§ 42-98-5 - Board established.
SECTION 42-98-5
§ 42-98-5 Board established. – (a) There is established the siting board which shall be a part of stategovernment. The siting board shall consist of three (3) members, as follows:the chairperson of the public utilities commission, who shall serve aschairperson of the siting board; the director of the department ofenvironmental management; and the associate director of administration forplanning. Any member of the board who recuses him or herself shall designatehis or her own successor from his or her respective agency.
(b) Each member of the board shall take an oath to administerthe duties of office faithfully and impartially and that oath shall be filed inthe office of the secretary of state.
(c) The members of the board shall serve withoutcompensation, but shall be reimbursed for their actual expenses necessarilyincurred in the performance of their duties. The board may engage anyconsultants or expert witnesses that it deems necessary to implement itsstatutory responsibilities; provided, however, that to the maximum extentpossible, board staff be drawn from existing state agencies. The board shallselect a coordinator to be responsible for the publication and distribution ofall official minutes, reports, and documents and to further serve as directorof the board staff, which shall be located at the division of public utilitiesand common carriers. The coordinator, under the direction of the chairperson,shall coordinate and expedite the work of the various agencies to ensure thatdecisions are made within the time frame established by this chapter.
(d) A quorum shall consist of a majority of the board. Amajority vote of the board shall be required for all actions, includinglicensing decisions; provided, however, one member of the board may conduct anyhearings the board is authorized to conduct pursuant to this chapter.
(e) The board shall maintain and grant free access to recordsand reports in its files to members of the public during normal working hoursand shall permit copies of those records and reports to be made by interestedmembers of the public at their expense; provided, however, that the board shallnot permit disclosure, other than to another government agency for the solepurpose of rendering an advisory opinion, of any information obtained by orsubmitted to the board pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, upon ashowing, satisfactory to the board, that the information is entitled toprotection as trade secrets or as privileged, confidential, or proprietaryinformation. No other governmental agency shall disclose any trade secrets orprivileged, confidential, or proprietary information.