A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO AMEND THE CONSTITUTION TO AUTHORIZE THE gOVERNOR TO APPOINT THE STATE SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  Section 4(2) of Article IX of the North Carolina Constitution reads as rewritten:
"(2)	Superintendent of Public Instruction. The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall be appointed by the Governor and shall be the secretary and chief administrative officer of the State Board of Education."
SECTION 2.  Section 7(1) of Article III of the North Carolina Constitution reads as rewritten:
"(1)	Officers. A Secretary of State, an Auditor, a Treasurer, an Attorney General, a Commissioner of Agriculture, a Commissioner of Labor, and a Commissioner of Insurance shall be elected by the qualified voters of the State in 1972 and every four years thereafter, at the same time and places as members of the General Assembly are elected. Their term of office shall be four years and shall commence on the first day of January next after their election and continue until their successors are elected and qualified."
SECTION 3.  G.S. 115C‑18 reads as rewritten:
"§ 115C‑18.  Appointment of Superintendent of Public Instruction.
The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall be appointed by the Governor. The Governor shall make an appointment to fill any vacancy in the office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction."
SECTION 4.  G.S. 143A‑44.3 reads as rewritten:
"§ 143A‑44.3.  Superintendent of Public Instruction; creation; transfer of powers and duties.
The office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, as provided for by Article IX, Section 4(2) of the Constitution, and the Department of Public Instruction are transferred to the Department of Public Instruction. The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall be the Secretary and Chief Administrative Officer of the State Board of Education, and shall have all powers and duties conferred by the Constitution, by the State Board of Education, Chapter 115C of the General Statutes, and the laws of this State."
SECTION 5.  G.S. 147‑4 reads as rewritten:
"§ 147‑4.  Executive officers – election; term; induction into office.
The executive department shall consist of a Governor, a Lieutenant Governor, a Secretary of State, an Auditor, a Treasurer, an Attorney General, a Commissioner of Agriculture, a Commissioner of Insurance, and a Commissioner of Labor, who shall be elected for a term of four years, by the qualified electors of the State, at the same time and places, and in the same manner, as members of the General Assembly are elected. Their term of office shall commence on the first day of January next after their election and continue until their successors are elected and qualified. The persons having the highest number of votes, respectively, shall be declared duly elected, but if two or more be equal and highest in votes for the same office, then one of them shall be chosen by joint ballot of both houses of the General Assembly. Contested elections shall be determined by a joint ballot of both houses of the General Assembly in such manner as shall be prescribed by law."
SECTION 6.  G.S. 147‑11.1 reads as rewritten:
"§ 147‑11.1.  Succession to office of Governor; Acting Governor.
…
(b)	President of Senate, Speaker of the House and Other Officers. –
(1)	If, by reason of failure to qualify, death, resignation, or removal from office, there is neither a Governor nor a Lieutenant Governor to discharge the powers and duties of the office of Governor, then the President of the Senate shall, upon resignation as President of the Senate and as Senator, become Governor.
(2)	If, at the time when under subdivision (1) of this subsection the President of the Senate is to become Governor, there is no President of the Senate, or the President of the Senate fails to qualify as Governor, then the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall, upon resignation as Speaker and as Representative, become Governor.
(3)	If, at the time when under subdivision (2) of this subsection the Speaker of the House of Representatives is to become Governor, there is no Speaker of the House of Representatives, or the Speaker of the House of Representatives fails to qualify as Governor, then that officer of the State of North Carolina who is highest on the following list, and who is not under disability to serve as Governor, shall, upon resignation of the office which places the officer in the order of succession, become Governor: Secretary of State, Auditor, Treasurer, Attorney General, Commissioner of Agriculture, Commissioner of Labor, and Commissioner of Insurance.
(c)	Acting Governor Generally. –
(1)	If, by reason of absence from the State or physical or mental incapacity, there is neither a Governor nor a Lieutenant Governor qualified to discharge the powers and duties of the office of Governor, then the President of the Senate shall become Acting Governor.
(2)	If, at the time when under subdivision (1) of this subsection the President of the Senate is to become Acting Governor, there is no President of the Senate, or the President of the Senate fails to qualify as Acting Governor, then the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall become Acting Governor.
(3)	If, at the time when under subdivision (2) of this subsection the Speaker of the House of Representatives is to become Acting Governor, there is no Speaker of the House of Representatives, or the Speaker of the House of Representatives fails to qualify as Acting Governor, then that officer of the State of North Carolina who is highest on the following list, and who is not under disability to serve as Acting Governor, shall become Acting Governor: Secretary of State, Auditor, Treasurer, Attorney General, Commissioner of Agriculture, Commissioner of Labor, and Commissioner of Insurance.
…."
SECTION 7.  G.S. 163‑1(d) reads as rewritten:
"(d)	If primaries for the State Senate or State House of Representatives are temporarily moved from the date provided in subsection (b) of this section for any election year, all primaries shall be held on the same day.

OFFICE	JURISDICTION	DATE OF ELECTION	TERM OF OFFICE
Governor	State	Tuesday next after	Four years, from
		the first Monday 	first day of
		in November 1968	January next
		and every four	after election
		years thereafter
Lieutenant	State	Tuesday next after 	Four years, from
Governor		the first Monday	first day of
		in November 1968	January next
		and every four	after election
		years thereafter
Secretary of	State	Tuesday next after	Four years, from
State		the first Monday	first day of
		in November 1968	January next
		and every four	after election
		years thereafter
Auditor	State	Tuesday next after	Four years, from
		the first Monday	first day of
		in November 1968	January next
		and every four	after election
		years thereafter
Treasurer	State	Tuesday next after	Four years, from
		the first Monday	first day of
		in November 1968	January next
		and every four	after election
		years thereafter
														…."
SECTION 8.  G.S. 163‑8 reads as rewritten:
"§ 163‑8.  Filling vacancies in State executive offices.
If the office of Governor or Lieutenant Governor shall become vacant, the provisions of G.S. 147‑11.1 shall apply. If the office of any of the following officers shall be vacated by death, resignation, or otherwise than by expiration of term, it shall be the duty of the Governor to appoint another to serve until that officer's successor is elected and qualified: Secretary of State, Auditor, Treasurer, Attorney General, Commissioner of Agriculture, Commissioner of Labor, and Commissioner of Insurance. Each such vacancy shall be filled by election at the first election for members of the General Assembly that occurs more than 60 days after the vacancy has taken place, and the person chosen shall hold the office for the remainder of the unexpired four‑year term: Provided, that when a vacancy occurs in any of the offices named in this section and the term expires on the first day of January succeeding the next election for members of the General Assembly, the Governor shall appoint to fill the vacancy for the unexpired term of the office.
Upon the occurrence of a vacancy in the office of any one of these officers for any of the causes stated in the preceding paragraph, the Governor may appoint an acting officer to perform the duties of that office until a person is appointed or elected pursuant to this section and Article III, Section 7 of the State Constitution, to fill the vacancy and is qualified."
SECTION 9.  G.S. 163‑278.27(b)(2) reads as rewritten:
"(2)	In the case of a candidate for nomination or election to the office of Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, State Auditor, State Treasurer, State Attorney General, State Commissioner of Agriculture, State Commissioner of Labor, State Commissioner of Insurance, and all other State elective offices, Justice of the Supreme Court, Judge of the Court of Appeals, judge of a superior court, judge of a district court, and district attorney of the superior court: report to the district attorney of the prosecutorial district in which Wake County is located;"
SECTION 10.  G.S. 163‑278.95 reads as rewritten:
"§ 163‑278.95.  Purpose and establishment of Voter‑Owned Elections Act.
The purpose of this Article is to ensure the vitality and fairness of democratic elections in North Carolina to the end that any eligible citizen of this State can realistically choose to seek and run for public office. It is also the purpose of this Article to protect the constitutional rights of voters and candidates from the detrimental effects of increasingly large amounts of money being raised and spent in North Carolina to influence the outcome of elections. It is essential to the public interest that the potential for corruption or the appearance of corruption is minimized and that the equal and meaningful participation of all citizens in the democratic process is ensured. Accordingly, this Article establishes the North Carolina Voter‑Owned Elections Fund as an alternative source of campaign financing for candidates who obtain a sufficient number of qualifying contributions from registered voters and who voluntarily accept strict fund‑raising and spending limits. This Article is available to candidates for the Council of State offices of Auditor and Commissioner of Insurance in elections to be held in 2008 and thereafter."
SECTION 11.  G.S. 163‑278.96(12) reads as rewritten:
"(12)	Office. – The Council of State offices of Auditor and Commissioner of Insurance."
SECTION 12.  The amendments set out in Sections 1 and 2 of this act shall be submitted to the qualified voters of the State at a statewide election to be conducted on November 4, 2014, which election shall be conducted under the laws then governing elections in the State. Ballots, voting systems, or both may be used in accordance with Chapter 163 of the General Statutes. The question to be used in the voting systems and ballots shall be:
"[ ] FOR	[ ] AGAINST
Constitutional amendments to make the Superintendent of Public Instruction a position appointed by the Governor."
SECTION 13.  If a majority of votes cast on the question are in favor of the amendments set out in Sections 1 and 2 of this act, the State Board of Elections shall certify the amendments to the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State shall enroll the amendments so certified among the permanent records of that office. The amendments set out in Sections 1 and 2 of this act shall become effective January 1, 2017, except that there shall be no election held to fill the office of Superintendent of Public Instruction for a term beginning on or after December 31, 2016.
SECTION 14.  Sections 3 through 11 of this act become effective only if the qualified voters approve the constitutional amendments set out in Sections 1 and 2 of this act. If the voters approve the constitutional amendments, Sections 3 through 11 of this act become effective January 1, 2017. The remainder of this act is effective when the act becomes law.