North Carolina § 143B-344 - 60. Outdoor heritage advisory council.

§ 143B-344. 60. Outdoor heritage advisory council.

The Outdoor Heritage Advisory Council is established within the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission for organizational and budgetary purposes only. The Council shall exercise all of its statutory powers independent of control by the Executive Director of the Wildlife Resources Commission. The Council shall advise State agencies and the General Assembly on the promotion of outdoor recreational activities, including, but not limited to, hiking, horseback riding, boating, sport shooting and archery, bird watching and wildlife watching, camping, swimming, hunting, trapping, and fishing in order to preserve North Carolina's outdoor heritage for future generations. The Council shall consist of 13 members, appointed as follows: Four members appointed by the General Assembly, upon the recommendation of the President Pro Tempore of the Senate. Four members appointed by the General Assembly, upon the recommendation of the Speaker of the House of Representatives. Three members appointed by the Governor. One member appointed by the Commissioner of Agriculture. One member appointed by the chair of the Wildlife Resources Commission. The terms of the initial members of the Council shall commence October 1, 2015. Of the Governor's initial appointments, one member shall be designated to serve a term of three years, one member shall be designated to serve a term of two years, and one member shall be designated to serve a term of one year. Of the initial appointments by the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, one member shall be designated to serve a term of three years, one member shall be designated to serve a term of two years, and one member shall be designated to serve a term of one year. Of the initial appointments by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, one member shall be designated to serve a term of three years, one member shall be designated to serve a term of two years, and one member shall be designated to serve a term of one year. The members appointed by the Commissioner of Agriculture and the chair of the Wildlife Resources Commission shall each serve an initial term of four years. After the initial appointees' terms have expired, all members shall be appointed for a term of four years. The initial chair of the Council shall be designated by the Governor from the Council members. Subsequent chairs shall be elected by the Council for terms of two years. The Council shall meet quarterly and at other times at the call of the chair. A majority of members of the Council shall constitute a quorum. Council members shall be reimbursed for expenses incurred in the performance of their duties in accordance with G.S. 138-5 and G.S. 138-6, as applicable. The reimbursements authorized by this subsection may be provided from the North Carolina Outdoor Heritage Trust Fund for Youth Outdoor Heritage Promotion. The Executive Director of the Wildlife Resources Commission shall provide clerical and other assistance as needed, including, but not limited to, office space, transportation support, and support for equipment and information technology needs of the Council. The Council shall be exempt from Article 3 of Chapter 143 of the General Statutes but may use the services of the Department of Administration in procuring goods and services for the Council. All members of the Council shall have knowledge and experience in outdoor recreational activities and have a demonstrated interest in promoting outdoor heritage. Any appointment to fill a vacancy on the Council created by the resignation, dismissal, death, or disability of a member shall be for the balance of the unexpired term. History (2015-144, s. 2(a); 2016-94, s. 14A.1(a); 2018-5, s. 13A.1(a); 2019-177, s. 10.) Editor's Note. - Session Laws 2015-144, s. 1, provides: "The Wildlife Resources Commission, in conjunction with the Outdoor Heritage Advisory Council established by Section 2 of this act, shall develop a plan for establishing and implementing the North Carolina Outdoor Heritage Trust Fund for Youth Outdoor Heritage Promotion. The plan shall provide for the Trust Fund: "(1) To provide for the expansion of opportunities for persons age 16 and under to engage in outdoor recreational activities, including, but not limited to, hiking, horseback riding, boating, sport shooting and archery, bird watching and wildlife watching, camping, swimming, hunting, trapping, and fishing in order to pass on North Carolina's outdoor heritage to future generations. "(2) To be eligible for the receipt of funds through check-off donations of not more than two dollars ($2.00) by persons paying for transactions processed through the Commission, including, but not limited to, hunting and fishing licenses or paying outdoor access fees issued by other organizations and also through donations from private organizations or citizens. "(3) To be administered by the Outdoor Heritage Advisory Council established by Section 2 of this act. "The Wildlife Resources Commission and the Outdoor Heritage Advisory Council shall provide a final report on the development of the plan for establishing and implementing the Trust Fund to the 2015 General Assembly when it reconvenes in 2016." Session Laws 2015-144, s. 3(a), (b), provides: "(a) The Legislative Research Commission shall study the need for expanded access to public lands. The Commission shall examine the ways in which public land management plans affect opportunities to engage in outdoor recreational activities, including, but not limited to, hiking, horseback riding, boating, sport shooting and archery, bird watching and wildlife watching, camping, swimming, hunting, trapping, and fishing and make recommendations for increasing the public's opportunities to access public lands for those purposes. "(b) The Legislative Research Commission may make an interim report to the 2015 General Assembly when it reconvenes in 2016 and shall make its final report to the 2017 General Assembly when it convenes." Session Laws 2016-94, s. 14A.1(b), provides: "Notwithstanding G.S. 143B-344.60(c), the two members added by subsection (a) of this section shall serve an initial term of two years commencing October 1, 2016." Session Laws 2016-94, s. 1.2, provides: "This act shall be known as the 'Current Operations and Capital Improvements Appropriations Act of 2016.'" Session Laws 2016-94, s. 39.4, provides: "Except for statutory changes or other provisions that clearly indicate an intention to have effects beyond the 2016-2017 fiscal year, the textual provisions of this act apply only to funds appropriated for, and activities occurring during, the 2016-2017 fiscal year." Session Laws 2016-94, s. 39.7, is a severability clause. Session Laws 2018-5, s. 13A.1(a), provided in its directory language: "G.S. 143B-344.62 reads as rewritten:"; however, the text of the section set out on the act was actually that of G.S. 143B-344.60. The amendment was not been given effect at the direction of the Revisor of Statutes. Session Laws 2019-177, s. 10, amended the directory language of Session Laws 2018-5, s. 13A.1(a), to correctly identify G.S. 143B-344.60 as the section being amended. The text of this section now reflects the amendments in Session Laws 2018-5, s. 13A.1(a), as amended by Session Laws 2019-177, s. 10. Session Laws 2018-5, s. 13A.1(c), provides: "(c) The Wildlife Resources Commission shall revise its plan for implementation of the North Carolina Outdoor Heritage Trust Fund for Youth Outdoor Heritage Promotion to provide that check-off donations by persons paying for transactions processed through the Commission, including, but not limited to, hunting and fishing licenses, or paying outdoor access fees issued by other organizations may include an option for a donation of any amount." Session Laws 2018-5, s. 1.1, provides: "This act shall be known as the 'Current Operations Appropriations Act of 2018.'" Session Laws 2018-5, s. 39.4, provides: "Except for statutory changes or other provisions that clearly indicate an intention to have effects beyond the 2018-2019 fiscal year, the textual provisions of this act apply only to funds appropriated for, and activities occurring during, the 2018-2019 fiscal year." Session Laws 2018-5, s. 39.7, is a severability clause. Effect of Amendments. - Session Laws 2016-94, s. 14A.1(a), effective July 1, 2016, substituted "13 members" for "11 members" following "shall consist of" in subsection (b); and substituted "Four members" for "Three members" at the beginning of subdivisions (b)(1) and (b)(2). Session Laws 2018-5, s. 13A.1(a), as amended by Session Laws 2019-177, s. 10, effective July 26, 2019, deleted the former last sentence of subsection (c), which read: "No member shall serve more than two successive terms."; deleted the former second sentence of subsection (d), which read: "The initial chair shall hold this office for not more than one year."; added the last sentence in subsection (f); added "including, but not limited to, office space, transportation support, and support for equipment and information technology needs of the Council" at the end of subsection (g); and added subsection (h). § 143B-344.61: Reserved for future codification purposes.