Creates the Alabama Board of Licensure for Professional Geologists and sets its membership, appointment rules, member qualifications, term limits, removal grounds, reimbursement, and staffing powers.
(a) There is created the Alabama Board of Licensure for Professional Geologists which shall administer and enforce this chapter. (b) The board shall consist of seven members appointed by the Governor from a list of nominees submitted by the board, or any entity designated by the board. Members of the board, except for the initial board, shall be licensed professional geologists. Whenever possible the membership of the board shall be inclusive and reflect the racial, gender, geographic, urban, rural, and economic diversity of the state. Commencing on June 1, 2025, as the terms of the members serving on the board expire, the membership of the board shall be appointed so that one member resides in and is appointed from each congressional district in this state. (c) Each member of the board shall be a citizen of the United States, a resident of this state for at least five years immediately preceding appointment, reside in this state during the term of office, and be at least 25 years of age. (d) All members of the initial board shall be appointed by the Governor from a list of nominees who shall at the time of their appointment qualify for licensing under this chapter and become duly licensed during their term. Membership of the board shall include at least one representative member from each of the following professional subgroups of geologists: Faculty of the departments of geology at colleges and universities in this state that grant degrees in the geological sciences; governmental agencies employing geologists; businesses, exclusive of those exempted herein; mining industry; petroleum industry; geotechnical engineering firms; environmental engineering firms; and independent geological consultants. (e) After the establishment of the initial board, all members of the board shall be licensed under this chapter. The term of office of each member of the board shall be three years. Notwithstanding the foregoing, of the first members appointed, two shall be appointed for a term of one year, two for terms of two years, and three for terms of three years. No member shall serve more than two consecutive three-year terms, without interruption in service of at least three years. (f) Each term on the board shall expire on September 30 of the year in which the term expires. When the term of a member expires, the Governor shall appoint a new member or reappoint the current member for a full term under subsections (d) and (e). If a vacancy occurs, within 90 days of the vacancy the Governor shall appoint a replacement to fill the vacancy for the remainder of the unexpired term. Except for the members of the initial board, all appointments and reappointments to the board shall be made by the Governor from a list of nominees submitted by the board, or any entity designated by the board. In appointing members to the board, the Governor shall strive to achieve diversity in race, gender, geography, residence, and economic condition. (g) The Governor may remove a member of the board only for neglect of duty, an unexcused failure to attend more than one of the regularly scheduled meetings held in a calendar year during the term in office of the member, malfeasance, violation of this chapter, or conviction of a felony or other crime of moral turpitude. (h) Members of the board shall receive reimbursement for expenses incurred in the performance of duties of one hundred dollars ($100) per day plus mileage payable at the same rate as paid for state officers and employees for each day of actual attendance at a regular or special meeting of the board. (i) The board may employ the necessary personnel for performance of its functions and fix their compensation. The board may appoint committees to aid in the performance of its functions.