North Carolina § 120C-601 - Additional powers and duties of the Commission.

§ 120C-601. Additional powers and duties of the Commission.

The Commission may investigate complaints of violations of this Chapter and shall refer complaints related solely to Articles 2, 4, or 8 of this Chapter to the Secretary of State. The Commission may petition the Superior Court of Wake County for the approval to issue subpoenas and subpoenas duces tecum as necessary to conduct investigations of violations of this Chapter. The court shall authorize subpoenas under this subsection when the court determines they are necessary for the enforcement of this Chapter. Subpoenas issued under this subsection shall be enforceable by the court through contempt powers. Venue shall be with the Superior Court of Wake County for any nonresident person, or that person's agent, who makes a reportable expenditure under this Chapter, and personal jurisdiction may be asserted under G.S. 1-75.4. Complaints of violations of this Chapter and all other records accumulated in conjunction with the investigation of these complaints shall be considered confidential records and may be released only by order of a court of competent jurisdiction. Any information obtained by the Commission from any law enforcement agency, administrative agency, or regulatory organization on a confidential or otherwise restricted basis in the course of an investigation shall be confidential and exempt from G.S. 132-6 to the same extent that it is confidential in the possession of the providing agency or organization. The Commission shall publish annual statistics on complaints, including the number of complaints, the number of apparent violations of this Chapter referred to a district attorney, the number of dismissals, and the number and age of complaints pending. History (2006-201, s. 18; 2006-259, s. 43.5(a); 2008-213, s. 35; 2010-169, s. 19(b); 2016-125, 4th Ex. Sess., s. 4; 2017-6, ss. 2, 3, 6; 2018-146, s. 3.1(a), (b).) Editor's Note. - This section was recodified as now former G.S. 163A-398 by Session Laws 2017-6, s. 3. Former G.S. 163A-398 was then re-recodified as this section by Session Laws 2018-146, s. 3.1(a), effective January 31, 2019. The historical citation from the former section has been added to this section as re-recodified. Session Laws 2006-201, s. 18, enacted this section as G.S. 120-601; it was recodified as G.S. 120C-601 at the direction of the Revisor of Statutes. Session Laws 2017-6, s. 2 repealed Part 1 of Session Laws 2016-125, 4th Ex. Sess., including s. 4, which had amended this section. Session Laws 2018-146, s. 3.1(b), effective January 31, 2019, repealed Session Laws 2017-6, ss. 3 and 6, which had amended this section. Session Laws 2017-6, s. 3, had recodified this section. Session Laws 2017-6, s. 6, had substituted "State Board" for "Commission" in the section heading and throughout the section, rewritten subsection (a), deleted former subsection (b), and substituted "this Article" for "this Chapter" in subsections (c) and (d). Effect of Amendments. - Session Laws 2006-259, s. 43.5(a), effective January 1, 2007, substituted "Articles 2, 4, or 8" for "Article 4 or Article 8" in subsection (a). Session Laws 2008-213, s. 35, effective August 15, 2008, in subsection (c), substituted "confidential records and may be released only by order of a court of competent jurisdiction" for "records of criminal investigations under G.S. 132-1" in the first sentence, and added the last sentence. Session Laws 2010-169, s. 19(b), effective August 2, 2010, added subsection (d). Session Laws 2017-6, s. 6, effective May 1, 2017, substituted "State Board" for "Commission" in the section heading and throughout the section; rewrote subsection (a); deleted former subsection (b), which read: "The Commission may petition the Superior Court of Wake County for the approval to issue subpoenas and subpoenas duces tecum as necessary to conduct investigations of violations of this Chapter. The court shall authorize subpoenas under this subsection when the court determines they are necessary for the enforcement of this Chapter. Subpoenas issued under this subsection shall be enforceable by the court through contempt powers. Venue shall be with the Superior Court of Wake County for any nonresident person, or that person's agent, who makes a reportable expenditure under this Chapter, and personal jurisdiction may be asserted under G.S. 1-75.4."; and substituted "this Article" for "this Chapter" in former subsections (c) and (d) (now subsections (b) and (c), respectively).