(a)        There is created the North Carolina Appraisal Board for the purposes set forth in this Chapter. The Board shall consist of nine members. The Governor shall appoint five members of the Board, and the General Assembly shall appoint four members in accordance with N.C. Gen. Stat. § 120-121, two upon the recommendation of the President Pro Tempore of the Senate and two upon the recommendation of the Speaker of the House of Representatives. Members appointed by the Governor shall be appointed from geographically diverse areas of the State. The appointees recommended by the Speaker of the House of Representatives and four of the appointees of the Governor shall be persons who have been engaged in the business of real estate appraising in this State for at least five years immediately preceding their appointment and are also State-licensed or State-certified real estate appraisers. One of the appointees of the Governor shall be a person representing either the real estate appraisal management industry or the banking industry. No more than three of the appointees may be members of the same appraiser trade organization at any one time. The appointees recommended by the President Pro Tempore of the Senate shall be a person not involved directly or indirectly in the real estate, real estate appraisal, or the real estate lending industry. Members of the Board shall serve three-year terms, so staggered that the terms of three members expire in one year, the terms of three members expire in the next year, and the terms of three members expire in the third year of each three-year period. The members of the Board shall elect one of their members to serve as chairman of the Board for a term of one year. The Governor may remove any member of the Board appointed by the Governor for misconduct, incompetency, or neglect of duty. The General Assembly may remove any member appointed by it for the same reasons. Successors shall be appointed by the appointing authority making the original appointment. All vacancies occurring on the Board shall be filled, for the unexpired term, by the appointing authority making the original appointment. Vacancies in appointments made by the General Assembly shall be filled in accordance with N.C. Gen. Stat. § 120-122 Initial terms of office commenced July 1, 1994.

(b)        The Board is an occupational licensing agency governed by Chapter 150B of the N.C. Gen. Stat.; its decisions are final agency decisions subject to judicial review under Article 4 of Chapter 150B of the N.C. Gen. Stat..

(c)        Members of the Board shall be paid the per diem, subsistence, and travel allowances at the rates set forth in N.C. Gen. Stat. § 93B-5; provided that none of the expenses of the Board or the compensation or expenses of any officer or employee thereof shall be payable out of the treasury of the State of North Carolina; the total expenses of the administration of this Chapter shall not exceed the total income therefrom; and neither the Board nor any officer or employee thereof shall have any power or authority to make or incur any expense, debt, or other financial obligation binding upon the State of North Carolina.

(d)       The Board shall adopt a seal for its use, which shall bear thereon the words “North Carolina Appraisal Board”. Copies of all papers in the office of the Board duly certified and authenticated by the seal of the Board shall be received in evidence in all courts and administrative bodies and with like effect as the originals.

(e)        The Board may employ an Executive Director and professional and clerical staff as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this Chapter and to put into effect the rules that the Board may promulgate. The Board shall fix salaries. The Board shall have the authority to issue to its employees credentials or other means of identification.

(f)        The Board shall be entitled to the services of the Attorney General in connection with the affairs of the Board or may, in its discretion, employ an attorney to assist or represent it in the enforcement of this Chapter.

(g)        The Board may prefer a complaint for violation of this Chapter before any court of competent jurisdiction, and it may take the necessary legal steps through the proper legal offices of the State to enforce the provisions of this Chapter.

(h)        The Board shall have the power to acquire, hold, rent, encumber, alienate, and otherwise deal with real property in the same manner as a private person or corporation, subject only to the approval of the Governor and the Council of State. Collateral pledged by the Board for an encumbrance is limited to the assets, income, and revenues of the Board.

(i)         The Board may purchase, rent, or lease equipment and supplies and purchase liability insurance or other insurance to cover the activities of the Board, its operations, or its employees. ?(1993, c. 419, s. 6; 1995, c. 482, s. 5; 1996, 2nd Ex. Sess., c. 15, s. 16; 2001-399, s. 1; 2008-177, s. 6(a); 2010-141, s. 3.)