A. The governing body of any county, city or town may provide for the preparation and printing of an explanation for each referendum question to be submitted to the voters of the county, city or town to be distributed at the polling places on the day of the referendum election. The governing body may have the explanation published by paid advertisement in a newspaper with general circulation in the county, city or town one or more times preceding the referendum.
The explanation shall contain the ballot question and a statement of not more than 500 words on the proposed question. The explanation shall be presented in plain English, shall be limited to a neutral explanation, and shall not present arguments by either proponents or opponents of the proposal. The attorney for the county, city or town or, if there is no county, city or town attorney, the attorney for the Commonwealth shall prepare the explanation. "Plain English" means written in nontechnical, readily understandable language using words of common everyday usage and avoiding legal terms and phrases or other terms and words of art whose usage or special meaning primarily is limited to a particular field or profession.
If the referendum question involves the issuance of bonds by a locality, the locality shall provide for such printed explanation. The explanation shall (i) state the estimated maximum amount of the bonds proposed to be issued, and (ii) state the proposed use of the bond proceeds, and if there is more than one use, state the proposed uses for which more than 10 percent of the total bond proceeds is expected to be used.
B. Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit a county, city or town from disseminating other neutral materials or advertisements concerning issues of public concern that are the subject of a referendum; however, the materials or advertisements shall not advocate the passage or defeat of the referendum question.
C. This section shall not be applicable to statewide referenda.
D. Any failure to comply with the provisions of this section shall not affect the validity of the referendum.
1996, c. 297; 2004, cc. 21, 399; 2006, c. 302; 2011, c. 590.
Structure Code of Virginia
§ 24.2-601. Town election process
§ 24.2-603. Hours polls to be open; closing the polls
§ 24.2-603.1. Postponement of certain elections; state of emergency
§ 24.2-604. Polling places; prohibited activities; prohibited area; penalties
§ 24.2-604.1. Signs for special entrances to polling places
§ 24.2-604.2. Polling places; prohibited area; emergency situations
§ 24.2-604.3. Election day page program; high school students
§ 24.2-604.5. Polling places; presence of additional persons authorized
§ 24.2-604.6. Polling places; simulated election activities
§ 24.2-605. Loudspeakers prohibited at polls; penalty
§ 24.2-606. Preservation of order at elections
§ 24.2-608. Officers to decide order of voting
§ 24.2-610. Materials at polling places
§ 24.2-611. Form and signing of pollbooks; records of persons voting; electronic pollbooks
§ 24.2-612.1. Ballots; death, withdrawal, or disqualification of candidates
§ 24.2-612.2. Notice of withdrawal of candidates
§ 24.2-614. Preparation and form of presidential election ballots
§ 24.2-615. Separate questions for proposed constitutional amendments, etc.; uniform ballots
§ 24.2-616. Duties of printer; statement; penalty
§ 24.2-620. Dividing ballots into packages for each precinct; delivery of absentee ballots
§ 24.2-621. Delivery of packages to officers; opening packages
§ 24.2-622. Unofficial sample ballots
§ 24.2-623. Ballot containers to be supplied by governing bodies; construction and custody
§ 24.2-624. Opening and closing ballot containers; opening polls
§ 24.2-625. Application of Title 24.2 and general law
§ 24.2-625.1. Voting equipment security
§ 24.2-625.2. Wireless communications at polling places
§ 24.2-626. Governing bodies shall acquire electronic voting systems
§ 24.2-626.1. Acquisition and use of accessible voting devices
§ 24.2-627. Electronic voting systems; number required
§ 24.2-629. State Board approval process of electronic voting systems
§ 24.2-630. Experimental use of approved systems
§ 24.2-631. Experimental use of voting systems and ballots prior to approval of the system
§ 24.2-632. Voting equipment custodians
§ 24.2-633. Notice of final testing of voting system; sealing equipment
§ 24.2-634. Locking and securing after preparation
§ 24.2-635. Demonstration of equipment
§ 24.2-636. Instruction as to use of equipment
§ 24.2-637. Furniture and equipment to be at polling places
§ 24.2-639. Duties of officers of election
§ 24.2-642. Inoperative equipment
§ 24.2-643. Qualified voter permitted to vote; procedures at polling place; voter identification
§ 24.2-644. Voting by paper ballot; voting for presidential electors; write-in votes
§ 24.2-645. Defaced printed ballots
§ 24.2-646.1. Permitted use of paper ballots
§ 24.2-647. Voting systems; demonstration on election day
§ 24.2-648. Write-in votes on voting equipment
§ 24.2-649. Assistance for certain voters inside the polling place; penalties
§ 24.2-649.1. Assistance for certain voters outside of the polling place
§ 24.2-650. Officers to sign only official papers, etc.
§ 24.2-651. Voter who is challenged; how challenge tried
§ 24.2-651.1. Voter who is shown as having already voted; provisional ballots
§ 24.2-652. Voter whose name erroneously omitted from pollbook; provisional ballots
§ 24.2-653. Provisional voting; procedures in polling place
§ 24.2-653.01. Provisional ballots; electoral boards to make determination as to validity
§ 24.2-653.1. Voters who did not receive absentee ballots; provisional ballots
§ 24.2-653.3. Voters assigned to split precinct; provisional ballots
§ 24.2-655. Representatives of political parties and candidates to be present on request
§ 24.2-657. Determination of vote on voting systems
§ 24.2-658. Machines with printed return sheets; disposition of sheets
§ 24.2-661. Detection and setting aside of double ballots
§ 24.2-662. Procedure when paper ballots exceed names on pollbooks
§ 24.2-664. Reduction in number of ballots
§ 24.2-665. How paper ballots counted
§ 24.2-666. Procedures to account for paper ballots
§ 24.2-667. Completion of statement of results
§ 24.2-667.1. Reporting of results; absentee votes
§ 24.2-669. Clerk to keep ballots; inspection; destruction
§ 24.2-670. Clerk to send for books and ballots if not delivered by officers
§ 24.2-671. Electoral board to meet and ascertain results; conclusiveness of results
§ 24.2-671.2. Risk-limiting audits
§ 24.2-672. Electoral board to correct irregularities in returns of officers of election
§ 24.2-673. Candidates having highest number of votes to receive certificate of election
§ 24.2-673.1. (Expires July 1, 2031) Ranked choice voting
§ 24.2-674. Determination by lot in case of tie
§ 24.2-675. Abstracts of votes to be made by secretary and forwarded to State Board and to clerks
§ 24.2-676. Secretary to make out and deliver certificate of election
§ 24.2-677. State Board to open and record returns; application of Freedom of Information Act
§ 24.2-678. Law-enforcement officer to be sent for abstracts not forwarded
§ 24.2-679. State Board to meet and make statement as to number of votes
§ 24.2-680. Certificates of election
§ 24.2-681. How special elections superintended and determined
§ 24.2-682. Times for special elections
§ 24.2-683. Writ for special election to fill a vacancy
§ 24.2-684. How referendum elections called and held, and the results ascertained and certified
§ 24.2-684.1. Requirements for voter petitions to call for referendum elections
§ 24.2-685. Special elections; request for abolition of constitutional offices
§ 24.2-687. Authorization for distribution of information on referendum elections