The ordinances embraced in this and the following chapters and sections shall constitute and be designated the "Code of Ordinances, City of North Richland Hills, Texas," and may also be cited as the North Richland Hills Code.
(Code 1975, § 1-1)
In the construction of this Code, and of all ordinances and resolutions passed by the city council, the following definitions and rules shall be observed, unless such construction would be inconsistent with the manifest intent of the city council:
The term "Charter" shall mean the Charter of the City of North Richland Hills as printed in Part I of this publication.
The term "city" shall mean the City of North Richland Hills, in the County of Tarrant and State of Texas.
Whenever the term "city council," is used, it shall mean the city council of the City of North Richland Hills, Texas.
The word "Code" shall mean the Code of Ordinances, City of North Richland Hills, Texas, as designated in section 1-1.
Whenever a notice is required to be given or an act to be done a certain length of time before any proceeding shall be had, the day on which such notice is given or such act is done shall not be counted in computing the time, but the date on which such proceeding is to be had shall be counted.
The term "county," "the county" or "this county" shall mean Tarrant County, Texas.
A word importing only the masculine gender shall extend and be applied to females and to firms, partnerships and corporations as well as to males.
The term "highway" shall include any street, alley, highway, avenue or public place or square, bridge, viaduct, tunnel, underpass, overpass and causeway in the city, dedicated or devoted to public use.
Words purporting to give authority to three or more officers or other persons shall be construed as giving such authority to a majority of such officers or other persons, unless it is otherwise declared.
The word "month" shall mean a calendar month.
Any word importing the singular number shall include the plural and any word importing the plural number shall include the singular.
The word "oath" shall be construed to include an affirmation in all cases in which, by law, an affirmation may be substituted for an oath, and in such cases the words "swear" and "sworn" shall be equivalent to the words "affirm" and "affirmed."
Whenever reference is made to any officer, board or commission, the same shall be construed as if followed by the words "of the City of North Richland Hills."
"Or" may be read "and," and "and" may be read "or," if the sense requires it.
The word "owner," applied to a building or land, shall include any part owner, joint owner, tenant in common, tenant in partnership, joint tenant, or tenant by the entirety, of the whole or of a part of such building or land.
The word "person" shall extend and be applied to associations, corporations, firms, partnerships and bodies politic and corporate as well as to individuals.
The word "roadway" shall mean that portion of a street improved, designed or ordinarily used for vehicular traffic.
The word "sidewalk" shall mean any portion of the street between the curb, or the lateral line of the roadway, and the adjacent property line, intended for the use of pedestrians.
The word "signature" or "subscription" shall include a mark when a person cannot write.
The term "the state" or "this state" shall be construed to mean the State of Texas.
The term "street" shall include any highway, alley, street, avenue or public place or square, bridge, viaduct, underpass, overpass, tunnel or causeway in the city, dedicated or devoted to public use.
Words used in the past or present tense include the future as well as the past and present.
The abbreviation "Vernon's Ann. Civ. St." shall mean the latest edition or supplement to Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes.
The abbreviation "V.T.C.A." shall mean and refer to the latest edition or supplement of Vernon's Texas Code Annotated.
The term "written" or "in writing" shall be construed to include any representation of words, letters or figures, whether by printing or otherwise.
The word "year" shall mean a calendar year.
(Code 1975, § 1-2)
The catchlines of the several sections of this Code printed in boldface type are intended as mere catchwords to indicate the contents of the sections and shall not be deemed or taken to be titles of such sections, nor as any part of the sections, nor, unless expressly so provided, shall they be so deemed when any of such sections, including the catchlines, are amended or reenacted.
(Code 1975, § 1-3)
The history or source notes appearing in parentheses after sections in this Code have no legal effect but are merely intended to indicate the legislative history of that section.
All references to chapters or sections are to the chapters or sections of this Code unless otherwise specified.
Editor's notes, charter references, cross references and state law references that appear in this Code after sections or subsections are provided for the convenience of the user of the Code and have no legal effect.
The provisions of this Code, insofar as they are substantially the same legislation previously adopted by the city relating to the same subject matter, shall be construed as restatements and continuations thereof and not as new enactments.
(a)
The repeal of an ordinance shall not revive any ordinances in force before or at the time the ordinance repealed took effect.
(b)
The repeal of an ordinance shall not affect any punishment or penalty incurred before the repeal took effect, nor any suit, prosecution or proceeding pending at the time of the repeal for an offense committed or cause of action arising under the ordinance repealed.
(a)
All ordinances passed subsequent to this Code which amend, repeal or in any way affect this Code may be numbered in accordance with the numbering system of this Code and printed for inclusion herein. When subsequent ordinances repeal any chapter, section or subsection, or any portion thereof, such repealed portions may be excluded from the Code by omission from reprinted pages. The subsequent ordinances as numbered and printed, or omitted in the case of repeal, shall be prima facie evidence of such subsequent ordinances until such time as this Code and subsequent ordinances, numbered or omitted, are readopted as a new code by the city council.
(b)
Amendments to any of the provisions of this Code shall be made by amending such provisions by specific reference to the section number of this Code in the following language: "That section _____ of the Code of Ordinances, City of North Richland Hills, Texas, is hereby amended to read as follows: …." The new provisions shall then be set out in full as desired.
(c)
When a new section is to be added, the following language shall be used: "That the Code of Ordinances, City of North Richland Hills, Texas, is hereby amended by adding a section, to be numbered _____, which section reads as follows: …." The new section shall then be set out in full as desired.
(d)
All provisions desired to be repealed should be repealed specially by section, subdivision, division, article or chapter number, as appropriate, or by setting out the repealed provisions in full in the repealing ordinance.
(Code 1975, § 1-4)
(a)
Supplements to this Code shall be prepared and printed whenever authorized or directed by the city manager. A supplement to the Code shall include all substantive permanent and general parts of ordinances passed by the city council or adopted by initiative and referendum during the period covered by the supplement and all changes made thereby in the Code. A supplement may also include all charter amendments. The pages of the supplement shall be so numbered that they will fit properly into the Code and will, where necessary, replace pages that have become obsolete or partially obsolete. The new pages shall be so prepared that when they have been inserted, the Code will be current through the date of the adoption of the latest ordinance included in the supplement.
(b)
In preparing a supplement to this Code, all portions of the Code that have been repealed shall be excluded from the Code by the omission from reprinted pages.
(c)
When preparing a supplement to this Code, the person authorized to prepare the supplement may make formal, nonsubstantive changes in ordinances and parts of ordinances included in the supplement as necessary to embody them into a unified code. For example, the person may:
(1)
Arrange the material into appropriate organizational units.
(2)
Provide appropriate catchlines, headings and titles for chapters, articles, divisions, subdivisions and sections to be included in the Code and make changes in any catchlines, headings and titles already in the Code.
(3)
Assign appropriate numbers to chapters, articles, divisions, subdivisions and sections to be added to the Code.
(4)
Where necessary to accommodate new material, change existing numbers assigned to chapters, articles, divisions, subdivisions or sections.
(5)
Change the words "this ordinance" or similar words to "this chapter," "this article," "this division," "this subdivision," "this section," or to "sections _____ through _____." The inserted section numbers will indicate the sections of the Code which embody the substantive sections of the ordinance incorporated in the Code.
(6)
Make other nonsubstantive changes necessary to preserve the original meaning of the ordinance sections inserted in the Code. In no case shall the codifier make any change in the meaning or effect of ordinance provisions included in the supplement or already embodied in the Code.
(a)
Nothing in this Code or the ordinance adopting this Code shall be construed to repeal or otherwise affect the validity of any of the following:
(1)
Any ordinance promising or guaranteeing the payment of money for the city, or authorizing the issuance of any bonds of the city or any evidence of the city's indebtedness;
(2)
Any appropriation ordinance or ordinance providing for the levy of taxes or for an annual budget;
(3)
Any ordinance levying fees or establishing rates, charges or deposits;
(4)
Any ordinance regarding personnel policies, procedures and regulations or employee benefits or prescribing salaries for city officers and employees;
(5)
Any ordinance calling an election;
(6)
Any administrative ordinance;
(7)
Any ordinance regarding subdivisions;
(8)
Any ordinance regarding zoning regulations, special use permits or rezonings;
(9)
Any ordinance authorizing street maintenance agreements;
(10)
Any ordinance relating to the acquisition of lands by the city by condemnation proceedings;
(11)
Any ordinance adopting or amending the comprehensive plan;
(12)
Any ordinance adopted by reference by any section of this Code and not included herein;
(13)
Any temporary or special ordinance still in effect;
(14)
Any ordinance annexing territory to the city or discontinuing territory as a part of the city;
(15)
Any ordinance granting any franchise, permit or other right;
(16)
Any ordinance approving, prescribing or otherwise relating to rates to be charged by utility companies;
(17)
Any ordinance approving, authorizing or otherwise relating to any contract or agreement;
(18)
Any ordinance accepting, dedicating, vacating or otherwise relating to any street, right-of-way or easement;
(19)
Any ordinance prescribing through streets, parking and traffic regulations, speed limits, one-way traffic, limitations on load of vehicles or loading zones;
(20)
Any ordinance providing for local improvements and assessments for such improvements.
(b)
All such ordinances are hereby recognized as continuing in full force and effect to the same extent as if set out at length herein.
(Code 1975, § 1-5)
Nothing in this Code or the ordinance adopting this Code shall affect any offense or act committed or done or any penalty or forfeiture incurred or any contract or right established or accruing before the effective date of this Code.
(Code 1975, § 1-6)
Whenever in this Code, or in any ordinance, rule or police regulation of the city, an act is prohibited or is made or declared to be unlawful or an offense or a misdemeanor, or wherever in the Code the doing of any act is required or the failure to perform such act is declared unlawful, the violation of such provision of the Code or any such ordinance, rule or police regulation shall be punished by a fine not exceeding $500.00; provided, however, that a penalty for the violation of a rule, ordinance or police regulation that governs fire safety, zoning, or public health and sanitation, including dumping of refuse, shall be a fine not exceeding $2,000.00.
(Code 1975, § 1-7)
It is hereby declared to be the intention of the city council that the sections, paragraphs, sentences, clauses and phrases of this Code are severable; and if any phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section of this Code shall be declared unconstitutional or otherwise invalid by the valid judgment or decree of any court of competent jurisdiction, such unconstitutionality or invalidity shall not affect any of the remaining phrases, clauses, sentences, paragraphs and sections of this Code, since the same would have been enacted by the city council without the incorporation in this Code of any such unconstitutional or invalid phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section.
(Code 1975, § 1-8)