A. Emergency Ordinances. To meet a public emergency affecting the peace, health, safety, or welfare of the inhabitants of the City, or for the preservation of their lives or property, or to insure the necessary daily operations of a Municipal department or public utility, the Council may adopt one or more emergency ordinances, but such emergency ordinances may not levy taxes (except when incidental to incurring debt); grant, renew or extend a franchise (except one affecting health or incidental to incurring debt); regulate the rate charged by a public utility for its services, or grant any special privileges.
B. Procedure; Adoption. An emergency ordinance shall be introduced in the form and manner provided for ordinances generally, except that it shall be plainly designated as an emergency ordinance and shall contain, after the enacting clause, a declaration stating that an emergency exists and describing it in clear and specific terms. An emergency ordinance may be adopted with or without amendment or rejected at the meeting at which it is introduced, but the affirmative vote of five (5) members of Council shall be required for adoption, except as otherwise provided in Section 5.04. An emergency ordinance shall become effective upon adoption or at such time and date as it may by its terms specify. After adoption, the ordinance shall be published as prescribed for other adopted ordinances. Emergency ordinances, including ordinances for emergency appropriations, shall not be subject to referendum.
C. Automatic Repeal. Every emergency ordinance, except one made pursuant to Section 5.04 of this Charter, or one authorizing or otherwise adopted in connection with the borrowing of money and/or the levying of taxes with respect to such borrowing, or one authorizing the purchase, conveyance or lease of real property or the title or interest therein, shall automatically stand repealed as of the sixty-first (61st) day following the date on which it was adopted, but this shall not prevent the reenactment of the ordinance in the manner specified in Section 5.02 or this section. No emergency ordinance shall be extended beyond its repeal date by the adoption of another emergency ordinance. Contract rights that vest pursuant to an emergency ordinance shall not be impaired or abridged by the repeal of such ordinance. An emergency ordinance may also be repealed by adoption of a repealing ordinance in the same manner specified in Section 5.02.