GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 1995

S	2 

SENATE BILL 629
Rules and Operation of the Senate Committee Substitute with Amendment Adopted 6/15/95

Short Title:  CJIN Board/Funds.	(Public)

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Sponsors:

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Referred to:  Appropriations

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April 11, 1995

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT CREATING THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE INFORMATION NETWORK GOVERNING BOARD AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS TO THE OFFICE OF STATE BUDGET AND MANAGEMENT FOR THE WORK OF THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE INFORMATION NETWORK GOVERNING BOARD.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
Section 1. Chapter 143 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new Article to read:
"ARTICLE 67.
"Criminal Justice Information Network Governing Board.
"§ 143-641.  Definitions.
As used in this Article:
(1)	'Board' means the Criminal Justice Information Network Governing Board established by G.S. 143-642.
(2)	'Local government user' means a unit of local government of this State having authorized access to the Network.
(3)	'Network' means the Criminal Justice Information Network established by the Board pursuant to this Article.
(4)	'Network user' or 'User' means any person having authorized access to the Network.
(5)	'State agency' means any State department, agency, institution, board, commission, or other unit of State government.
"§ 143-642.  Criminal Justice Information Network Governing Board – Creation; purpose; membership; conflicts of interest.
(a)	The Criminal Justice Information Network Governing Board is established within the Office of State Budget and Management to operate the State's Criminal Justice Information Network, the purpose of which shall be to provide the governmental and technical information systems infrastructure necessary for accomplishing State and local governmental public safety and justice functions in the most effective manner by appropriately and efficiently sharing criminal justice information among law enforcement, judicial, and corrections agencies.  The Board is established within the Office of State Budget and Management for organizational and budgetary purposes only and the Board shall exercise all of its statutory powers in this Article independent of control by the Office of State Budget and Management.
(b)	The Board shall consist of 13 members, appointed as follows:
(1)	Two members appointed by the Governor, including one member who shall be a director or employee of a State correction agency for a term to begin September 1, 1995, and to expire on June 30, 1999, and one member selected from a list of at least three names submitted to the Governor by the North Carolina Association of Chiefs of Police for a term to begin September 1, 1995, and to expire on June 30, 1997.
(2)	Four members appointed by the General Assembly in accordance with G.S. 120-121, as follows:
a.	Two members recommended by the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, including one member of the general public for a term to begin on September 1, 1995, and to expire on June 30, 1997, and one member who shall be selected from a list of at least three names submitted to the President Pro Tempore by the North Carolina League of Municipalities and who shall be a member of or an employee working directly for the governing board of a North Carolina municipality for a term to begin on September 1, 1995, and to expire on June 30, 1999; and
b.	Two members recommended by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, including one member of the general public for a term to begin on September 1, 1995, and to expire on June 30, 1999, and one member selected from a list of at least three names submitted to the Speaker by the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners, and who shall be a member of or an employee working directly for the governing board of a North Carolina county for a term to begin on September 1, 1995, and to expire on June 30, 1997.
(3)	Two members appointed by the Attorney General, including one member who shall be an employee of the Attorney General for a term to begin on September 1, 1995, and to expire on June 30, 1997, and one member from a list of at least three names submitted to the Attorney General by the North Carolina Sheriffs' Association for a term to begin on September 1, 1995, and to expire on June 30, 1999.
(4)	Four members appointed by the Chief Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court, including the Director or an employee of the Administrative Office of the Courts for a term to begin on September 1, 1995, and to expire on June 30, 1997, one clerk of the superior court for a term to begin on September 1, 1995,  and to expire on June 30, 1997, one judge of the trial division of the General Court of Justice for a term to begin on September 1, 1995, and to expire on June 30, 1999, and one district attorney or employee of a district attorney for a term to begin on September 1, 1995,  and to expire on June 30, 1999.
(5)	One member appointed by the Chair of the Information Resource Management Commission, who shall be the Chair or a member of that Commission for a term to begin on September 1, 1995, and to expire on June 30, 1999.
The respective appointing authorities shall appoint to the Board persons having a background in and familiarity with criminal information systems and networks generally and with the criminal information needs and capacities of the constituency from which the member is appointed.
As the initial terms expire, subsequent members of the Board shall be appointed to serve four-year terms.  At the end of a term, a member shall continue to serve on the Board until a successor is appointed.  A member who is appointed after a term is begun serves only for the remainder of the term and until a successor is appointed.  Any vacancy in the membership of the Board shall be filled by the same appointing authority that made the appointment, except that vacancies among members appointed by the General Assembly shall be filled in accordance with G.S. 120-122.
(c)	Members of the Board shall not be employed by or serve on the board of directors or other corporate governing body of any information systems, computer hardware, computer software, or telecommunications vendor of goods and services to the State or to any unit of local government in the State.  No member of the Board shall vote on an action affecting solely the member's own State agency or local governmental unit or specific judicial office.
"§ 143-643.  Compensation and expenses of Board members; travel reimbursements.
Members of the Board shall serve without compensation but may receive travel and subsistence as follows:
(1)	Board members who are officials or employees of a State agency or unit of local government, in accordance with G.S. 138-6.
(2)	All other Board members, at the rate established in G.S. 138-5.
"§ 143-644.  Powers and duties.
(a)	The Board shall have the following powers and duties:
(1)	To establish and operate the Network as an integrated system of State and local government components for effectively and efficiently storing, communicating, and using criminal justice statistics at the State and local levels throughout North Carolina's law enforcement, judicial, and corrections agencies, with the components of the Network to include electronic devices, programs, data, and governance and to set the Network's policies and procedures.
(2)	To determine and establish uniform standards, consistent with any applicable standards adopted by the Information Resource Management Commission, for entering, storing, and transmitting information in criminal justice databases.
(3)	To evaluate the capacity of available information technology to meet the present and future needs of the users of the Network and the costs and benefits of adopting any present or prospective information technology for the Network.
(4)	To develop and promulgate technical standards that achieve maximum compatibility among user technologies while assuring maximum user freedom in adopting technologies.
(5)	To identify the funds needed to establish and maintain the Network, identify public and private sources of funding, and secure funding for the Board.
(6)	To receive funds appropriated or granted to the Board and to use those funds to:
a.	Create the Network and to facilitate the sharing of information among users of the Network;
b.	Develop elements of the Network which are the responsibility of the State;
c.	Make grants to local government users to enable them to acquire or improve elements of the Network that lie within the responsibility of their agencies, provided that the elements developed with such funds must be available for use by the State or by local governments without cost; and
d.	Make grants to local government users to enable them to acquire or improve elements of the Network that lie within the responsibility of one or more State agencies, provided that:
1.	The State agencies must join in the request for funding, and
2.	The elements developed with such funds must be available for use by the State or by local governments without cost, if the State agency or agencies certify that the element advances the State's ability to meet its goal of having an integrated criminal justice information network.
(7)	To coordinate and assist the Network users of this State in soliciting bids for information technology hardware, software, and services in order to assure compliance with the Board's technical standards, to gain the most advantageous contracts for the Network users of this State, and to assure financial accountability where State funds are used.
(8)	To provide liaison among local government users and provide assistance for the financial and systems planning for Network related automation.
(9)	To facilitate the sharing of knowledge about information technologies among users of the Network.
(10)	To be an advocate for the Network and the needs of its users in connection with legislation affecting the Network.
(11)	To take any other appropriate actions to foster the development of the Network.
(b)	All grants or other uses of funds appropriated or granted to the Board shall be conditioned on compliance with the Board's technical and other standards.
"§ 143-645.  Election of officers; meetings; staff; etc.
(a)	The Governor shall call the first meeting of the Board. At the first meeting, the Board shall elect a chair and a vice-chair, each to serve a one-year term, with subsequent officers to be elected for one-year terms.  The Board shall hold at least two regular meetings each year, as provided by policies and procedures adopted by the Board.  The Board may hold additional meetings upon the call of the chair or any three Board members.  A majority of the Board membership constitutes a quorum.
(b)	The Board shall employ a full-time Executive Director who shall have appropriate training and experience to assist the Board in the performance of its duties.  The Executive Director shall be exempt from coverage under the State Personnel Act and shall serve at the pleasure of the Board.  The salary of the Executive Director shall be set by the Governor upon the recommendation of the Board.
(c)	The Executive Director may employ such other full or part-time staff and contract for such services as may be necessary or appropriate to assist the Board in the performance of its duties, as funds permit.  Staff employed by the Executive Director shall be exempt from coverage under the State Personnel Act and shall serve at the pleasure of the Executive Director.  The salaries of such staff shall be set by the Executive Director.
(d)	The Board may meet in an area provided by the Office of State Budget and Management, and the Board's staff shall use space provided by the Office of State Budget and Management."
Sec. 2.  G.S. 143B-426.32(a) is amended by adding a new subdivision:
"(9)	The Chair of the Criminal Justice Information Network Governing Board."
Sec. 3.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Office of State Budget and Management the sum of four hundred thousand dollars ($400,000) for the 1995-96 fiscal year and the sum of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) for the 1996-97 fiscal year for the expenses of the Criminal Justice Information Network Governing Board, including staff salaries and benefits; and there is further appropriated from the General Fund to the Office of State Budget and Management the sum of one million, five hundred thousand dollars ($1,500,000) for the 1995-96 fiscal year and fourteen million, five hundred thousand dollars ($14,500,000) for the 1996-97 fiscal year for the implementation, establishment and operation of the Network.
Sec. 4.  This act becomes effective July 1, 1995.