A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to amend the wilmington civil service act.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  Sections 11.1 and 11.2 of Article XI of the Charter of the City of Wilmington, being Chapter 495 of the 1977 Session Laws, as amended by Chapter 342 of the 1981 Session Laws, read as rewritten:
"ARTICLE XI.  CIVIL SERVICE.
"Sec. 11.1.  Civil Service Commission established.
(a)	Establishment, Qualifications, and Restrictions. – There is created a civil service commission consisting of five regular members and one nonvoting ex officio member. Each regular member must be a citizen and a resident of the City of Wilmington. No regular member shall be an officer or employee of the city, or be a member of the immediate family of an employee of the city, or a former employee of the police or fire department.
(b)	Appointment, Term, and Removal of Regular Members. – The employees of the City of Wilmington Fire Department who are subject to this Article, by a majority vote, shall name one regular member. The employees of the City of Wilmington Police Department who are subject to this Article, by a majority vote, shall name one regular member. The City Council of the City of Wilmington, by a majority vote, shall name one regular member. The New Hanover County Medical Society governing board, by a majority vote, shall name one regular member. The sitting members of the Civil Service Commission, by a majority vote, shall select one member to be confirmed by the City Council as a regular member of the commission.
The regular members of the commission shall serve a term of three years unless removed by the appointing authority. A member may be removed by a majority vote of all members of the agency appointing that member.
(c)	Vacancy. – A vacancy on the commission may be caused by the death, resignation, disqualification, or removal of a regular member. Such vacancy shall be filled by the appointing authority authorized to name the member causing the vacancy. If the appointing agency fails to fill the vacancy within 60 days after notification, the senior resident superior court judge of the judicial district that includes New Hanover County shall be notified and shall immediately fill the vacancy. Regular members appointed to fill a vacancy serve for the remainder of the unexpired term.
(d)	Compensation, Officers, and Quorum. – The City Council shall set the compensation for allowances, if any, to be paid the members of the commission. In November of each year, the regular members of the commission shall elect a chairman and may elect other officers. A majority of the regular members of the commission constitutes a quorum. There shall be a minimum of four regular members present to consider the appeal of a dismissal or demotion under this Article. A quorum will be required to consider nondisciplinary matters.
(e)	Secretary. – The city clerk shall act as permanent recording secretary to the Civil Service Commission. The recording secretary shall maintain the minutes of commission meetings and hearings, shall be custodian of all papers and records pertaining to the business of the commission, shall notify commission members of meetings, shall administer required oaths, shall be responsible for transmitting to the Superior Court of New Hanover County a complete transcript of all proceedings and papers concerning any commission order appealed to the court, and shall perform other duties as the commission may require.
(f)	Ex Officio Member. – The director of human resources shall act as a nonvoting ex officio member of the commission and shall advise the commission on all city and departmental policies, rules, regulations, and procedures. The commission shall, within a reasonable time, supply the director of human resources with notification of any actions, reports, or recommendations made by the commission. The human resources department shall notify affected police and fire department members of actions, reports, and recommendations made by the commission.
"Sec. 11.2.  Application of Article.
(a)	General Application. – The provisions of this Article shall apply only to civil service certified employees of the City of Wilmington police and fire departments as defined in this section.
(b)	Police Department. – An employee of the police department shall be civil service certified only if that employee: (i) is a full‑time regular employee of the City of Wilmington; (ii) has successfully completed the probationary period of employment as set forth in Section 11.5 of this Article; (iii) has received certification as a criminal justice officer by the State of North Carolina; and (iv) continues to maintain such State certification while employed by the police department as a criminal justice officer. Other than Section 11.4 of this Article, the provisions of this Article shall not apply to the chief of police. The provisions of this Article shall not apply to any deputy chief or auxiliary police officer appointed to such position after the date of the enactment of this Article.
(c)	Fire Department. – An employee of the fire department shall be civil service certified only if that employee: (i) is a full‑time regular employee of the City of Wilmington; (ii) has successfully completed the probationary period of employment as set forth in Section 11.5 of this Article; (iii) has received certification as either a firefighter or fire inspector by the State of North Carolina; and (iv) continues to maintain such State certification while employed by the fire department in a primary function of protecting life and property through firefighting, including those fire officer positions assigned to supporting services of the fire service. Other than Section 11.4 of this Article; the provisions of this Article shall not apply to the fire chief. The provisions of this Article shall not apply to any deputy fire chief appointed to such position after the date of the enactment of this Article."
SECTION 2.  This act is effective when it becomes law.