NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL ASSEMBLY
1975 SESSION

CHAPTER 78
SENATE BILL 113

AN ACT TO AMEND THE NORTH CAROLINA MILK COMMISSION STATUTES RELATING TO COMMISSION MEMBERSHIP AND APPOINTMENTS.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

Section 1.  G.S. 106-266.7(a), as it appears in the 1974 Cumulative Supplement to Volume 3A of the General Statutes is hereby rewritten to read as follows:
"§ 106-266.7.  Milk Commission continued; membership; chairman; compensation; quorum; cooperation of other agencies; official acts; meetings; principal office. — (a) There is hereby continued a Milk Commission of the Department of Commerce, consisting of ten members, three of whom shall be appointed by the Governor, two of whom shall be appointed by the Lieutenant Governor, two of whom shall be appointed by the Speaker of the House, and three of whom shall be appointed by the Commissioner of Agriculture.
The three members appointed by the Governor shall be two public members and a person who operates a store or other establishment for the sale of fluid milk at retail for consumption off the premises. The two members appointed by the Lieutenant Governor shall be a Grade A producer, who primarily markets with a cooperative plant and whose primary interest is operating a dairy farm, and a public member. The two members appointed by the Speaker of the House shall be a dairy processor-distributor or an employee of a dairy processor- distributor, who primarily operates a proprietary plant, and a public member. The three members appointed by the Commissioner of Agriculture shall be a dairy processor-distributor or an employee of a dairy processor-distributor who primarily operates a cooperative plant and a Grade A producer who primarily markets with a proprietary plant and whose primary interest is operating a dairy farm, and a public member.
The public members appointed pursuant to this subsection shall have no financial interest in, or be directly or indirectly involved in, the production, processing or distribution of milk or products derived therefrom.
Of the Commission members appointed following the ratification of this subsection, the Commissioner of Agriculture shall appoint three for a term ending June 30, 1976, the Governor shall appoint three for a term ending June 30, 1977, the Speaker of the House shall appoint one for a term ending June 30, 1978 and one for a term ending June 30, 1979, and the Lieutenant Governor shall appoint one for a term ending June 30, 1978 and one for a term ending June 30, 1979]. Thereafter appointments of Commission members shall be made by the same appointing authorities for terms of four years, ending on June 30 of the appropriate year: Provided, however, that all members appointed pursuant to this subsection shall serve until either they are reappointed and requalified or their successors are appointed and qualified. Any member of the Milk Commission may be removed for physical or mental incapacity, or for misfeasance or nonfeasance. In cases of removal from the Commission, the removal must be initiated by the person holding the office that originally made the appointment of such member, and subsequent appointments to fill such vacancies will be made in the normally prescribed manner for the remainder of the unexpired term by the person holding the office that originally made the appointment. If the office that originally made the appointment is vacant, the successor to such office shall fill such vacancy. In case of death, resignation, disqualification, or other physical or mental incapacity which prevents a Commission member from performing his official duties prior to the expiration of his term of office, his successor shall be appointed as provided in this subsection to fill out the unexpired term."
Sec. 1.5.  G.S. 106-266.7(b), as it appears in the 1974 Cumulative Supplement to Volume 3A of the General Statutes, is hereby amended by deleting the word "Public" from line 2 and line 4.
Sec. 2.  G.S. 106-266.7(g), as it appears in the 1974 Cumulative Supplement to Volume 3A of the General Statutes, is hereby amended by deleting the first word "Four" and substituting therefor the word "Six".
Sec. 3.  The reorganization of the Commission brought about by this amendment shall in no way affect the validity or continuity of any rule, regulation, order or action of the North Carolina Milk Commission which is in effect at the time this amendment becomes effective. All valid rules, regulations, orders or actions taken or adopted by the Commission at any time prior to the effective date of this amendment shall continue in full force and effect (without the necessity for readoption or reaffirmation of same) until such time as the same are rescinded or revised by the Commission.
Sec. 4.  The terms of office of present members of the North Carolina Milk Commission shall expire on the date this act becomes effective.
Sec. 5.  This act shall become effective 30 days after its ratification.
In the General Assembly read three times and ratified, this the 27th day of March, 1975.