§ 147-12. Powers and duties of Governor.
§ 147‑12. Powers andduties of Governor.
(a) In addition to thepowers and duties prescribed by the Constitution, the Governor has the powersand duties prescribed in this and the following sections:
(1) To supervise theofficial conduct of all executive and ministerial officers; and when theGovernor deems it advisable to visit all State institutions for the purpose ofinquiring into the management and needs of the same.
(2) To see that alloffices are filled, and the duties thereof performed, or in default thereofapply such remedy as the law allows, and if the remedy is imperfect, acquaintthe General Assembly therewith.
(3) To make theappointments and fill the vacancies not otherwise provided for in alldepartments.
Inevery case where the Governor is authorized by statute to make an appointmentto fill a State office, the Governor may also appoint to fill any vacancyoccurring in that office, and the person the Governor appoints shall serve forthe unexpired term of the office and until the person's successor is appointedand qualified.
Inevery case where the Governor is authorized by statute to appoint to fill avacancy in an office in the executive branch of State government, the Governormay appoint an acting officer to serve
a. During the physical ormental incapacity of the regular holder of the office to discharge the dutiesof the office,
b. During the continuedabsence of the regular holder of the office, or
c. During a vacancy inan office and pending the selection and qualification, in the manner prescribedby statute, of a person to serve for the unexpired term.
Anacting officer appointed in accordance with this subsection may perform any actand exercise any power which a regularly appointed holder of such office couldlawfully perform and exercise. All powers granted to an acting officer underthis subsection shall expire immediately
a. Upon the terminationof the incapacity of the officer in whose stead the person acts,
b. Upon the return ofthe officer in whose stead the person acts, or
c. Upon the selectionand qualification, in the manner prescribed by statute, of a person to servefor the unexpired term.
TheGovernor may determine (after such inquiry as the Governor deems appropriate)that any of the officers referred to in this paragraph is physically ormentally incapable of performing the duties of the office. The Governor mayalso determine that such incapacity has terminated.
Thecompensation of an acting officer appointed pursuant to the provisions of thissubdivision shall be fixed by the Governor.
(3a) To make appointmentsto fill vacancies in offices subject to appointment by the General Assembly asprovided in G.S. 120‑122.
(3b) Whenever a statutecalls for the Governor to appoint one person from each congressional districtto a board or commission, and at the time of enactment of that statute, thegubernatorial appointments do not cover all of the congressional districts,then the Governor, in filling vacancies on that board or commission as theyoccur, shall make appointments to satisfy that requirement, but shall not berequired to remove any person from office to satisfy the requirement.
(3c) Notwithstanding anyother provision of law, whenever a statute calls for the Governor to appoint aperson to an office subject to confirmation by the General Assembly, theGovernor shall notify the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the Houseof Representatives by May 15 of the year in which the appointment is to be madeof the name of the person the Governor is submitting to the General Assemblyfor confirmation.
(3d) Notwithstanding anyother provision of law, whenever a statute calls for the Governor to appoint aperson to an office subject to confirmation by the Senate, the Governor shallnotify the President of the Senate by May 15 of the year in which theappointment is to be made of the name of the person the Governor is submittingto the General Assembly for confirmation.
(4) To be the soleofficial organ between the government of this State and other states, or thegovernment of the United States.
(5) To have the custodyof the great seal of the State.
(6) If the Governor isapprised by the affidavits of two responsible citizens of the State that thereis imminent danger that the statute of this State forbidding prizefighting isabout to be violated, the Governor shall use, as far as necessary, the civiland military power of the State to prevent it, and to have the offendersarrested and bound to keep the peace.
(7) Repealed by SessionLaws 1997‑443, s. 32.30(j), effective July 1, 1999.
(8) In carrying out exofficio duties, to designate the Governor's personal representative to attendmeetings and to act in the Governor's behalf as the Governor directs.
(9) To appoint suchpersonal staff as the Governor deems necessary to carry out effectively theresponsibilities of the Governor's office.
(10) To contract in behalfof the State with the government of the United States to the extent allowed bythe laws of North Carolina for the purpose of securing the benefits availableto this State under the Federal Highway Safety Act of 1966. To that end, theGovernor shall coordinate the activities of any and all departments andagencies of this State and its subdivisions relating thereto.
(11) Upon being furnishedinformation from law‑enforcement officers that public roads or highwaysor other public vehicular areas, as defined in G.S. 20‑4.01, are beingblocked by privately owned and operated vehicles or by any other means, therebyimpeding the free flow of goods and merchandise in North Carolina, if suchinformation warrants, to declare that a state of emergency exists in theaffected area, and to order that the Highway Patrol and/or National Guardremove the offending vehicles or other causes of the blockade from theemergency area.
(12) To name and locateState government buildings, monuments, memorials, and improvements, as providedby G.S. 143B‑373(1).
(13) To oversee andapprove all memoranda of understanding and agreements between the State andforeign governments, as defined in G.S. 66‑280(c), and internationalorganizations. Any memoranda of understanding or agreements under thissubsection to be signed on behalf of the State must first be approved by theGovernor after review by the Attorney General, and after execution filed withthe Secretary of State in accordance with G.S. 66‑280.
(14) To negotiate andenter into Class III Tribal‑State gaming compacts, and amendmentsthereto, on behalf of the State consistent with State law and the Indian GamingRegulatory Act, Public Law 100‑497, as necessary to allow a federallyrecognized Indian tribe to operate gaming activities in this State as permittedunder federal law. The Governor shall report any gaming compact, or amendmentthereto, to the Joint Legislative Commission on Governmental Operations.
(b) The Department ofTransportation, the Department of Correction, the Department of Crime Controland Public Safety, the State Highway Patrol, the Wildlife Resources Commission,the Division of Parks and Recreation in the Department of Environment andNatural Resources, and the Division of Marine Fisheries in the Department ofEnvironment and Natural Resources shall deliver to the Governor by February 1of each year detailed information on the agency's litter enforcement, litterprevention, and litter removal efforts. The Administrative Office of the Courtsshall deliver to the Governor by February 1 of each year detailed informationon the enforcement of the littering laws of the State, including the number ofcharges and convictions under the littering laws of the State. The Governorshall gather the information submitted by the respective agencies and deliver aconsolidated annual report on or before March 1 of each year to theEnvironmental Review Commission, the Joint Legislative Transportation OversightCommittee, and the House of Representatives and the Senate AppropriationsSubcommittees on Natural and Economic Resources. (1868‑9, c. 270, s.27; 1870‑1, c. 111; 1883, c. 71; Code, s. 3320; 1895, c. 28, s. 5; 1905,c. 446; Rev., s. 5328; C.S., s. 7636; 1955, c. 910, s. 3; 1959, c. 285; 1967,c. 1253; 1973, c. 1148; 1981 (Reg. Sess., 1982), c. 1191, ss. 3, 4, 68; 1983,c. 913, s. 46; 1985, c. 122, s. 5; c. 757, s. 181(a); 1985 (Reg. Sess., 1986),c. 955, ss. 106, 107; 1997‑14, s. 3; 1997‑443, s. 32.30(j); 1999‑260,s. 4; 2001‑487, s. 92; 2001‑512, s. 9; 2001‑513, s. 29(a);2006‑6, s. 6; 2006‑79, s. 15; 2006‑203, s. 114; 2006‑259,s. 33(a); 2009‑281, s. 1.)