GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 2015

SESSION LAW 2015-170

SENATE BILL 22

AN ACT to ensure respectful treatment of the american flag and the north carolina flag by state agencies and other political subdivisions of the state; to establish the Division of veterans affairs as the clearinghouse for the disposal of worn, tattered, and damaged flags; to provide for the protection of monuments and memorials commemorating events, persons, and military service in north carolina history; and to transfer custody of certain historic documents in the possession of the office of the secretary of state to the department of cultural resources and to facilitate public opportunity to view these documents.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  This act shall be known as the Cultural History Artifact Management and Patriotism Act of 2015.

SECTION 2.(a)  G.S. 144‑5 reads as rewritten:

"§ 144‑5.  Flags to conform to law.law; display and handling of a flag of the United States of America or the State of North Carolina by State institutions and other political subdivisions of the State.

(a)        No State flag shall be is allowed in or over any building here mentioned unless such the flag conforms to the description of the State flag contained in this chapter. Chapter.

(b) A flag of the United States of America or the State of North Carolina that is displayed by a State institution or a political subdivision of the State on the premises of a building of a State institution or a political subdivision of the State shall be handled, displayed, stored, and respectfully disposed of in accordance with the federal Flag Code, 4 U.S.C. §§ 1‑10."

SECTION 2.(b)  G.S. 144‑9 reads as rewritten:

"§ 144‑9.  Retirement of State flag.a flag of the United States of America or the State of North Carolina.

(a) A State institution or a political subdivision of the State in possession of a flag of the United States of America or the State of North Carolina that is no longer a fitting emblem for display because it is worn, tattered, or otherwise damaged shall make arrangements for its respectful disposal and may deliver the flag to the Division of Veterans Affairs in the Department of Administration for disposal. The Division shall accept a flag delivered to it and shall make arrangements for its respectful disposal.

(b) The Division of Veterans Affairs shall accept, at no charge, a worn, tattered, or otherwise damaged flag of the United States of America or the State of North Carolina from a citizen of the State and shall make arrangements for its respectful disposal. The Division shall establish a flag retirement program to encourage citizens to send in or drop off such flags at the Division's office in Raleigh and at any Veterans Home or Veterans Cemetery in the State and may establish other locations for flag drop‑off as it deems appropriate. The Division shall advertise the flag retirement program on its Web site and by printed posters placed at all flag drop‑off locations. On or before December 31, 2016, and annually thereafter, the Division shall report the number of flags received under the program to the Joint Legislative Committee on Governmental Operations.

(c)        An official flag of the State that is no longer a fitting emblem for display because it is worn, tattered, or otherwise damaged may be respectfully retired by fire."

SECTION 2.(c)  Subsection (b) of this section becomes effective December 1, 2015. The remainder of this section is effective when it becomes law.

SECTION 3.(a)  The caption of Article 1 of Chapter 100 of the General Statutes reads as rewritten:

"Article 1.

"Approval and Protection of Monuments, Memorials, Works of Art, etc."

SECTION 3.(b)  G.S. 100‑2 reads as rewritten:

"§ 100‑2.  Approval of memorials before acceptance by State; regulation of existing memorials, etc.; "work of art" defined; highway markers.defined.

No memorial A monument, memorial, or work of art shall hereafter may not become the property of the State by purchase, gift or otherwise, unless such memorialthe monument, memorial, or work of art art, or a design of the same, together with the proposed location of the same, shall first have been is submitted to and approved by the North Carolina Historical Commission; nor shall any memorial Commission. A monument, memorial, or work of art, until so submitted and approved, may not be contracted for, placed in or upon upon, or allowed to extend over any property belonging to the State. No existing memorial or work of art owned by the State shall be removed, relocated, or altered in any way without approval of the North Carolina Historical Commission. The term "work of art" as used in this section shall include Article includes any painting, portrait, mural decoration, stained glass, statue, bas‑relief, sculpture, monument, tablet, fountain, or other article or structure of a permanent character intended for decoration or commemoration. This section, however, shall not apply to markers set up by the Board of Transportation in cooperation with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the Department of Cultural Resources as provided by Chapter 197 of the Public Laws of 1935."

SECTION 3.(c)  Article 1 of Chapter 100 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new section to read:

"§ 100‑2.1.  Protection of monuments, memorials, and works of art.

(a) Approval Required. – Except as otherwise provided in subsection (b) of this section, a monument, memorial, or work of art owned by the State may not be removed, relocated, or altered in any way without the approval of the North Carolina Historical Commission.

(b) Limitations on Removal. – An object of remembrance located on public property may not be permanently removed and may only be relocated, whether temporarily or permanently, under the circumstances listed in this subsection and subject to the limitations in this subsection. An object of remembrance that is temporarily relocated shall be returned to its original location within 90 days of completion of the project that required its temporary removal. An object of remembrance that is permanently relocated shall be relocated to a site of similar prominence, honor, visibility, availability, and access that are within the boundaries of the jurisdiction from which it was relocated. An object of remembrance may not be relocated to a museum, cemetery, or mausoleum unless it was originally placed at such a location. As used in this section, the term "object of remembrance" means a monument, memorial, plaque, statue, marker, or display of a permanent character that commemorates an event, a person, or military service that is part of North Carolina's history. The circumstances under which an object of remembrance may be relocated are either of the following:

(1) When appropriate measures are required by the State or a political subdivision of the State to preserve the object.

(2) When necessary for construction, renovation, or reconfiguration of buildings, open spaces, parking, or transportation projects.

(c) Exceptions. – This section does not apply to the following:

(1) Highway markers set up by the Board of Transportation in cooperation with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the Department of Cultural Resources as provided by Chapter 197 of the Public Laws of 1935.

(2) An object of remembrance owned by a private party that is located on public property and that is the subject of a legal agreement between the private party and the State or a political subdivision of the State governing the removal or relocation of the object.

(3) An object of remembrance for which a building inspector or similar official has determined poses a threat to public safety because of an unsafe or dangerous condition."

SECTION 3.(d)  G.S. 160A‑400.13 reads as rewritten:

"§ 160A‑400.13.  Certain changes not prohibited.Protection of certain landmarks; permissible changes.

(a) Objects of Remembrance. – G.S. 100‑2.1 supersedes this Part with regard to the removal or relocation of a historic landmark designated under this Part that meets the definition of an "object of remembrance" as defined in G.S. 100‑2.1.

(b) Other Historic Landmarks. – Nothing in this Part shall be construed to prevent the ordinary maintenance or repair of any exterior architectural feature in a historic district or of a landmark which does not involve a change in design, material or appearance thereof, nor to prevent the construction, reconstruction, alteration, restoration, moving or demolition of any such feature which the building inspector or similar official shall certify is required by the public safety because of an unsafe or dangerous condition. Nothing in this Part shall be construed to prevent a property owner from making any use of his property that is not prohibited by other law. Nothing in this Part shall be construed to prevent a) the maintenance, or b) in the event of an emergency the immediate restoration, of any existing above‑ground utility structure without approval by the preservation commission."

SECTION 3.(e)  This section is effective when it becomes law.

SECTION 4.(a)  G.S. 147‑36 reads as rewritten:

"§ 147‑36.  Duties of Secretary of State.

It is the duty of the Secretary of State:

(1)        To perform such duties as may then be devolved upon the Secretary by resolution of the two houses of the General Assembly or either of them;them.

(2)        To attend the Governor, whenever required by the Governor, for the purpose of receiving documents which that have passed the great seal;seal.

(3)        To receive and keep all conveyances and mortgages belonging to the State;State.

(4)        To distribute annually the statutes and the legislative journals;journals.

(5)        To distribute the acts of Congress received at the Secretary's office in the manner prescribed for the statutes of the State;State.

(6)        To keep a receipt book, in which the Secretary shall take from every person to whom a grant shall be delivered, a receipt for the same; but may inclose enclose grants by mail in a registered letter at the expense of the grantee, unless otherwise directed, first entering the same upon the receipt book;book.

(7)        To issue charters and all necessary certificates for the incorporation, domestication, suspension, reinstatement, cancellation and dissolution of corporations as may be required by the corporation laws of the State and maintain a record thereof;of the charters and necessary certificates issued.

(8)        To issue certificates of registration of trademarks, labels and designs as may be required by law and maintain a record thereof;of those certificates of registration.

(9)        To maintain a Division of Publications to compile data on the State's several governmental agencies and for legislative reference;reference.

(10)      To receive, enroll and safely preserve the current edition of the State Constitution of the State and all amendments theretoto that edition and to transfer previous editions of the State Constitution and amendments to those editions to the Department of Cultural Resources for preservation and safekeeping in the State Archives.

(11)      To serve as a member of such boards and commissions as the Constitution and laws of the State may designate;designate.

(12)      To administer the Securities Law of the State, regulating the issuance and sale of securities, as is now or may be directed;directed.

(13)      To receive and keep all oaths of public officials required by law to be filed in the Secretary's office, and as Secretary of State, is fully empowered to administer official oaths to any public official of whom an oath is required;required.

(14)      To receive and maintain a journal of all appointments made to any State board, agency, commission, council or authority which that is filed in the office of the Secretary of State;State.

(15)      To regulate the solicitation of contributions pursuant to Chapter 131F of the General Statutes; andStatutes.

(16)      To apply for and accept grants from the federal government and its agencies and from any foundation, corporation, association, or individual in order to effectuate the purposes of the Nonprofit Corporation Act, Chapter 55A of the General Statutes, and to further aid in the operation and development of nonprofit corporations. The Secretary shall comply with the terms, conditions, and limitations of grants applied for and accepted and shall expend grant funds pursuant to Chapter 143C of the General Statutes, The State Budget Act."

SECTION 4.(b)  The Secretary of State shall transfer to the Department of Cultural Resources all previously adopted editions of the State Constitution and amendments to the State Constitution, other than the current edition and amendments to that edition, and ratified amendments to the United States Constitution. The Secretary of State shall, at the request of the Secretary of the Department of Cultural Resources, provide timely, on‑site access to the Department staff for study and review of all other documents to determine their historical significance. If, during these periodic reviews, the Department identifies historical documents that are no longer legally necessary to remain in the possession of the Secretary of State, the Secretary shall make arrangements to transfer these historical documents to the Department in a timely fashion for preservation and safekeeping in the State Archives. The Department of Cultural Resources shall provide the Secretary with duplicate copies of all documents transferred from the Secretary to the Department.

SECTION 4.(c)  In 2016, the Department of Cultural Resources shall arrange for public displays of, and programs related to, the United States Constitution and amendments and related historical materials to commemorate the 240th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. In 2016, the Department also shall arrange for public displays of, and programs related to, the State Constitutions and amendments, to coincide with the 240th anniversary of the ratification of North Carolina's first Constitution by the Fifth Provincial Congress. The Department also may consider taking all or part of the displays on a tour of the State. The Department is authorized to accept non‑State funds including donations, fund‑raising sponsorships, and funding from other sources to defray the costs of these exhibits.

SECTION 4.(d)  Subsections (a) and (b) of this section become effective December 1, 2015. The remainder of this section is effective when it becomes law.

SECTION 5.  Except as otherwise provided, this act is effective when it becomes law.

In the General Assembly read three times and ratified this the 22^nd day of July, 2015.

                                                                    s/  Daniel J. Forest

                                                                         President of the Senate

                                                                    s/  Tim Moore

                                                                         Speaker of the House of Representatives

                                                                    s/  Pat McCrory

                                                                         Governor

Approved 1:35 p.m. this 23^rd day of July, 2015