AN ACT to change the timing and manner of REGULAR MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS FOR THE CITY OF NEW BERN.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  Section 3.1 of the Charter of the City of New Bern, being S.L. 2016‑41, reads as rewritten:

Section 3.1. Method of election. Regular municipal elections shall be held in the City every four years in odd-numbered even‑numbered years, and shall be conducted in accordance with general laws of the State governing municipal elections. The Mayor and members of the Board of Aldermen shall be elected according to the nonpartisan election and runoff plurality method, as provided in G.S. 163-293.G.S. 163‑292. In the event of a vacancy on the Board of Aldermen, a special election shall take place if the vacancy is not filled within 90 days of the beginning of the vacancy. This special election shall be conducted pursuant to the Charter of the City of New Bern and G.S. 163‑287. The final date that an appointment may be made by the Board of Aldermen to fill the vacancy is 12 o'clock noon local time on the first day of candidate filing for the next available election, as set by Chapter 163 of the General Statutes, provided that the first day of candidate filing for the next available election is not less than 90 days from the beginning of the vacancy. If no appointment is made by the Board of Aldermen to fill the vacancy before the deadline set by Chapter 163 of the General Statutes, the vacancy shall be filled by the candidate receiving the highest number of votes in the special election. A special election shall not be required if the date on which it would be held is the same date as the regular municipal election.

SECTION 2.  No municipal elections shall be conducted in the City of New Bern in 2029. The terms of office of the mayor and all aldermen set to expire in 2029 shall be extended by one year, and regular municipal elections shall be conducted in 2030 and every four years thereafter.

SECTION 3.  This act is effective when it becomes law and applies beginning with elections held on or after January 1, 2030.