127A-19. Adjutant General.

(a) The military head of the militia shall be the Adjutant General who shall hold the rank of major general with federal recognition at time of appointment or attain the rank of major general pursuant to this section. The Adjutant General shall be appointed by the Governor in the Governor's capacity as commander in chief of the militia, in consultation with the Secretary of Public Safety, and shall serve at the pleasure of the Governor. The Adjutant General, while holding this office, shall be a member of the active North Carolina National Guard. If an appointed Adjutant General does not attain the rank of major general with federal recognition within a reasonable period of time from the date of appointment, the Governor shall replace the Adjutant General with an appointee who meets the criteria in this section. A "reasonable period of time" shall take into account time in grade requirements for promotion or promotions and administrative periods necessary to complete the promotion process.

(b) In order to be eligible for appointment as Adjutant General, a person shall be a resident of the State of North Carolina and meet all of the following requirements:

(1) The person shall have a total of at least 10 years of commissioned service in any component or components of the Armed Forces of the United States.

(2) The person shall have a minimum of three years commissioned service in the Army or Air National Guard within the six-year period previous to the appointment date.

(3) The person, at the time of appointment, shall be one of the following:

a. A major general with federal recognition or who is eligible for federal recognition.

b. A brigadier general with federal recognition or who is eligible for federal recognition and who is eligible for promotion to major general with federal recognition.

c. A colonel with federal recognition or who is eligible for federal recognition; who is eligible for promotion and federal recognition as a brigadier general; and who is eligible for promotion to major general with federal recognition.

(4) The person shall have completed all service school or other criteria for promotion to general officer with federal recognition.

(5) The person shall have a minimum of 12 months in command of either (i) an Army or Air National Guard unit or (ii) a unit in any component of the Armed Forces of the United States.

(c) Subject to the approval of the Governor and in consultation with the Secretary of Public Safety, the Adjutant General may appoint:

(1) A deputy adjutant general, who may hold the same rank as the Adjutant General.

(2) Two assistant adjutants general for the Army National Guard and an assistant adjutant general for the Air National Guard, each of whom may hold the rank of brigadier general.

The appointees authorized by this subsection shall serve at the pleasure of the Governor. The Adjutant General may also employ staff members and other personnel as authorized by the Secretary and funded.