S.L. 2009-549

GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 2009

SESSION LAW 2009-549

HOUSE BILL 817

AN ACT to make technical and other changes to chapters 120, 120c, AND 138A of the general statutes.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1. G.S. 120-103.1 reads as rewritten:

"§ 120-103.1. Investigations by the Committee.

(a) Institution of Proceedings. - On its own motion, or upon receipt of a referral of a complaint from the State Ethics Commission under Chapter 138A of the General Statutes, the Committee shall conduct an investigation into any of the following:

(1) The application or alleged violation of Chapter 138A of the General Statutes and of this Article.

(2) Repealed by Session Laws 2007-348, s. 2, effective August 9, 2007.

(3) The alleged violation of the criminal law by a legislator while acting in the legislator's official capacity as a participant in the lawmaking process.

(a1) Complaints on Its Own Motion. - An investigation initiated by the Committee on its own motion instituted under subsection (a) of this section shall be treated as a complaint for purposes of this section and need not be sworn or verified. Any requirements under this section that require the Committee to notify the complainant shall not apply to complaints taken up by the Committee on its own motion. If the Committee is acting on a complaint referred to the Committee by the Commission where the Commission was acting on its own motion, the Committee shall be deemed to have satisfied the notice requirements by providing notice to the Commission. Any notice provided to the Commission under this section is confidential and shall not be disclosed by the Commission.

(b) Initial Consideration of a Complaint. - All of the following shall apply to the Committee's initial consideration of a complaint:

(1) The Committee may, in its sole discretion, request additional information to be provided by the complainant within a specified period of time of no less than seven business days.

(2) The Committee may decline to accept or further investigate a complaint if it determines that any of the following apply:

a. The complaint is frivolous or brought in bad faith.

b. The individuals and conduct complained of have already been the subject of a prior complaint.

c. The conduct complained of is primarily a matter more appropriately and adequately addressed and handled by other federal, State, or local agencies or authorities, including law enforcement authorities. If other agencies or authorities are conducting an investigation of the same actions or conduct involved in a complaint filed under this section, the Committee may stay its complaint investigation pending final resolution of the other investigation.

~~(3)~~ The Committee shall send a notice of the initiation of an investigation under this section to the legislator who is the subject of the complaint within 10 days of the date of the decision to initiate the investigation.

(4) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section, complaints filed with the Committee concerning the conduct of the Lieutenant Governor shall be referred to the State Ethics Commission under Chapter 138A of the General Statutes without investigation by the Committee.

(c) Investigation of ~~Complaints by the Committee~~Complaints. - The Committee shall investigate all complaints properly before the Committee in a timely manner. Within 60 days of ~~the~~ receiving a complaint or a referral of ~~the~~ a complaint ~~with~~ to the Committee, the Committee shall do at least one of the following:

(1) Dismiss the complaint.

(2) Initiate a preliminary investigation of the complaint.

(3) ~~refer~~ Refer the complaint for further investigation and a hearing in accordance with subsection (i) of this ~~section or initiate an investigation of a complaint or dismiss the complaint.~~section.

(4) Make recommendations to the house in which the legislator who is the subject of the complaint is a member without further investigation, if the referral is from the State Ethics Commission.

(c1) Preliminary Investigation. - The Committee may initiate a preliminary investigation if it determines that the complaint alleges facts sufficient to constitute a violation of matters over which the Committee has jurisdiction as set forth in subsection (a) of this section. In determining whether there is reason to believe that a violation has or may have occurred, a member of the Committee may take general notice of available information even if not formally provided to the Committee in the form of a complaint. The Committee may utilize the services of a hired investigator when conducting investigations. The Committee shall provide written notification of the initiation of an investigation under this section to the legislator who is the subject of the complaint within 10 days of the date of the Committee's decision to initiate an investigation.

~~(d)~~ ~~On a referral from the State Ethics Commission, the Committee shall do at least one of the following:~~

~~(1)~~ ~~Make recommendations to the house in which the legislator who is the subject of the complaint is a member without further investigation.~~

~~(2)~~ ~~Conduct further investigations and hearings under this section.~~

~~(3)~~ ~~Dismiss the complaint.~~

(e) Investigation by the Committee of Matters Other Than Complaints. - The Committee may investigate matters other than complaints properly before the Committee under subsection (a) of this section. For any investigation initiated under this subsection, the Committee may take any action it deems necessary or appropriate to further compliance with this Article, including the initiation of a complaint, the issuance of an advisory opinion under G.S. 120-104, or referral to appropriate law enforcement or other authorities pursuant to subdivision (j)(2) of this section.

(f) Legislator Cooperation with Investigation. - Legislators shall promptly and fully cooperate with the Committee in any Committee-related investigation. Failure to cooperate fully with the Committee in any investigation shall be grounds for sanctions under this section.

(g) Dismissal of Complaint After Preliminary ~~Inquiry.~~Investigation. - If the Committee determines at the end of its preliminary ~~inquiry~~ investigation that the complaint does not allege facts sufficient to constitute a violation of matters over which the Committee has jurisdiction as set forth in subsection (a) of this section, the Committee shall dismiss the complaint and provide written notice of the dismissal to the individual who filed the complaint and to the legislator against whom the complaint was filed.

(h) ~~Notice.~~Probable Cause Determination. - If at the end of its preliminary ~~inquiry,~~investigation, the Committee determines that probable cause exists to proceed with further investigation into the conduct of a legislator, the Committee shall determine the charges that will be the basis for further investigation of the complaint and provide written notice to the individual who filed the complaint and the legislator ~~as to the fact of the~~that the Committee will conduct further investigation and the charges against the legislator. The legislator shall be given an opportunity to file a written response to the charges with the Committee.

(h1) Consideration of Response and Notice of Hearing. - The Committee shall give full and fair consideration to the complaint and to the legislator's response to the complaint. If the Committee determines that the complaint cannot be resolved without further investigation and a hearing, or if the legislator requests a public hearing, the Committee shall hold a hearing on the charges against the legislator. The Committee shall send a notice of the hearing to the complainant and to the legislator. The notice shall contain the charges against the legislator and the time and place for the hearing. The Committee shall begin the hearing no sooner than 15 days and no later than 90 days after the date of the notice of hearing.

(i) Hearing. - All the following shall apply to

~~(1)~~ The Committee shall give full and fair consideration to all complaints and responses received. If the Committee determines that the complaint cannot be resolved without a hearing, or if the legislator requests a public hearing, a hearing shall be held.

~~(2)~~ The Committee shall send a notice of the hearing to the complainant and the legislator. The notice shall contain the time and place for a hearing on the matter, which shall begin no less than 30 days and no more than 90 days after the date of the notice.

~~(3)~~ At any hearing on a complaint held by the Committee:

(4) a. Oral evidence shall be taken only on oath or affirmation.

(5) b. The hearing shall be open to the public, except for matters that could otherwise be considered in closed session under G.S. 143-318.11, matters involving minors, or matters involving a personnel record. In any event, the deliberations by the Commission on a complaint may be held in closed session.

(6) c. The legislator being investigated shall have the right to present evidence, call and examine witnesses, cross-examine witnesses, introduce exhibits, and be represented by counsel.

(j) Disposition of Investigations. - Except as permitted under subsections (b) and (g) of this section, after the hearing, the Committee shall dispose of a the matter before the Committee under this section, in any of the following ways:

(1) If the Committee finds that the alleged violation is not established by clear and convincing evidence, the Committee shall dismiss the complaint.

(2) If the Committee finds that the alleged violation is established by clear and convincing evidence, the Committee shall do one or more of the following:

a. Issue a public or private admonishment to the legislator.

b. Refer the matter to the Attorney General for investigation and referral to the district attorney for possible prosecution or the appropriate house for appropriate action, or both, if the Committee finds substantial evidence of a violation of a criminal statute.

c. Refer the matter to the appropriate house for appropriate action, which may include censure and ~~expulsion, if the Committee finds substantial evidence of a violation of this Article or other unethical activities.~~expulsion.

(3) If the Committee issues an admonishment as provided in subdivision (2)a. of this subsection, the legislator affected may, upon written request to the Committee, have the matter referred as provided under subdivision (2)c. of this subsection.

(k) Effect of Dismissal or Private Admonishment. - ~~In the case of a dismissal or private admonishment,~~If the Committee dismisses a complaint or issues a private admonishment prior to commencing a hearing under subsection (i) of this section, the Committee shall retain its records or findings in confidence, unless the legislator under inquiry requests in writing that the records and findings be made public. If the Committee later finds that a legislator's subsequent unethical activities were similar to and the subject of an earlier private admonishment, then the Committee may make public the earlier admonishment and the records and findings related to it.

(l) Confidentiality. - Except as provided under subsection (k) of this section, the complaint, response, records, and findings of the Committee connected to an inquiry under this section shall be confidential and not matters of public record, except as otherwise provided in this section or when the legislator under inquiry requests in writing that the complaint, response, and findings be made public. Once a hearing under subsection (i) of this section commences the complaint, response, Committee's report to the house, and all other documents offered at the hearing in conjunction with the complaint, that are not otherwise privileged or confidential under law, shall be public records. If no hearing is held, at such time as the Committee recommends sanctions to the house of which the legislator is a member, the complaint, response, and Committee's report to the house shall be made public.

(m) Concurrent Jurisdiction. - Any action or lack of action by the Committee under this section shall not limit the right of each house of the General Assembly to discipline or to expel its members.

(n) Reports. - The Committee shall publish annual statistics on complaints filed with or considered by the Committee, including the number of complaints filed, the number of complaints dismissed, the number of complaints resulting in admonishment, the number of complaints referred to the appropriate house for appropriate action, the number of complaints referred for criminal prosecution, and the number and age of complaints pending action by the Committee."

SECTION 2. G.S. 120C-103 is amended by adding a new subsection to read:

"(a1) A designated individual appointed to a board determined and designated as nonadvisory under G.S. 138A-10(a)(3) by the Commission shall attend lobbying education and awareness programs within six months of notification of the designation by the Commission and at least every two years thereafter in a manner as the Commission deems appropriate."

SECTION 3. G.S. 120C-200(d) reads as rewritten:

"(d) ~~Each~~ Unless a resignation is filed under G.S. 120C-210, each registration statement of a lobbyist required under this Chapter shall be effective from the date of filing until January 1 of the following year. The lobbyist shall file a new registration statement after that date, and the applicable fee shall be due and payable."

SECTION 4. G.S. 120C-206 reads as rewritten:

"§ 120C-206. Lobbyist principal's authorization.

(a) A written authorization signed by the lobbyist principal authorizing the lobbyist to represent the principal shall be filed with the Secretary of State within 10 20 business days after the lobbyist's registration. If the written authorization is filed more than 20 business days after the lobbyist's registration and before January 1 of the following year, the lobbyist registration is effective from the date of filing of the lobbyist registration and all reports due under Article 4 of this Chapter shall be filed.

(b) The form of the written authorization shall be prescribed by the Secretary of State and shall include the lobbyist principal's full name, complete address, and telephone number, name and title of any official authorized to sign for the lobbyist principal, and the name of each lobbyist registered to represent that principal.

(c) An amended authorization shall be filed with the Secretary of State no later than 10 business days after any change in the information on the principal's authorization. Each supplementary authorization shall include a complete statement of the information that has changed."

SECTION 5. Article 2 of Chapter 120C of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new section to read:

"§ 120C-210. Resignation and termination.

(a) A registration of a lobbyist under G.S. 120C-200 and the written authorization of that lobbyist principal under G.S. 120C-206 are terminated upon the filing of either a lobbyist resignation or a principal termination with the Secretary of State, whichever occurs first.

(b) Lobbyist resignations and lobbyist principal terminations are effective upon filing."

SECTION 6. The Joint Legislative Ethics Committee and the State Ethics Commission shall jointly study the process for issuing, reviewing, and revising formal advisory opinions, and the process for publishing formal and informal advisory opinions, applicable to all persons covered under Chapters 120, 120C, and 138A of the General Statutes. The joint study shall review the redacted opinions of both the Legislative Ethics Committee and the State Ethics Commission, with a specific focus on all opinions related to indirect gifts. The Joint Legislative Ethics Committee and the State Ethics Commission may each make recommendations to the 2010 Regular Session of the 2009 General Assembly.

SECTION 7.(a) G.S. 120C-401(a) reads as rewritten:

"(a) Reports shall be filed whether or not reportable expenditures are made and shall be due 10 15 business days after the end of the reporting period."

SECTION 7.(b) G.S. 120C-800(f) reads as rewritten:

"(f) Within 10 15 business days after the end of the quarter in which the reportable expenditure was made, reports required by this section shall be filed with the Secretary of State in a manner prescribed by the Secretary of State, which may include electronic reports. If the designated individual is required to file a statement of economic interest under G.S. 138A-24, then that designated individual may opt to report any information required by this section in the statement of economic interest."

SECTION 8. G.S. 138A-10(a) reads as rewritten:

"§ 138A-10. Powers and duties.

(a) In addition to other powers and duties specified in this Chapter, the Commission shall:

…

(4) Receive and review all statements of economic interests filed with the Commission by prospective and actual covered persons and evaluate whether (i) the statements conform to the law and the rules of the Commission, and (ii) the financial interests and other information reported reveals actual or potential conflicts of interest. Pursuant to G.S. 138A-24(e), this subdivision does not apply to statements of economic interest of legislators and judicial officers.

…

(12) Publish annually statistics on complaints filed with or considered by the Commission, including the number of complaints filed, the number of complaints referred under G.S. 138A-12(b), the number of complaints dismissed under G.S. 138A-12(c)(4), the number of complaints dismissed under G.S. 138A-12(f), the number of complaints referred for criminal prosecution under G.S. 138A-12, the number of complaints dismissed under G.S. 138A-12(h), the number of complaints referred for appropriate action under G.S. 138A-12(h) or G.S. 138A-12(k)(3), and the number and age of complaints pending action by the Commission.

…."

SECTION 9. G.S. 138A-12(a1) reads as rewritten:

"(a1) Notice of Allegation. - Upon receipt by the Commission of an a written allegation of unethical conduct by a covered person or legislative employee, or the initiation by the Commission of an inquiry into unethical conduct under subsection (b) of this section, the Commission shall immediately notify the covered person or legislative employee subject to the allegation or inquiry in writing."

SECTION 10. G.S. 138A-12(i)(3) reads as rewritten:

"(i) Hearing. -

…

(3) The Commission shall make available to the public servant or that public servant's private legal counsel ~~prior to a hearing all relevant information~~all documents or other evidence which are intended to be presented at the hearing to ~~collected by~~ the Commission or which a reasonable person would believe might exculpate the accused public servant at least 30 days prior to the date of the hearing held in connection with ~~its~~ the investigation of a complaint. Any documents or other evidence discovered within less than 30 days of the hearing shall be furnished as soon as possible after discovery but prior to the hearing.

…."

SECTION 11. G.S. 138A-12(l) reads as rewritten:

"(l) Notice of Dismissal. - Upon the dismissal of a complaint under this section, the Commission shall provide written notice of the dismissal to the individual who filed the complaint and the covered person or legislative employee against whom the complaint was filed. The Commission shall forward copies of complaints and notices of dismissal of complaints against legislators to the Committee, against legislative employees to the employing entity for legislative employees, and against judicial officers to the Judicial Standards Commission for complaints against justices and judges, and the senior resident superior court judge of the district or county for complaints against district attorneys, or the chief district court judge of the district or county for complaints against clerks of court. The Commission shall also forward a copy of the notice of dismissal to the employing entity of the covered person against whom a complaint was filed if the employing entity received a copy of the complaint under subdivision (5) of subsection (c) of this section. Except as provided in subsection (n) of this section, the complaint and notice of dismissal are confidential and not public records."

SECTION 12. G.S. 138A-14, as amended by Section 4 of S.L. 2009-10, reads as rewritten:

"§ 138A-14. Ethics education program.

(a) The Commission shall develop and implement an ethics education and awareness program designed to instill in all covered persons and their immediate staffs, and legislative employees, a keen and continuing awareness of their ethical obligations and a sensitivity to situations that might result in real or potential conflicts of interest.

(b) The Commission shall make basic ethics education and awareness presentations to all public servants and their immediate staffs, upon their election, appointment, or employment, and shall offer periodic refresher presentations as the Commission deems appropriate. Every public servant ~~and the immediate staff of every public servant~~ shall participate in an ethics presentation approved by the Commission within six months of the public servant's election, reelection, appointment, or employment, and shall attend refresher ethics education presentations at least every two years thereafter in a manner as the Commission deems appropriate.

(b1) A public servant appointed to a board determined and designated as nonadvisory under G.S. 138A-10(a)(3) shall attend an ethics presentation approved by the Commission within six months of notification of the designation by the Commission and at least every two years thereafter in a manner as the Commission deems appropriate.

(c) The Commission, jointly with the Committee, shall make basic ethics education and awareness presentations to all legislators and legislative employees upon their election, reelection, appointment, or employment and shall offer periodic refresher presentations as the Commission and the Committee deem appropriate. Every legislator shall participate in an ethics presentation approved by the Commission and Committee within two months of either the convening of the General Assembly to which the legislator is elected or within two months of the legislator's appointment, whichever is later. Every legislative employee shall participate in an ethics presentation approved by the Commission and Committee within three months of employment, and shall attend refresher ethics education presentations at least every two years thereafter, in a manner as the Commission and Committee deem appropriate.

(d) Upon request, the Commission shall assist each agency in developing in-house education programs and procedures necessary or desirable to meet the agency's particular needs for ethics education, conflict identification, and conflict avoidance.

(e) Each agency head shall designate an ethics liaison who shall maintain active communication with the Commission on all agency ethical issues. The ethics liaison shall attend ethics education and awareness programs as provided under this section and lobbying education and awareness programs as provided under G.S. 120C-103 and continuously assess and advise the Commission of any issues or conduct which might reasonably be expected to result in a conflict of interest and seek advice and rulings from the Commission as to their appropriate resolution.

(f) The Commission shall publish a newsletter containing summaries of the Commission's opinions, policies, procedures, and interpretive bulletins as issued from time to time. The newsletter shall be distributed to all covered persons and legislative employees. Publication under this subsection may be done electronically.

(g) The Commission shall assemble and maintain a collection of relevant State laws, rules, and regulations that set forth ethical standards applicable to covered persons. This collection shall be made available electronically as resource material to public servants, and ethics liaisons, upon request.

~~(h)~~ ~~As used in this section, "immediate staff" means those individuals who report directly to the public servant.~~

(i) This section shall not apply to judicial officers."

SECTION 13. G.S. 138A-22(a) reads as rewritten:

"(a) Every covered person subject to this Chapter who is elected, appointed, or employed, including one appointed to fill a vacancy in elective office, except for public servants (i) included under G.S. 138A-3(30)b., e., f., or g. whose annual compensation from the State is less than sixty thousand dollars ($60,000), or (ii) who are ex officio student members under Chapters 115D and 116 of the General Statutes, shall file a statement of economic interest with the Commission prior to the covered person's initial appointment, election, or employment and no later than April 15 of every year thereafter, except as otherwise filed under subsections (c1) and (d) of this section. A prospective covered person required to file a statement under this Chapter shall not be appointed, employed, or receive a certificate of election, prior to submission by the Commission of the Commission's evaluation of the statement in accordance with this Article. The requirement for an annual filing under this subsection also shall apply to covered persons whose terms have expired but who continue to serve until the covered person's replacement is appointed. Once a statement of economic interest is properly completed and filed under this Article, the statement of economic interest does not need to be supplemented or refiled prior to the next due date set forth in this subsection."

SECTION 14. G.S. 138A-24 is amended by adding a new subsection to read:

"(c2) A public servant appointed to a board determined and designated as nonadvisory under G.S. 138A-10(a)(3) shall file the initial statement of economic interest within 60 days of notification of the designation by the Commission and as provided in this section thereafter."

SECTION 15. G.S. 138A-25(a) reads as rewritten:

"(a) Within 30 days after the date due under G.S. 138A-22, the Commission shall notify filing persons who have failed to file or filing persons whose statement has been deemed incomplete. For a filing person currently serving as a covered person, the Commission shall notify the filing person and the ethics liaison that if the statement of economic interest is not filed or completed within 30 days of receipt of the notice of failure to file or complete, the filing person shall be subject to a fine as provided for in this section."

SECTION 16. G.S. 138A-31(a) reads as rewritten:

"(a) Except as permitted under G.S. 138A-38, a covered person or legislative employee shall not knowingly use the covered person's or legislative employee's public position in an official action or legislative action that will result in financial ~~benefit, direct or indirect,~~ benefit to the covered person or legislative employee, a member of the covered person's or legislative employee's extended family, or business with which the covered person or legislative employee is associated. This subsection shall not apply to financial or other benefits derived by a covered person or legislative employee that the covered person or legislative employee would enjoy to an extent no greater than that which other citizens of the State would or could enjoy, or that are so remote, tenuous, insignificant, or speculative that a reasonable person would conclude under the circumstances that the covered person's or legislative employee's ability to protect the public interest and perform the covered person's or legislative employee's official duties would not be compromised."

SECTION 17. G.S. 138A-32(e) reads as rewritten:

"(e) Subsections (c), (d), and (d1) of this section shall not apply to any of the following:

(1) Food and beverages for immediate consumption in connection with any of the following:

a. An open meeting of a public body, provided that the open meeting is properly noticed under Article 33C of Chapter 143 of the General Statutes.

b. A gathering of ~~an organization~~ a person or governmental unit with at least 10 or more individuals in attendance open to the general public, provided that a sign or other communication containing a message that is reasonably designed to convey to the general public that the gathering is open to the general public is displayed at the gathering.

c. A gathering of a person or governmental unit to which the entire board of which a public servant is a member, at least 10 public servants, all the members of the House of Representatives, all the members of the Senate, all the members of a county or municipal legislative delegation, all the members of a recognized legislative caucus with regular meetings other than meetings with one or more lobbyists, all the members of a committee, a standing subcommittee, a joint committee or joint commission of the House of Representatives, the Senate, or the General Assembly, or all legislative employees are invited, and one of the following applies:

1. At least 10 individuals associated with the person or governmental unit actually attend, other than the covered person or legislative employee, or the immediate family of the covered person or legislative employee.

2. All shareholders, employees, board members, officers, members, or subscribers of the person or governmental unit located in North Carolina are notified and invited to attend.

For purposes of this sub-subdivision only, the term "invited" shall mean written notice from at least one host or sponsor of the gathering containing the date, time, and location of the gathering given at least 24 hours in advance of the gathering to the specific qualifying group listed in this sub-subdivision. If it is known at the time of the written notice that at least one sponsor is a lobbyist or lobbyist principal, the written notice shall also state whether or not the gathering is permitted under this section."

SECTION 18. G.S. 143-47.7 reads as rewritten:

"§ 143-47.7. Notice and record of appointment required.

(a) Within 30 days after acceptance of appointment by a person appointed to public office, the appointing authority shall file written notice of the appointment with the Governor, the Secretary of State, the Legislative Library, the State Library, the State Ethics Commission, and the State Controller. For the purposes of this section, a copy of the letter from the appointing authority, a copy of the properly executed notice of appointment as set forth in subsection (c) of this section, or a copy of the properly executed Commission of Appointment shall be sufficient to be filed if the copy contains the information required in subsection (b) of this section.

(b) The notice required by this Article shall contain the following information:

(1) The name and office of the appointing authority;

(2) The public office to which the appointment is made;

(3) The name and address of the appointee;

(4) The county of residence of the appointee;

(5) The citation to the law or other authority authorizing the appointment;

(6) The specific statutory qualification for the public office to which the appointment is made, if applicable;

(7) The name of the person the appointee replaces, if applicable;

(8) The date the term of the appointment begins; and

(9) The date the term of the appointment ends.

"NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT

Notice is given that ___________________________ is hereby appointed to the following

Name

public office:

Public Office: __________________________________________________________________

Citation to Law or Other Authority Authorizing the Appointment:

____________________________________________________________________________

Specific Statutory Qualification for the Public Office, if Applicable:

____________________________________________________________________________

Address of the Appointee: ________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

County of Residence of the Appointee: ______________________________________________

Date Term of Appointment Begins: _________________________________________________

Date Term of Appointment Ends: ___________________________________________________

Name of Person the Appointee Replaces, if applicable:

____________________________________________________________________________

______________________________ __________________________________

Date of Appointment Signature

__________________________________

Office of Appointing Authority

Distribution:

Governor

Secretary of State

Legislative Library

State Library

State Ethics Commission

State Controller".

SECTION 19. G.S. 115D-12(a) reads as rewritten:

"(a) Each community college established or operated pursuant to this Chapter shall be governed by a board of trustees consisting of 13 members, or of additional members if selected according to the special procedure prescribed by the third paragraph of this subsection, who shall be selected by the following agencies. No member of the General Assembly may be appointed to a local board of trustees for a community college.

Group One - four trustees, elected by the board of education of the public school administrative unit located in the administrative area of the institution. If there are two or more public school administrative units, whether city or county units, or both, located within the administrative area, the trustees shall be elected jointly by all of the boards of education of those units, each board having one vote in the election of each trustee, except as provided in G.S. 115D-59. No board of education shall elect a member of the board of education or any person employed by the board of education to serve as a trustee, however, any such person currently serving on a board of trustees shall be permitted to fulfill the unexpired portion of the trustee's current term.

Group Two - four trustees, elected by the board of commissioners of the county in which the institution is located. Provided, however, if the administrative area of the institution is composed of two or more counties, the trustees shall be elected jointly by the boards of commissioners of all those counties, each board having one vote in the election of each trustee. Provided, also, the county commissioners of the county in which the community college has established a satellite campus may elect an additional two members if the board of trustees of the community college agrees. No more than one trustee from Group Two may be a member of a board of county commissioners. Should the boards of education or the boards of commissioners involved be unable to agree on one or more trustees the senior resident superior court judge in the superior court district or set of districts as defined in G.S. 7A-41.1 where the institution is located shall fill the position or positions by appointment.

Group Three - four trustees, appointed by the Governor.

Group Four - the president of the student government or the chairman of the executive board of the student body of each community college established pursuant to G.S. 115D shall be an ex officio nonvoting member of the board of trustees of each said institution."

SECTION 20. Except as otherwise provided, this act is effective when it becomes law. Section 19 of this act applies only to appointments made on or after the effective date of this act, and does not apply to any reappointment of a member of the General Assembly serving on any board of trustees for a community college on that date.

In the General Assembly read three times and ratified this the 11^th day of August, 2009.

s/ Walter H. Dalton

President of the Senate

s/ Joe Hackney

Speaker of the House of Representatives

s/ Beverly E. Perdue

Governor

Approved 10:30 a.m. this 28^th day of August, 2009