§ 130A-50.  Election and terms of office of sanitary district boards.

(a) The Department shall send a copy of the resolution creating the sanitary district to the board or boards of county commissioners of the county or counties in which all or part of the district is located. The Department shall file or cause to be filed with the county board or boards of elections in the same county or counties a map of the district. With the map it shall include supporting documents. That map and documents shall be filed within 10 business days after the creation of the district and amended within 10 days after any change to the boundaries of the district. The board or boards of commissioners shall hold a meeting or joint meeting for the purpose of electing the members of the sanitary district board.

(b) The sanitary district board shall be composed of either three or five members as the county commissioners in their discretion shall determine. The members first appointed shall serve as the governing body of the sanitary district until the next regular election for municipal and special district officers as provided in G.S. 163-279, which occurs more than 90 days after their appointment. At that election, their successors shall be elected. The terms of the members shall be for two years or four years and may be staggered as determined by the county board of commissioners so that some members are elected at each biennial election. The members of the sanitary district board shall be residents of the district. The county board of commissioners shall notify the county board of elections of any decision made under this subsection.

If the sanitary district board consists of three members, the county commissioners may at any time increase the sanitary district board to five members. The increase shall become effective with respect to any election where the filing period for candidacy opens at least 30 days after approval of the expansion to five members. The effective date of the expansion is the organizational meeting of the sanitary district board after the election.

The county commissioners may provide for staggering terms of an existing sanitary district board whose members serve two-year terms by providing for some of the members to be elected at the next election to be for four-year terms. The change shall become effective with respect to any election where the filing period for candidacy opens at least 30 days after approval of the staggering of terms.

The sanitary district board may provide for staggering its terms if its members serve unstaggered four-year terms by providing for some of the members to be elected at the next election for two-year terms. The change shall become effective with respect to any election where the filing period for candidacy opens at least 30 days after approval of the staggering of terms.

The county commissioners may provide for changing a sanitary district board from two-year terms to unstaggered four-year terms. This may be done either by providing that at the next election, all members shall be elected for four-year terms, or by extending the terms of existing members from two years to four years. The change shall become effective with respect to any election where the filing period for candidacy opens at least 30 days after approval of the change of length of terms.

(b1) If a sanitary district:

1. Does not share territory with any city as defined by G.S. 160A-1(2), and

2. The sanitary district is in more than one county,

the boards of county commissioners in all counties with territory in the sanitary district may set the sanitary district elections to be held on the same date as general elections in even-numbered years under G.S. 163-1 and may extend the terms of any sanitary district board members who are in office at the ratification of this act until the next even-year general election can been [be] held and successors qualified.

(b2) If a sanitary district:

(1) Is located entirely within a county which has no incorporated city as defined by G.S. 160A-1(2) located within that county; and

(2) Has a sanitary district board whose members serve four-year terms which are not staggered and which next expire in 1991,

the board of commissioners of that county may, by resolution adopted prior to December 31, 1989, set the sanitary district election to be held on the same date as general elections in even-numbered years under G.S. 163-1. Such resolution shall extend the terms of office of the then serving members of the sanitary district board by one year, so that they will expire on the first Monday in December following the 1992 general election. Other than as provided by this subsection, sanitary district elections shall continue to be conducted in accordance with this Article and Chapter 163 of the General Statutes.

(c) The election shall be nonpartisan and decided by simple plurality as provided in G.S. 163-292 and shall be held and conducted by the county board of elections in accordance with the applicable provisions of Articles 23 and 24 of Chapter 163 of the General Statutes. If the district is in more than one county, then the county board of elections of the county including the largest part of the district shall conduct the election for the entire district with the assistance and full cooperation of the boards of elections in the other counties.

(d) The board of elections shall certify the results of the election to the clerk of superior court. The clerk of superior court shall take and file the oaths of office of the board members elected.

(e) The elected members of the board shall take the oath of office on the first Monday in December following their election and shall serve for the term elected and until their successors are elected and qualified.

(f) A sanitary district board may adopt a resolution to require the election of the sanitary district board to be at the time of the election for county officers. The resolution shall be delivered to the county board of elections prior to July 1 of the odd-numbered year. If the resolution is received by the county board of elections prior to July 1 of the odd-numbered year, the current terms of office of members of that sanitary district board shall be extended by one year and the next election conducted in the following even-numbered year.

(g) If a sanitary district board lies wholly within a county and no resident voter of the district filed a notice of candidacy in the previous election for the sanitary district board, the board of county commissioners may adopt a resolution to require the election of the sanitary district board to be at the time of the election for county officers. The resolution shall be delivered to the county board of elections prior to July 1 of the odd-numbered year. If the resolution is received by the county board of elections prior to July 1 of the odd-numbered year, the current terms of office of members of that sanitary district board shall be extended by one year and the next election conducted in the following even-numbered year.

(h) For purposes of the election of the members of the sanitary district board, a sanitary district board shall adopt single-member residency districts in which only a person residing in a single-member residency district shall be eligible as a candidate in the election for the seat apportioned to that single-member residency district, but candidates shall be elected at large by the qualified voters of the entire sanitary district. The district boundaries shall be established by resolution adopted by the sanitary district board following a public hearing on the matter. The resolution, and a copy of a map depicting the single-member residency districts as adopted, shall be filed with the county board of elections. The most recent federal decennial census data shall be used as the sole basis of population for the establishment of the single-member residency districts. The single-member residency districts shall be revised after the return of each federal decennial census as necessary. Notwithstanding subsection (b) of this section, members of a sanitary district board under this subsection shall serve staggered four-year terms and the staggering shall be taken into consideration when adopting or revising the single-member residency districts. This subsection shall apply only to a sanitary district lying wholly within a county with more than 17 municipalities lying wholly within that county.  (1927, c. 100, s. 6; 1943, c. 602; 1953, c. 798; 1955, c. 1073; 1957, c. 1357, s. 1; 1963, c. 644; 1973, c. 476, s. 128; 1981, c. 186, s. 1; 1983, c. 891, s. 2; 1987, c. 22, s. 1; 1989, c. 310; 1993 (Reg. Sess., 1994), c. 736, s. 1.1; 1997-117, s. 1; 2007-391, s. 15; 2017-6, s. 3; 2018-146, ss. 3.1(a), (b), 6.1; 2023-97, s. 5(a); 2024-38, s. 2(a).)