A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to make modifications to lme/mco governing boards.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 122C‑118.1(a) reads as rewritten:
"§ 122C‑118.1.  Structure of area board.
(a)	An area board shall have no fewer than 11 and no more than 21 voting members. The board of county commissioners, or the boards of county commissioners within the area, shall appoint members consistent with the requirements provided in subsection (b) of this section. If the board or boards fail to comply with the requirements of subsection (b) of this section, the Secretary shall appoint the unrepresented category.
(a1)	The process for appointing members shall ensure participation from each of the constituent counties of a multicounty area authority. The boards of county commissioners within a multicounty area with a catchment population of at least 1,250,000 shall have the option to appoint members of the area board through a process other than as required by this section by at least two‑thirds of the constituent counties each adopting a resolution to that effect and receiving written approval from the Secretary. The Secretary may approve an appointment process that includes the constituent counties delegating appointment authority to intermediary bodies created by counties to represent regions of a multicounty area authority. A member of the board may be removed with or without cause by the appointing authority.
(a2)	The area board may declare vacant the office of an appointed member who does not attend three consecutive scheduled meetings without justifiable excuse. The chair of the area board shall notify the appropriate appointing authority of any vacancy. Vacancies on the board shall be filled by the appointing authority before the end of the term of the vacated seat or within 90 days of the vacancy, whichever occurs first, and the appointments shall be for the remainder of the unexpired term."
SECTION 2.  This act is effective when it becomes law.