(1)

(a) All powers of the Mississippi Gulf Coast Region Utility Board shall be exercised by a board of directors to be composed of the following: (i) the president of each county authority; and (ii) three (3) at-large directors, to be appointed by the Governor, who shall be residents of the Gulf Coast Region.

(b) The initial terms of the at-large directors shall be for two (2), four (4) and six (6) years as designated by the Governor. After the expiration of the initial terms, the subsequent terms shall be for a period of six (6) years. However, there shall be no more than one (1) at-large director appointed from any one (1) county. Each president may appoint a delegate, to represent him at a meeting of the board.

(2) At the initial meeting of the board, the board shall elect a president and a vice president. Thereafter, the board will annually, at the last meeting of the fiscal year, elect a president and a vice president who shall serve in their respective offices for the next fiscal year. The directors shall serve without a salary but are entitled to receive per diem pay as provided for in Section 25-3-69, and for actual and necessary expenses incurred while in the performance of his duties as a member of the board as provided in Section 25-3-41.

(3) Any utility board member who does not attend three (3) consecutive regular meetings of the authority shall be subject to removal by a majority vote of the board and shall be replaced with an appointment from the Governor or governing body making the initial appointment.

(4) The president shall be the chief executive officer of the utility board and the presiding officer of the board, and shall have the same right to vote as any other director. The vice president shall act in the absence or disability of the president. Each director shall be required to give bond in the sum of not less than Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00), with sureties qualified to do business in this state, and the premiums on the bond shall be an expense of the utility board. Each bond shall be payable to the State of Mississippi. The condition of each bond shall be that each director will faithfully perform all duties of his office and account for all monies or other assets which shall come into his custody as a director of the utility board.

(5) A quorum for any meeting of the board of directors shall be the majority of the total membership of the board of directors. All business of the utility board shall be transacted by vote of the board of directors.

(6) The utility board shall conduct regular meetings as set forth in its bylaws. The utility board shall establish rules and regulations regarding its meetings and may amend such bylaws, rules and regulations as may be necessary to conduct the business of the board.

(7) This section shall repeal July 1, 2023.