§ 113A-104. Coastal Resources Commission.
§113A‑104. Coastal Resources Commission.
(a) Established. TheGeneral Assembly hereby establishes within the Department of Environment andNatural Resources a commission to be designated the Coastal ResourcesCommission.
(b) Composition. TheCoastal Resources Commission shall consist of 15 members appointed by theGovernor, as follows:
(1) One who shall at thetime of appointment be actively connected with or have experience in commercialfishing.
(2) One who shall at thetime of appointment be actively connected with or have experience in wildlifeor sports fishing.
(3) One who shall at thetime of appointment be actively connected with or have experience in marineecology.
(4) One who shall at thetime of appointment be actively connected with or have experience in coastalagriculture.
(5) One who shall at thetime of appointment be actively connected with or have experience in coastalforestry.
(6) One who shall at thetime of appointment be actively connected with or have experience in coastalland development.
(7) One who shall at thetime of appointment be actively connected with or have experience in marine‑relatedbusiness (other than fishing and wildlife).
(8) One who shall at thetime of appointment be actively connected with or have experience inengineering in the coastal area.
(9) One who shall at thetime of appointment be actively associated with a State or nationalconservation organization.
(10) One who shall at thetime of appointment be actively connected with or have experience in financingof coastal land development.
(11) Two who shall at thetime of appointment be actively connected with or have experience in localgovernment within the coastal area.
(12) Three at‑largemembers.
(c) Appointment ofMembers. Appointments to the Commission shall be made to provide knowledgeand experience in a diverse range of coastal interests. The members of theCommission shall serve and act on the Commission solely for the best interestsof the public and public trust, and shall bring their particular knowledge andexperience to the Commission for that end alone.
The Governor shall appoint inhis sole discretion those members of the Commission whose qualifications aredescribed in subdivisions (6) and (10), and one of the three members describedin subdivision (12) of subsection (b) of this section.
The remaining members of theCommission shall be appointed by the Governor after completion of thenominating procedures prescribed by subsection (d) of this section. The membersof the Commission whose qualifications are described in subdivisions (1)through (5), (9), and (11), shall be persons who do not derive any significantportion of their income from land development, construction, real estate sales,or lobbying and do not otherwise serve as agents for development‑relatedbusiness activities. The Governor shall require adequate disclosure ofpotential conflicts of interest by members. The Governor, by executive order,shall promulgate criteria regarding conflicts of interest and disclosurethereof for determining the eligibility of persons under this section.
(d) Nominations forMembership. On or before May 1 in every even‑numbered year the Governorshall designate and transmit to the board of commissioners in each county inthe coastal area four nominating categories applicable to that county for thatyear. Said nominating categories shall be selected by the Governor from amongthe categories represented, respectively by subdivisions (1), (2), (3), (4),(5), (7), (8), (9), (11) two persons, and (12) two persons, of subsection(b) of this section (or so many of the above‑listed paragraphs as maycorrespond to vacancies by expiration of term that are subject to being filledin that year). On or before June 1 in every even‑numbered year the boardof commissioners of each county in the coastal area shall nominate (andtransmit to the Governor the names of) one qualified person in each of the fournominating categories that was designated by the Governor for that county forthat year. In designating nominating categories from biennium to biennium, theGovernor shall equitably rotate said categories among the several counties ofthe coastal area as in his judgment he deems best; and he shall assign, as nearas may be, an even number of nominees to each nominating category and shallassign in his best judgment any excess above such even number of nominees. Onor before June 1 in every even‑numbered year the governing body of eachincorporated city within the coastal area shall nominate and transmit to the Governorthe name of one person as a nominee to the Commission. In making nominations,the boards of county commissioners and city governing bodies shall give dueconsideration to the nomination of women and minorities. The Governor shallappoint 12 persons from among said city and county nominees to the Commission.The several boards of county commissioners and city governing bodies shalltransmit the names, addresses, and a brief summary of the qualifications oftheir nominees to the Governor on or before June 1 in each even‑numberedyear, beginning in 1974; provided, that the Governor, by registered orcertified mail, shall notify the chairman or the mayors of the said localgoverning boards by May 20 in each such even‑numbered year of the dutiesof local governing boards under this sentence. If any board of commissioners orcity governing body fails to transmit its list of nominations to the Governorby June 1, the Governor may add to the nominations a list of qualified nomineesin lieu of those that were not transmitted by the board of commissioners orcity governing body; Provided however, the Governor may not add to the list anominee in lieu of one not transmitted by an incorporated city within thecoastal area that neither has a population of 2,000 or more nor is contiguouswith the Atlantic Ocean. Within the meaning of this section, the"governing body" is the mayor and council of a city as defined inG.S. 160A‑66. The population of cities shall be determined according tothe most recent annual estimates of population as certified to the Secretary ofRevenue by the Secretary of Administration.
(e) ResidentialQualifications. All nominees of the several boards of county commissionersand city governing bodies must reside within the coastal area, but need notreside in the county from which they were nominated. No more than one of thosemembers appointed by the Governor from among said nominees may reside in aparticular county. No more than two members of the entire Commission, at anytime, may reside in a particular county. No more than two members of the entireCommission, at any time, may reside outside the coastal area.
(f) Office May Be HeldConcurrently with Others. Membership on the Coastal Resources Commission ishereby declared to be an office that may be held concurrently with otherelective or appointive offices in addition to the maximum number of officespermitted to be held by one person under G.S. 128‑1.1.
(g) Terms. Themembers shall serve staggered terms of office of four years. At the expirationof each member's term, the Governor shall reappoint or replace the member witha new member of like qualification (as specified in subsection (b) of thissection), in the manner provided by subsections (c) and (d) of this section.The initial term shall be determined by the Governor in accordance withcustomary practice but eight of the initial members shall be appointed for twoyears and seven for four years.
(h) Vacancies. In theevent of a vacancy arising otherwise than by expiration of term, the Governorshall appoint a successor of like qualification (as specified in subsection (b)of this section) who shall then serve the remainder of his predecessor's term.When any such vacancy arises, the Governor shall immediately notify the board ofcommissioners of each county in the coastal area and the governing body of eachincorporated city within the coastal area. Within 30 days after receipt of suchnotification each such county board and city governing body shall nominate andtransmit to the Governor the name and address of one person who is qualified inthe category represented by the position to be filled, together with a briefsummary of the qualifications of the nominee. The Governor shall make theappointment from among said city and county nominees. If any county board orcity governing body fails to make a timely transmittal of its nominee, theGovernor may add to the nominations a qualified person in lieu of said nominee;Provided however, the Governor may not add to the list a nominee in lieu of onenot transmitted by an incorporated city within the coastal area that neitherhas a population of 2,000 or more nor is contiguous with the Atlantic Ocean.
(i) Officers. Thechairman shall be designated by the Governor from among the members of theCommission to serve as chairman at the pleasure of the Governor. The vice‑chairmanshall be elected by and from the members of the Commission and shall serve fora term of two years or until the expiration of his regularly appointed term.
(j) Compensation. The members of the Commission shall receive per diem and necessary travel andsubsistence expenses in accordance with the provisions of G.S. 138‑5.
(k) In makingappointments to and filling vacancies upon the Commission, the Governor shallgive due consideration to securing appropriate representation of women andminorities.
(l) Regular attendanceat Commission meetings is a duty of each member. The Commission shall developprocedures for declaring any seat on the Commission to be vacant upon failureby a member to perform this duty. (1973, c. 1284, s. 1; 1975,c. 452, s. 5; 1977, c. 771, s. 4; c. 486, ss. 1‑6; 1981, c. 932, s. 2.1;1989, c. 505; c. 727, s. 218(64); 1997‑443, s. 11A.119(a).)