AN ACT TO REDUCE THE MINIMUM MEMBERSHIP OF THE GLOBAL TRANSPARK DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION, ALSO CALLED THE EASTERN REGION COMMISSION.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  G.S. 158‑35 reads as rewritten:
"§ 158‑35.  Commission membership, officers, compensation.
(a)	Commission Membership. – The governing body of the Zone is the Global TransPark Development Commission. The members of the Commission must be residents of the Zone and shall be appointed as follows:
(1)	The board of commissioners of each county participating in the Zone shall appoint three voting members, one of whom shall be a minority person as defined in G.S. 143‑128.2(g)(2) and one of whom may be a member of the board of commissioners.
(2)	The Commission may appoint up to seven voting members. By the appointment of these members, the Commission shall ensure that the voting membership of the Commission includes at least seven women and seven members of a racial minority described in G.S. 143‑128.2(g)(2). The Commission shall appoint the fewest number of members necessary to achieve these minimums.
(3)	Four nonvoting members shall be appointed as follows:
a.	One appointed by the Chancellor of East Carolina University to represent the University.
b.	One appointed by a majority vote of the presidents of the community colleges located in the Zone, to represent the community colleges.
c.	One appointed by the chair of the State Ports Authority, to represent the sea ports of the State.
d.	One member of the board of directors of the Global TransPark Foundation, Inc., appointed by that board.
(b)	Terms. – Members of the Commission shall serve for staggered four‑year terms. The members appointed by the Chancellor of East Carolina University and by the chair of the State Ports Authority shall serve an initial term of two years. The members appointed by the community colleges located in the Zone and by the board of directors of the Global TransPark Foundation, Inc., shall serve an initial term of four years. Each board of commissioners shall designate one of its appointees to serve an initial term of four years, one to serve an initial term of two years, and one to serve an initial term to be determined at the first meeting of the Commission. One‑half of the appointees designated to serve an undetermined initial term shall serve an initial term of two years, as determined by lot at the first meeting of the Commission. The remainder of the appointees designated to serve an undetermined initial term shall serve an initial term of four years. Initial terms begin upon approval by the Secretary of State of the articles of incorporation.
(c)	Removal; Vacancies. – A member of the Commission may be removed with or without cause by the appointing body. In addition, a majority of the Commission members may, by majority vote, remove a member of the Commission if that member does not attend at least three‑quarters of the regularly scheduled meetings of the Commission during any consecutive 12‑month period of service of that member on the Commission, except that absences excused by the Commission due to serious medical or family circumstances shall not be considered. If the Commission votes to remove a member under this subsection, the vacancy shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment. Appointments to fill vacancies shall be made for the remainder of the unexpired term by the respective appointing authority. All members shall serve until their successors are appointed and qualified, unless removed from office.
(d)	Dual Office Holding. – Service on the Commission may be in addition to any other office a person is entitled to hold.
(e)	Officers. – The Commission shall annually elect from its membership a chairperson and a vice‑chairperson, and shall annually elect a secretary and a treasurer. After the Commission has been duly organized and its officers elected as provided in this section, the secretary of the Commission shall certify to the Secretary of State the names and addresses of the officers as well as the address of the principal office of the Commission.
(f)	Compensation. – The members of the Commission shall receive no compensation other than travel, subsistence, and reasonable per diem expenses determined by the Commission for attendance at Commission meetings and other official Zone functions."
SECTION 2.  This act is effective when it becomes law. This act does not affect the term of any current member of the Commission.
In the General Assembly read three times and ratified this the 21st day of May, 2003.

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		 Beverly E. Perdue
	 President of the Senate

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		 Richard T. Morgan
	 Speaker of the House of Representatives

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		 Michael F. Easley
	 Governor

Approved __________.m. this ______________ day of ___________________, 2003