444 LAWS OF MARYLAND [CH. 241

Every ordinance shall be submitted to the Mayor for
his signature, and shall not take effect without his signa-
ture, except as follows:

(1) The Mayor may veto any ordinance by filing with
the City Clerk within five days a statement of his refusal to
sign it, with his reasons therefor. The City Clerk shall
call the veto to the attention of the Council at its next
session. At such session or the one following, the Council
may overrule the Mayor's veto by an affirmative vote of
not less than five Councilmen. By an affirmative vote of
not less than five Councilmen, an ordinance may be declared
an emergency measure, in which case it shall not be sub-
ject to the Mayor's veto. If an ordinance is declared an
emergency measure by a majority of the Councilmen pres-
ent, but not by as many as five Councilmen, the time allowed
the Mayor to sign or veto shall be reduced to 24 hours.

(2) If the Mayor has neither signed nor vetoed an ordi-
nance within five days after its adoption, or within 24
hours in case of an emergency measure (declared such by
a majority of less than five Councilmen), the City Clerk
shall so certify on the copy of the ordinance on the minute
book (or at the place in the minute book where the adop-
tion of the ordinance is recorded, if it is not set out in full
in the minute book), and the ordinance shall in such case
be valid in the same manner as if the Mayor had signed it.
In case of an emergency measure vetoed within 24 hours by
the Mayor, the City Clerk shall promptly notify each
Councilman of the veto; if any five Councilmen thereafter
record at the City Clerk's office their vote to overrule the
Mayor's veto, the ordinance shall go into effect without
waiting for the next session of the Council.

In the absence of the Mayor at any meeting, the Council-
man designated in Sub-section 104-4s to act as Mayor in
case of the absence or disability of the Mayor shall pre-
side; if such Councilman is also absent, the Council shall
designate one of the Councilmen present to preside; a
Councilman presiding in the absence of the Mayor shall
retain his vote as Councilman, but shall have no additional
vote in case of a tie.

SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That this Act shall
not become effective unless and until it shall be approved
by the voters of Takoma Park at the general city election
to be held in March, 1954. There shall be printed on the
ballots or voting machines used at the said election the
words "Amendments to the City Charter to give the Mayor
a veto power, subject to overriding by five members of the