§ 143B-309. Forestry Council - members; chairperson; selection; removal; compensation; quorum.
§ 143B‑309. Forestry Council members; chairperson; selection; removal; compensation;quorum.
(a) The Forestry Advisory Council of the Department ofEnvironment and Natural Resources shall consist of 18 members appointed asfollows:
(1) Three persons who are registered foresters and who representthe primary forest products industry, one each from the Mountains, Piedmont andCoastal Plain.
(2) One person who represents the secondary wood‑usingindustry.
(3) One person who represents the logging industry.
(4) Four persons who are nonindustrial woodland owners activelyinvolved in forest management, one of whom has agricultural interests, and atleast one each from the Mountains, Piedmont, and Coastal Plain.
(5) Three persons who are members of statewide environmental orwildlife conservation organizations.
(6) One consulting forester.
(7) Two persons who are forest scientists with knowledge of thefunctioning and management of forest ecosystems.
(8) One person who represents a banking institution that managesforestland.
(9) One person with expertise in urban forestry.
(10) One person with active experience in city and regionalplanning.
(b) The Governor shall appoint one person from categories (1)and (5), two persons from category (4), and the persons from categories (6),(7), (8), (9), and (10). The President Pro Tempore of the Senate shall appointthe person from category (2) and one person each from categories (1), (4), and(5). The Speaker of the House of Representatives shall appoint the person fromcategory (3) and one person each from categories (1), (4), and (5). TheGovernor, the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, and the Speaker of the Houseof Representatives shall consult with one another to insure that each of thethree geographic regions of the State are represented in appointments made tofill categories (1) and (4).
(c) The Governor shall designate one member of the Council toserve as chairperson at the pleasure of the Governor.
(d) Members shall serve staggered terms of office of four years.The terms of office of members filling categories (1), (4), and (5) shallexpire on 30 June of years that follow by one year those years that are evenlydivisible by four. The terms of office of members filling categories (2), (3),(6), (7), (8), (9), and (10) shall expire on 30 June of years that follow bythree years those years that are evenly divisible by four. Terms shall expireas provided by this subsection except that members of the Council shall serveuntil their successors are appointed and duly qualified as provided by G.S. 128‑7.Any appointment to fill a vacancy on the Council created by the resignation,dismissal, death or disability of a member shall be for the balance of theunexpired term and shall be made by the appointing authority responsible forthat category. Vacancies in appointments made by the General Assembly shall befilled in accordance with G.S. 120‑122.
(e) The Governor shall have the power to remove, in accordancewith G.S. 143B‑13, any member appointed by the Governor. The GeneralAssembly shall have the power to remove, in accordance with G.S. 143B‑13,any member appointed by the General Assembly.
(f) Members of the Council shall receive per diem and necessarytravel and subsistence expenses in accordance with the provisions of G.S. 138‑5.
(g) A majority of the Council shall constitute a quorum for thetransaction of business.
(h) All clerical and other services required by the Council,including the support required to carry out studies it is requested to make,shall be supplied by the Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources. (1973, c. 1262, s. 53; 1977, c. 771, s. 4; 1989, c.727, s. 218(140); 1995 (Reg. Sess., 1996), c. 653, s. 2; 1997‑443, s.11A.119(a).)