A. The "board of directors of the national Hispanic cultural center" is created. The board shall consist of fifteen residents of New Mexico. Thirteen public members shall be appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the senate. Two of the appointees shall be employees of state institutions of higher education or appropriate state agencies. In making the appointments, the governor shall give due consideration to:

(1) the ethnic, economic and geographic diversity of the state;

(2) individuals who have demonstrated an awareness of and support for traditional and contemporary Hispanic culture, arts and humanities, including a strong knowledge of New Mexico Hispanic history; and

(3) individuals who are knowledgeable in the areas of Hispanic performing, visual and oral arts, genealogy, family issues, education, business and administration.

B. The public members shall be appointed for staggered four-year terms.

C. Two private members shall be appointed by the board of a nonprofit organization that has an operating agreement with the center that complies with the provisions of Section 6-5A-1 NMSA 1978. The private members shall be appointed for one-year terms expiring on June 30 of each year.

D. A majority of the board members currently serving shall constitute a quorum at any meeting or hearing.

E. A public member failing to attend three consecutive meetings after receiving proper notice shall be recommended for removal by the governor. The governor may also remove a public member of the board for neglect of any duty required by law, for incompetency, for unprofessional conduct or for violating any provisions of the National Hispanic Cultural Center Act. If a vacancy occurs on the board, the original appointing authority shall appoint another member to complete the unexpired term.

F. The executive director shall be an ex-officio nonvoting member of the board.

G. The governor shall designate the president of the board, who shall serve in that capacity at the pleasure of the governor. The board may elect other officers from among its membership.

History: Laws 1993, ch. 42, § 4; 1999, ch. 56, § 4; 2003, ch. 403, § 6; 2015, ch. 19, § 15.

The 2015 amendment, effective July 1, 2015, amended the appointment provisions and the terms of the board of directors of the national Hispanic cultural center; in the introductory paragraph of Subsection A, after "New Mexico.", added "Thirteen public members shall be"; at the beginning of Subsection B, deleted "Of the initial appointees, five members shall be appointed for four-year terms, five members shall be appointed for three-year terms and five members shall be appointed for two-year terms. All subsequent", and added "The public", and after "appointed for", added "staggered"; added Subsection C and redesignated the succeeding subsections accordingly; at the beginning of Subsection E, changed "Any" to "A public", after "may also remove", deleted "any" and added "a public", and after "on the board, the", deleted "governor" and added "original appointing authority"; and in Subsection G, after "governor", added "The board may elect other officers from among its membership".

The 2003 amendment, effective June 20, 2003, deleted "of New Mexico" following "Hispanic cultural center" near the end of the first sentence of Subsection A; and deleted "of New Mexico" following "Hispanic Cultural Center" near the end of the second sentence of Subsection D.

The 1999 amendment, effective June 18, 1999, substituted "national Hispanic cultural center of New Mexico" for "New Mexico Hispanic cultural center" in the first sentence of Subsection A and the second sentence of Subsection D.