A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR PARTISAN ELECTIONS FOR THE MEMBERS OF THE ROWAN‑SALISBURY BOARD OF EDUCATION.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  Sections C and D of Article V of A PLAN FOR MERGER OF THE ROWAN COUNTY SCHOOL AND THE SALISBURY CITY SCHOOLS, as approved by the State Board of Education on December 3, 1987, filed with the Secretary of State in accordance with G.S. 115C‑67 on December 21, 1987, and as amended by Section 2 of Chapter 890 of the 1987 Session Laws, are repealed.
SECTION 2.  The Rowan‑Salisbury Board of Education shall consist of seven members elected on a partisan basis at the time of the general election in each even‑numbered year. Members shall serve staggered four‑year terms. One member shall be elected from each of seven single‑member residency districts, as described in Section 3 of this act, by the qualified voters of the entire county. Only a person residing in a residency district shall be eligible as a candidate in the election for the seat apportioned to that district. Candidates for election to the Rowan‑Salisbury Board of Education shall be nominated at the same time and manner as county officers. Members elected shall take office and qualify on the first Monday in December of the year of the election, and the terms of their predecessors shall expire at that same time. Members shall serve until a successor has been elected and qualified. Except as otherwise provided by this act, the election shall be conducted in accordance with the applicable provisions of Chapters 115C and 163 of the General Statutes.
SECTION 2.(b)  Vacancies on the Rowan‑Salisbury Board of Education shall be filled in accordance with G.S. 115C‑37.1. To be eligible for appointment to fill a vacancy, the person must reside in the residency district where the vacancy exists.
SECTION 3.(a)  The seven residency districts for the Rowan‑Salisbury Board of Education are as follows:
Seat 1:	The North Rowan High School attendance zone, except for that portion included in the district for Seat 6.
Seat 2:	The South Rowan High School attendance zone.
Seat 3:	The East Rowan High School attendance zone.
Seat 4:	The West Rowan High School attendance zone.
Seat 5:	The Salisbury High School attendance zone, except for that portion included in the district for Seat 6.
Seat 6:	All of the East Spencer, East Ward II, and West Ward III precincts; the portion of East Ward I precinct between Main Street and I‑85; the portion of South Ward precinct between Main Street and I‑85 and bordered on the south by the Southern Railroad line running from Harrison Street to I‑85; the portion of West Ward I precinct north of a line consisting of Wilson Road, Taylor Street, Harrison Street, Fulton Street, and Monroe Street; and the portion of Milford Hills precinct between the Southern Railroad line and Highway 70 (Statesville Boulevard) west of Jake Alexander Boulevard and within the Salisbury city limits.
Seat 7:	The Southeast Rowan High School attendance zone, except for that portion included in the district for Seat 6.
SECTION 3.(b)  The Rowan‑Salisbury Board of Education may revise the residency districts set forth in this section if an adjustment is required for a change in the attendance zones to accommodate a new school, closure of a school, or consolidation of one or more schools. A change in the boundaries of attendance zones shall not affect the ability of any person to complete the term of office.
SECTION 4.  In 2024 and quadrennially thereafter, one member shall be elected for Seats 3, 5, and 7 to serve four‑year terms. In 2026 and quadrennially thereafter, one member shall be elected for Seats 1, 2, 4, and 6 to serve four‑year terms.
SECTION 5.  This act does not affect the term of office of any member elected in 2020 or 2022 to the Rowan‑Salisbury Board of Education. Any vacancy on the Rowan‑Salisbury Board of Education for a member elected in 2020 and 2022 shall be filled by appointment by the remaining members of the Rowan‑Salisbury Board of Education; to be eligible for appointment to fill a vacancy, the person must reside in the residency district where the vacancy exists. The members of the Rowan‑Salisbury Board of Education elected in 2020 and 2022, or any member appointed by the remaining members of the Rowan‑Salisbury Board of Education to fill a vacancy for a member elected in 2020 or 2022, shall serve until a successor has been elected and qualified.
SECTION 6.(a)  G.S. 115C‑37.1(d) reads as rewritten:
"(d)	This section shall apply only in the following counties: Alleghany, Brunswick, Cherokee, Clay, Davie, Graham, Guilford, Harnett, Iredell, Lee, New Hanover, Rowan, Rutherford, Stanly, Vance, and Washington."
SECTION 6.(b)  This section becomes effective December 1, 2024.
SECTION 7.  Except as otherwise provided, this act is effective when it becomes law and applies to elections held on or after that date.