GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 1993

H	1 

HOUSE BILL 1463

Short Title:  Dept. EHNR Funds.	(Public)
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Sponsors: Representatives Gottovi; Wright, DeVane, Colton, Richardson, Hackney, Bowman, James, and Barnes.
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Referred to:  Appropriations.
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May 17, 1993

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO INCREASE THE MEMBERSHIP OF THE MARINE FISHERIES COMMISSION, TO ESTABLISH THE OYSTER MANAGEMENT ADVISORY COMMISSION, AND TO APPROPRIATE FUNDS TO THE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENT, HEALTH, AND NATURAL RESOURCES FOR VARIOUS CAPITAL, PROGRAM, AND OPERATING EXPENSES.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
Section 1.  G.S. 143B-289.5 reads as rewritten:
"§ 143B-289.5.  Marine Fisheries Commission – members; selection; removal; compensation; quorum; services.
(a)	Members, Selection. – The Marine Fisheries Commission shall consist of 17 members appointed by the Governor.  The Governor shall select the members so that all the following interests are represented:
(1)	Four who shall at the time of appointment be commercial fishermen.  Of the four, three shall at the time of appointment be actively connected with and have experience in commercial fishing, as demonstrated by deriving at least fifty percent (50%) of earned income from taking and selling food resources living in coastal fishing waters, and one shall at the time of appointment be actively connected with and have experience in seafood processing and distribution as demonstrated by deriving at least fifty percent (50%) of earned income from activities involving processing and distributing seafood;
(2)	Four who shall at the time of appointment be actively connected with and have experience in sport fishing;
(3)	Three who shall at the time of appointment have special training and expertise in marine or estuarine sciences or the environment affecting the marine and estuarine resources;
		(4a)	Three who shall at the time of appointment represent shellfishing interests;
(5)	Three at large who shall at the time of appointment have knowledge of and experience related to the subjects and persons regulated by the Commission.
In making appointments to and filling vacancies upon the Commission, the Governor shall give due consideration to securing appropriate representation of women and minorities.
(b)	Terms. – Members shall serve staggered terms of office of six years.  Commission members may continue to serve until their successors have been appointed.  Each member of the Commission, before assuming the duties of his office, shall take an oath for the faithful performance of his duties.
(c)	Vacancies. – Vacancies on the Commission occurring for any reason shall be filled by the Governor.  Any appointment to fill a vacancy on the Commission created by the resignation, dismissal, death or disability of a member shall be for the balance of the unexpired term.
(d)	Removal. – Commission members may be removed by the Governor for misconduct, incompetence, or neglect of duty.  Regular attendance at Commission meetings is a duty of each member.  The Commission shall develop procedures for declaring any seat on the Commission to be vacant upon failure by a member to perform his duty.
(e)	Residential Qualifications. – In appointing four members of the Commission pursuant to G.S. 143B-289.5(a)(1), the Governor shall cause at least one resident of each of the following areas to be appointed:  (1)  Bertie, Camden, Chowan, Currituck, Dare, Gates, Halifax, Hertford, Martin, Northampton, Pasquotank, Perquimans, Tyrrell and Washington Counties; (2) Beaufort, Hyde and Pamlico Counties; (3) Carteret, Craven and Jones Counties; (4) Bladen, Brunswick, Columbus, New Hanover, Onslow and Pender Counties.  Persons appointed to the Commission seats created pursuant to G.S. 143B-289.5(a)(4a) shall be residents of one of the counties listed above.  No more than three members appointed by the Governor may reside in any of the areas defined above.
(f)	Office May Be Held Concurrently With Others. – Membership on the Marine Fisheries Commission is hereby declared to be an office that may be held concurrently with other elective or appointive offices permitted to be held by one person under G.S. 128-1.1.
(g)	Compensation. – Members of the Commission who are State officers or employees shall receive no per diem compensation for serving on the Commission, but shall be reimbursed for their expenses in accordance with G.S. 138-6.  Members of the Commission who are full-time salaried public officers or employees other than State officers or employees shall receive no per diem compensation for serving on the Commission, but shall be reimbursed for their expenses in accordance with G.S. 138-6 in the same manner as State officers or employees.  All other Commission members shall receive per diem compensation and reimbursement in accordance with the compensation rate established in G.S. 93B-5.
(h)	Quorum. – A majority of the Commission of the duly appointed members shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business.  No vacancy in the membership of the Commission shall impair the rights of a quorum to exercise all the rights and to perform all the duties of the Commission.
(i)	Staff. – All clerical and other services required by the Commission shall be supplied by the Fisheries Director and the Department of Environment, Health, and Natural Resources.
(j)	Legal Services. – The Attorney General shall act as attorney for the Commission and shall initiate actions in the name of, and at the request of, the Commission, and shall represent the Commission in the hearing of any appeal from or other review of any order of the Commission."
Sec. 2.  (a) There is established the Oyster Management Advisory Council.  The Oyster Management Advisory Council shall advise the Secretary on rules, policies, and programs to protect and rehabilitate the State's oyster resources.  The Council shall consider the topics it deems necessary to protect and rehabilitate the oyster resource, including:  causes of decline, regulatory structure and authority, oyster habitat reclamation and expansion, and rezoning of public trust waters to accommodate needs of oyster industry.
The Council shall recommend to the Secretary of Environment, Health, and Natural Resources in advance of each Regular Session of the General Assembly, legislative, regulatory, and other proposals to improve regulation and rehabilitation of the oyster resources of the State.
(b) The Oyster Management Advisory Council shall consist of 11 members appointed by the Secretary of Environment, Health, and Natural Resources.  The membership of the Council shall be comprised as follows:
(1)	Four members shall be appointed who are actively connected with and have experience in oysters.
(2)	Two members shall be appointed who have scientific training in marine biology and expertise in oyster resources.
(3)	One member shall be appointed who is an oyster pathologist.
(4)	One member shall be appointed who is a human health expert.
(5)	One member shall be appointed who is a water quality expert with particular knowledge of oyster habitats.
(6)	Two members shall be appointed as at-large members.
(c)	The Secretary may remove any member of the Council for misfeasance, malfeasance, or nonfeasance.  A member who fails to attend three consecutive meetings of the Council shall cease to be a member of the Council.
(d)	The Secretary shall designate one member of the Council to  serve as Chair.  The Council shall meet upon the call of the Chair.  A majority of the Council shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business.
(e)  Any person who is a member of the Council may hold membership concurrently with and in addition to any other elective or appointive office the person is permitted to hold under G.S. 128-1.1.
(f)  Members of the Council who are not State employees shall receive per diem and necessary travel and subsistence expenses in accordance with the provisions of G.S. 138-5.
(g)  All clerical and other services required by the Council shall be supplied by the Department of Environment, Health, and Natural Resources.
(h)  The Council shall report to the Secretary of Environment, Health, and Natural Resources by January 1, 1995, its recommendations regarding regulatory and other proposals to improve the regulation and rehabilitation of the oyster resources of the State.
(i)  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Environment, Health, and Natural Resources the sum of fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) for the 1993-94 fiscal year and the sum of fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) for the 1994-95 fiscal year to implement this section.
Sec. 3.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Environment, Health, and Natural Resources the sum of one million dollars ($1,000,000) for the 1993-94 fiscal year to provide capital funds  for the construction of an oyster research hatchery.
Sec. 4.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Environment, Health, and Natural Resources the sum of one million dollars ($1,000,000) for the 1993-94 fiscal year and the sum of one million dollars ($1,000,000) for the 1994-95 fiscal year to support and expand oyster programs.
Sec. 5.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Environment, Health, and Natural Resources the sum of ninety thousand dollars ($90,000) for the 1993-94 fiscal year and the sum of ninety thousand dollars ($90,000) for the 1994-95 fiscal year to enable the Department to do the North Carolina Environmental Index.  The funds shall be used to support one staff person and  computers needed to do the report and to cover the cost of printing the report.
Sec. 6.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Environment, Health, and Natural Resources the sum of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) for the 1993-94 fiscal year for the Governor's Blue Ribbon Commission on the twentieth anniversary of the Coastal Management Program, provided these funds are matched on the basis of two dollars ($2.00) of non-State funds for every one dollar ($1.00) of State funds, to be used to provide staff and materials in the Division of Coastal Management to coordinate the year-long efforts of the volunteer Commission.  The purpose of the Commission is to manage a year-long comprehensive study of the successes and failures of the 20 years of the Coastal Area Management Act (CAMA).
Sec. 7.  This act becomes effective July 1, 1993.