920                               LAWS OF MARYLAND                       [CH. 405

of general circulation in the county, to provide all interested parties
an opportunity to present their views. Any petition by such residents
of the county must be filed at the office of the county board of
education within fifteen days after the official action of the board
preliminarily approving such site. In the event that a hearing is held
as described above, minutes shall be kept and the board of education
shall, after due deliberation, submit the minutes of the hearing,
together with its recommendation, to the State Superintendent of
Schools for use in rendering a decision on his approval of the site.
No request for site approval shall be made to the State Superintendent
of Schools by any county board until after the expiration of fifteen
days from its official action recommending the site or until after a
hearing, if one shall have been held, whichever shall last occur.

(c) Architects.—The county board of education is authorized
and empowered, upon the recommendation of the superintendent of
schools, to employ an architect or architects to assist in the prepara-
tion of plans and specifications for remodeling buildings and for
constructing new buildings.

(D) BUILDING REGULATIONS—THE COUNTY BOARD
OF EDUCATION, IN THE CONSTRUCTION OR REMODELING
OF BUILDINGS, SHALL CONFORM TO ALL APPLICABLE
BUILDING REGULATIONS, WHETHER ISSUED BY A STATE
OR COUNTY GOVERNMENT, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED
TO, BUILDING, ELECTRICAL, FIRE, AND PLUMBING CODES.

48. Legal Counsel.

Each county board of education except Baltimore County is author-
ized and empowered to secure the services of attorneys at law to
represent it in legal matters affecting said board and to contract for
the payment of a reasonable fee to such attorneys. Funds for such
fees shall be placed in the annual budget. THE BOARD OF EDUCA-
TION IN BALTIMORE COUNTY IS AUTHORIZED AND EM-
POWERED TO OBTAIN THE SERVICES OF ATTORNEYS AT
LAW IN LEGAL MATTERS INVOLVING DISPUTES WITH THE
BALTIMORE COUNTY GOVERNMENT.

49. Advisory Committee COMMITTEES.

It shall be the policy of the county boards of education to establish
such citizen-advisory committees as they deem necessary to facilitate
the activities and programs of the boards and any school or schools
under their supervision.

50.    Donations.

The county board of education may receive donations of school
grounds and school sites, or of houses already built suitably located
and adapted to school purposes, but in no case shall any site be built
upon, or any house be occupied, until a good and sufficient title or
leasehold of a term sufficient to outlast the probable useful life of any
building to be erected thereon has been obtained for the same in the
corporate name of the board.

51.    Eminent domain.

When land shall be required for the site of a school or for enlarg-
ing a scho