not less than twenty
percent of the registered voters of the County, or 10,000 of such
registered voters in case twenty percent of the number of registered
voters is greater than 10,000. When so proposed, whether by legislative
act of the Council or by petition, the question shall be submitted
to the voters of the County at the next general or Congressional election
occurring after the passage of said act or the filing of said petition.
If at said election the majority of votes cast on the question shall
be in favor of the proposed amendment, the amendment shall stand adopted
from and after the thirtieth calendar day following said election.
Any amendments to this Charter proposed in the manner aforesaid, shall
be published by the President of the Council in at least one newspaper
widely circulated in the County for five successive weeks prior to
the election at which the question shall be considered by the voters
of the County.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Former Art. X, Transitional Provisions, which
immediately followed this section, was deleted by Bill No. 82-45.
