Georgia § 50-7-2 - Commissioner as head of department; appointment and compensation; authority to designate assistant commissioner and other employees; reimbursement of certain expenses.

§ 50-7-2. Commissioner as head of department; appointment and compensation; authority to designate assistant commissioner and other employees; reimbursement of certain expenses.

There is created the office of commissioner of economic development, who shall be executive office and administrative head of the department. The commissioner shall be appointed by and serve at the pleasure of the Board of Economic Development. The compensation of the commissioner shall be fixed by the board. The commissioner shall assist the board in the performance of its duties, powers, and authority, and jurisdiction as the board shall provide. The commissioner shall receive expenses, including mileage, as do other state officials and employees. The board is authorized to designate an assistant commissioner, a deputy commissioner to be known as the deputy commissioner for Rural Georgia, and such other employees as are necessary to carry out and effectuate this chapter. The commissioner is further authorized and empowered to reimburse authorized personnel of the department for the actual cost incurred in the pursuit of official business for all meals, taxis, parking, and the rental of automobiles when the use of such vehicles is less expensive or more efficient than other commercial transportation. (Ga. L. 1959, p. 262, §§ 5, 13; Ga. L. 1962, p. 694, § 6; Ga. L. 1964, p. 181, § 1; Ga. L. 1968, p. 130, § 13; Ga. L. 1968, p. 1411, § 1; Ga. L. 1989, p. 1641, § 14; Ga. L. 2004, p. 690, § 30; Ga. L. 2018, p. 142, § 3/HB 951.) The 2018 amendment, effective July 1, 2018, designated the existing provisions of this Code section as subsections (a) through (c); and inserted ", a deputy commissioner to be known as the deputy commissioner for Rural Georgia," in the middle of present subsection (b). Cross references. - Reimbursement of expenses of state employees generally, § 45-7-20 et seq. Editor's notes. - Ga. L. 2018, p. 142, § 1/HB 951, not codified by the General Assembly, provides that: "The General Assembly finds that: "(1) Since 2010 the State of Georgia has experienced tremendous job growth, adding more than 500,000 new private sector jobs; "(2) Georgia's economic successes during this period have resulted from a favorable tax structure and regulatory environment and aggressive economic development initiatives; "(3) Georgia has been declared by several industry publications, including Site Selection Magazine, to be the best state in the nation for business for the previous four years; "(4) This economic success has not extended into all of Georgia's rural areas to a desired level; "(5) As a result, Georgia's rural areas face with challenges distinct from other regions of this state, including loss of population, insufficient health care access, poor infrastructure, diminished opportunity for quality education, scarcity of employment opportunities, and overall lack of economic growth; "(6) A thorough, intensive, and systematic study of the existing issues in Georgia's rural areas is necessary and appropriate; and "(7) The objective of such study should be to identify policies and ideas to enhance economic opportunity across the entire state, particularly in rural areas."