North Carolina § 160A-68 - Organizational meeting of council.

§ 160A-68. Organizational meeting of council.

The council may fix the date and time of its organizational meeting. The organizational meeting may be held at any time after the results of the municipal election have been officially determined and published pursuant to Subchapter IX of Chapter 163 of the General Statutes but not later than the date and time of the first regular meeting of the council in December after the results of the municipal election have been certified pursuant to that Subchapter. If the council fails to fix the date and time of its organizational meeting, then the meeting shall be held on the date and at the time of the first regular meeting in December after the results of the municipal election have been certified pursuant to Subchapter IX of Chapter 163 of the General Statutes. At the organizational meeting, the newly elected mayor and councilmen shall qualify by taking the oath of office prescribed in Article VI, Section 7 of the Constitution. The organization of the council shall take place notwithstanding the absence, death, refusal to serve, failure to qualify, or nonelection of one or more members, but at least a quorum of the members must be present. All local acts or provisions of city charters which prescribe a particular meeting day or date for the organizational meeting of a council are hereby repealed. History (1971, c. 698, s. 1; 1973, c. 426, s. 13; c. 607; 1979, c. 168; 1979, 2nd Sess., c. 1247, s. 2; 2017-6, s. 3; 2018-146, ss. 3.1(a), (b), 6.1.) Re-recodification; Technical and Conforming Changes. - Session Laws 2017-6, s. 3, provides, in part: "The Revisor of Statutes shall recodify Chapter 138A of the General Statutes, Chapter 120C of the General Statutes, as well as Chapter 163 of the General Statutes, as amended by this act, into a new Chapter 163A of the General Statutes to be entitled 'Elections and Ethics Enforcement Act,' as enacted by Section 4 of this act. The Revisor may also recodify into the new Chapter 163A of the General Statutes other existing statutory laws relating to elections and ethics enforcement that are located elsewhere in the General Statutes as the Revisor deems appropriate." The Revisor was further authorized to make additional technical and conforming changes to catchlines, internal citations, and other references throughout the General Statutes to effectuate this recodification, in consultation with the State Ethics Commission, the State Board of Elections, the Secretary of State, and the new Bipartisan State Board of Elections and Ethics Enforcement. Pursuant to this authority, the Revisor of Statutes substituted "Article 27 of Chapter 163 A" for "Subchapter IX of Chapter 163" twice in subsection (a). Session Laws 2018-146, ss. 3.1(a), (b) and 6.1, repealed Session Laws 2017-6, s. 3, and authorized the Revisor of Statutes to re-recodify Chapter 163A into Chapters 163, 138A, and 120C and to revert the changes made by the Revisor pursuant to Session Laws 2017-6, s. 3. Pursuant to this authority, the Revisor of Statutes reverted the change to the references in subsection (a). Session Laws 2021-56, s.1(f), provides: "The individual certified as the winner of the 2022 election held in accordance with this act shall hold office until the expiration of the term under the municipal charter as if the election had been held in 2021. Notwithstanding G.S. 160A-68, the individual certified as the winner of the 2022 election may be sworn into office at any time after issuance of the certificate of election." Session Laws 2021-56, s. 1.9, provides: "This act shall not apply to offices elected at large in any municipality where there is an election of municipal officers scheduled for 2021, where less than the entire jurisdiction is eligible to vote for candidates for one or more offices on the 2021, and that municipality has notified the county board of elections at least five business days prior to the opening of the 2021 filing period as provided in Article 23 or 24 of Chapter 163 of the General Statutes for the method of election for that municipality. If the county board of elections is so notified, the county board of elections shall open the filing period for the offices elected at large only for that municipality and conduct the election in 2021 in accordance with that municipality's charter and Chapter 163 of the General Statutes." Opinions of Attorney General For discussion of legal impediments which prohibit employers from disclosing personal information about their employees, see opinion of Attorney General to Bryan E. Beatty, Inspector General, North Carolina Department of Justice, 1998 N.C.A.G. 49 (12/1/98).