(a) The council, by a majority of its membership, shall elect a chairman and other officers it considers necessary from among its membership, to serve on a yearly basis.
(b) The council shall have a paid staff provided by the department, including an executive director selected by the council. The executive director is in the partially exempt service and may hire additional employees in the classified service of the state. The department shall provide for the assignment of personnel to the council to ensure that the council has the capacity to fulfill its responsibilities. The personnel shall be directly responsible to the council for performance of their duties.