NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL ASSEMBLY

1979 SESSION

 

 

CHAPTER 649

HOUSE BILL 1058

 

 

AN ACT TO AUTHORIZE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA CENTER FOR PUBLIC TELEVISION.

 

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

 

Section 1.  There is hereby written a new G.S. 116-37.1, to read as follows:

"§ 116-37.1.  Center for public television. — (a) The Board of Governors is hereby authorized and directed to establish 'The University of North Carolina Center for Public Television' (hereinafter called 'the Center'). It shall be the functions of the Center, through itself or agencies with whom it may contract, to provide research, development, and production of noncommercial educational television programming and program materials; to provide distribution of noncommercial television programming through the broadcast facilities licensed to The University of North Carolina; and otherwise to enhance the uses of television for public purposes.

(b)        The Center shall have a board of trustees, to be named 'The Board of Trustees of The University of North Carolina Center for Public Television' (hereinafter called 'the Board of Trustees'). The Board of Governors is hereby authorized and directed to establish the Board of Trustees of the Center and to delegate to the board of trustees such powers and duties as the Board of Governors deems necessary or appropriate for the effective discharge of the functions of the Center; provided, that the Board of Governors shall not be deemed by the provisions of this section to have the authority to delegate any responsibility it may have as licensee of the broadcast facilities of The University of North Carolina.

(1)        The Board of Trustees of The University of North Carolina Center for Public Television shall be composed of the following membership: eleven persons appointed by the Board of Governors; four persons appointed by the Governor; one Senator appointed by the President of the Senate; one member of the House of Representatives appointed by the Speaker of the House; and ex officio, the Secretary of the Department of Cultural Resources, the Secretary of the Department of Human Resources, the Superintendent of Public Instruction, the State President of the Community College System, and the President of The University of North Carolina. In making initial appointments to the board of trustees, the Board of Governors shall designate six persons for two-year terms and five persons for four-year terms, and the Governor shall designate two persons for two‑year terms and two persons for four-year terms. Thereafter, the term of office of appointed members of the Board of Trustees of the Center shall be four years. In making appointments to the board of trustees the appointing authorities shall give consideration to promoting diversity among the membership, to the end that, in meeting the responsibilities delegated to it, the board of trustees will reflect and be responsive to the diverse needs, interests, and concerns of the citizens of North Carolina.

(2)        No person shall be appointed to the board of trustees who is an employee of the State or of any constituent institution; a public officer of the State as defined in G.S. 147-1, G.S. 147-2, and G.S. 147-3(c); a member of the Board of Governors; a trustee of a constituent institution; or the spouse of any of the foregoing. Any appointed member of the board of trustees who after appointment becomes any of the foregoing shall be deemed to have resigned from the board of trustees.

(3)        Each ex officio member of the board of trustees shall personally serve on the board of trustees but may designate in writing a proxy for specified meetings which the ex officio member finds he or she is unable reasonably to attend.

(4)        Each appointive member of the board of trustees shall personally serve on the board of trustees without benefit of proxy. Any appointive member who fails, for any reason other than ill health or service in the interest of the State or the nation, to attend three consecutive regular meetings of the board of trustees, shall be deemed to have resigned from the board of trustees.

(5)        Any vacancy which occurs during a term among the appointive membership of the board of trustees shall be filled for the remainder of the unexpired term by appointment of the original appointing authority for the vacant seat. The principal officer of the board of trustees shall promptly notify the Secretary of The University of North Carolina of the vacancy and the Secretary shall give written notice of the vacancy to the appropriate appointing authority.

(c)        The chief administrative officer of the Center shall be a Director, who shall be elected by the Board of Governors upon recommendation of the President and who shall be responsible to the President. The Center shall have such other staff as the Board of Governors may authorize."

Sec. 2.  G.S. 116-36 is hereby amended by redesignating subsections (j) and (k) thereof as subsections (k) and (l), respectively, and inserting a new subsection (j), to read as follows:

"(j)       The Board of Governors of The University of North Carolina shall establish and maintain in a manner not inconsistent with the provisions of this section or with regulations established under this section an endowment fund for all endowment funds now held or hereafter acquired for the benefit of The University of North Carolina Center for Public Television."

Sec. 3.  G.S. 116-36 at newly designated (k) thereof is amended in the third line by inserting after the word "Press," the phrase "or to The University of North Carolina Center for Public Television."

Sec. 4.  This act is effective upon ratification.

In the General Assembly read three times and ratified, this the 28th day of May, 1979.