§ 131E‑22.  Removal of commissioners.
(a)	The appointing authority, as stated in G.S. 131E‑18, may remove a commissioner for inefficiency, neglect of duty, or misconduct in office. A commissioner may be removed only after he or she has been given a copy of the charges and provided the opportunity to be heard in person or by counsel. A commissioner is entitled to at least 10 days after receipt of the notice to prepare for a hearing before the mayor or the chairman of the county.
(b)	An obligee of the authority may file with the mayor or the chairman of the county board of commissioners written charges that the authority is willfully violating the laws of the State or a term, provision, or covenant to any contract to which the authority is a party. The mayor or the chairman of the county board of commissioners shall give each of the commissioners a copy of the charges at least 10 days prior to the hearing on the charges. The commissioners shall be provided an opportunity to be heard in person or by counsel. The mayor or the chairman of the county board of commissioners shall, within 15 days after receipt of the charges, remove any commissioners of the authority who are found to have acquiesced in any willful violation. If a commissioner has not filed a written statement before the hearing with the authority stating his or her objections to or lack of participation in the violation, the commissioner shall be deemed to have acquiesced in a willful violation.
(c)	If, after due and diligent search, a commissioner to whom charges are required to be delivered cannot be found within the county where the authority is located, the charges shall be deemed to be served upon the commissioner when it is mailed to the commissioner at the commissioner's last known address as the same appears on the records of the authority.
(d)	In the event of the removal of any commissioner, the mayor shall file in the office of the city clerk, or the chairman of the county board of commissioners shall file with the county clerk, a record of the proceedings together with the charges against the commissioner and the findings. (1943, c. 780, s. 8; 1971, c. 799; 1983, c. 775, s. 1.)