§ 135-6. Administration. - North Carolina Statutes

§135‑6.  Administration.

(a)        Administration byBoard of Trustees; Corporate Name; Rights and Powers; Tax Exemption. – Thegeneral administration and responsibility for the proper operation of theRetirement System and for making effective the provisions of the Chapter arehereby vested in a Board of Trustees which shall be organized immediately aftera majority of the trustees provided for in this section shall have qualifiedand taken the oath of office.

The Board of Trustees shall bea body politic and corporate under the name "Board of Trustees Teachers'and State Employees' Retirement System"; and as a body politic andcorporate shall have the right to sue and be sued, shall have perpetualsuccession and a common seal, and in said corporate name shall be able andcapable in law to take, demand, receive and possess all kinds of real andpersonal property necessary and proper for its corporate purposes, and tobargain, sell, grant, alien, or dispose of all such real and personal propertyas it may lawfully acquire. All such property owned or acquired by said bodypolitic and corporate shall be exempt from all taxes imposed by the State orany political subdivision thereof, and shall not be subject to income taxes.

(b)        Membership ofBoard; Terms. – The Board shall consist of 14 members, as follows:

(1)        The State Treasurer,ex officio;

(2)        The Superintendentof Public Instruction, ex officio;

(3)        Ten members to beappointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate of North Carolina. One ofthe appointive members shall be a member of the teaching profession of theState; one of the appointive members shall be an employee of the Board ofTransportation, who shall be appointed by the Governor for a term of four yearscommencing April 1, 1947, and quadrennially thereafter; one of the appointivemembers shall be a representative of higher education appointed by the Governorfor a term of four years commencing July 1, 1969, and quadrennially thereafter;one of the appointive members shall be a retired teacher who is drawing aretirement allowance, appointed by the Governor for a term of four yearscommencing July 1, 1969, and quadrennially thereafter; one shall be a retiredState employee who is drawing a retirement allowance, appointed by the Governorfor a term of four years commencing July 1, 1977, and quadrennially thereafter;one to be a general State employee, and three who are not members of theteaching profession or State employees; two to be appointed for a term of twoyears, two for a term of three years and one for a term of four years; oneappointive member shall be a law‑enforcement officer employed by theState, appointed by the Governor, for a term of four years commencing April 1,1985. At the expiration of these terms of office the appointment shall be for aterm of four years;

(4)        Two membersappointed by the General Assembly, one appointed upon the recommendation of theSpeaker of the House of Representatives, and one appointed upon therecommendation of the President Pro Tempore of the Senate in accordance withG.S. 120‑121. Neither of these members may be an active or retiredteacher or State employee or an employee of a unit of local government. Theinitial members appointed by the General Assembly shall serve for termsexpiring June 30, 1983. Thereafter, their successors shall serve for two‑yearterms beginning July 1 of odd‑numbered years. Vacancies in appointmentsmade by the General Assembly shall be filled in accordance with G.S. 120‑122.

(c)        Compensation ofTrustees. – The trustees shall be paid during sessions of the Board at theprevailing rate established for members of State boards and commissions, andthey shall be reimbursed for all necessary expenses that they incur throughservice on the Board.

(d)        Oath. – Eachtrustee other than the ex officio members shall, within 10 days after hisappointment, take an oath of office, that, so far as it devolves upon him, hewill diligently and honestly administer the affairs of the said Board, and thathe will not knowingly violate or willingly permit to be violated any of theprovisions of law applicable to the Retirement System. Such oath shall besubscribed to by the member making it, and certified by the officer before whomit is taken, and immediately filed in the office of the Secretary of State.

(e)        Voting Rights. –Each trustee shall be entitled to one vote in the Board. Four affirmative votesshall be necessary for a decision by the trustees at any meeting of said Board.

(f)         Rules andRegulations. – Subject to the limitations of this Chapter, the Board ofTrustees shall, from time to time, establish rules and regulations for theadministration of the funds created by this Chapter and for the transaction ofits business. The Board of Trustees shall also, from time to time, in itsdiscretion, adopt rules and regulations to prevent injustices and inequalitieswhich might otherwise arise in the administration of this Chapter.

(g)        Officers and OtherEmployees; Salaries and Expenses. – The State Treasurer shall be ex officiochairman of the Board of Trustees. The Board of Trustees shall, by a majorityvote of all the members, appoint a director, who may be, but need not be, oneof its members. The salary of the director of the Retirement System is subjectto the provisions of Chapter 126 of the General Statutes of North Carolina. TheBoard of Trustees shall engage such actuarial and other service as shall berequired to transact the business of the Retirement System. The compensation ofall persons, other than the director, engaged by the Board of Trustees, and allother expenses of the Board necessary for the operation of the RetirementSystem, shall be paid at such rates and in such amounts as the Board ofTrustees shall approve, subject to the approval of the Director of the Budget.

(h)        Actuarial Data. –The Board of Trustees shall keep in convenient form such data as shall benecessary for actuarial valuation of the various funds of the RetirementSystem, and for checking the experience of the System.

(i)         Record ofProceedings; Annual Report. – The Board of Trustees shall keep a record of allof its proceedings which shall be open to public inspection. It shall publishannually a report showing the fiscal transactions of the Retirement System forthe preceding year, the amount of the accumulated cash and securities of theSystem, and the last balance sheet showing the financial condition of theSystem by means of an actuarial valuation of the assets and liabilities of theRetirement System.

(j)         Legal Adviser. –The Attorney General shall be the legal adviser of the Board of Trustees.

(k)        Medical Board. –The Board of Trustees shall designate a medical board to be composed of notless than three nor more than five physicians not eligible to participate inthe Retirement System. If required, other physicians may be employed to reporton special cases. The medical board shall arrange for and pass upon all medicalexaminations required under the provisions of this Chapter, and shallinvestigate all essential statements and certificates by or on behalf of a memberin connection with an application for disability retirement, and shall reportin writing to the Board of Trustees its conclusion and recommendations upon allthe matters referred to it.

(l)         Duties of Actuary.– The Board of Trustees shall designate an actuary who shall be the technicaladviser of the Board of Trustees on matters regarding the operation of thefunds created by the provisions of this Chapter and shall perform such otherduties as are required in connection therewith.

(m)       Immediately afterthe establishment of the Retirement System the actuary shall make suchinvestigation of the mortality, service and compensation experience of themembers of the System as he shall recommend and the Board of Trustees shallauthorize, and on the basis of such investigation he shall recommend foradoption by the Board of Trustees such tables and such rates as are required insubsection (n), subdivisions (1) and (2), of this section. The Board ofTrustees shall adopt tables and certify rates, and as soon as practicablethereafter the actuary shall make a valuation based on such tables and rates ofthe assets and liabilities of the funds created by this Chapter.

(n)        In 1943, and atleast once in each five‑year period thereafter, the actuary shall make anactuarial investigation into the mortality, service and compensation experienceof the members and beneficiaries of the Retirement System, and shall make avaluation of the assets and liabilities of the funds of the System, and takinginto account the result of such investigation and valuation, the Board ofTrustees shall:

(1)        Adopt for theRetirement System such mortality, service and other tables as shall be deemednecessary; and

(2)        Certify the rates ofcontributions payable by the State of North Carolina on account of new entrantsat various ages.

(o)        On the basis ofsuch tables and interest assumption rate as the Board of Trustees shall adopt,the actuary shall make an annual valuation of the assets and liabilities of thefunds of the System created by this Chapter.

(p)        Notwithstanding anylaw, rule, regulation or policy to the contrary, any board, agency, department,institution or subdivision of the State maintaining lists of names andaddresses in the administration of their programs may upon request provide tothe Retirement System information limited to social security numbers, currentname and addresses of persons identified by the System as members,beneficiaries, and beneficiaries of members of the System. The System shall usesuch information for the sole purpose of notifying members, beneficiaries, andbeneficiaries of members of their rights to and accruals of benefits in theRetirement System. Any social security number, current name and address soobtained and any information concluded therefrom and the source thereof shallbe treated as confidential and shall not be divulged by any employee of theRetirement System or of the Department of State Treasurer except as may benecessary to notify the member, beneficiary, or beneficiary of the member of theirrights to and accruals of benefits in the Retirement System. Any person,officer, employee or former employee violating this provision shall be guiltyof a Class 1 misdemeanor; and if such offending person be a public official oremployee, he shall be dismissed from office or employment and shall not holdany public office or employment in this State for a period of five yearsthereafter. (1941, c. 25, s. 6; 1943, c. 719; 1947, c. 259; 1957,c. 541, s. 15; 1965, c. 780, s. 1; 1969, c. 805; c. 1223, s. 17; 1973, c. 241,s. 8; c. 507, s. 5; c. 1114; 1977, c. 564; 1979, c. 376; 1981 (Reg. Sess.,1982), c. 1191, s. 11; 1983 (Reg. Sess., 1984), c. 1034, s. 238; 1987, c. 539,s. 1; 1993, c. 539, s. 972; 1994, Ex. Sess., c. 24, s. 14(c); 1995, c. 490, s.57.)