(a) The council shall be comprised of fourteen (14) members as follows:

(1) The governor or the governor's designee shall serve as an ex officio, voting member of the council;

(2) The governor shall appoint:

(A) One (1) representative of energy resource extraction or energy production industries, excluding the Tennessee Valley authority, who may be appointed from lists of qualified persons submitted by interested energy resource extraction or energy production industries including, but not limited to, the biofuel, oil and gas, wind, coal, solar energy, geothermal energy, hydropower, and nuclear energy industries. The governor shall consult with the industries listed in this subdivision (a)(2)(A) to determine qualified persons to fill the position on the council;

(B) One (1) representative of a commercial, industrial, or agricultural energy consumer; and

(C) One (1) representative of an institution of higher education in this state;

(3) The speaker of the house of representatives shall appoint:

(A) One (1) representative of the energy research and development industry, who may be selected from lists of qualified persons submitted by interested research and development industries, including, but not limited to, the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The speaker shall consult with the industries described in this subdivision (a)(3)(A) to determine qualified persons to fill the position on the council;

(B) One (1) representative of the Tennessee Valley authority;

(C) One (1) representative of a local distribution utility; and

(D) One (1) representative of a transportation-related industry; including, but not limited to, wholesalers, transportation equipment manufacturers, shipping companies, and local transit authorities;

(4) The speaker of the senate shall appoint:

(A) One (1) residential energy user;

(B) One (1) representative of environmental groups;

(C) One (1) representative of the industries that provide natural gas to consumers in this state; and

(D) One (1) representative who is knowledgeable of and has expertise in energy efficiency and energy conservation as it relates to the built environment, who may be selected from lists of qualified persons submitted by interested parties from the engineering and architectural professions in this state. The speaker shall consult with the professions described in this subdivision (a)(4)(D) to determine qualified persons to fill the position on the council;

(5) The state treasurer or the treasurer's designee shall serve as an ex officio, nonvoting member of the council; and

(6) One (1) nonvoting student member with expertise in energy issues and energy policy, who, during the person's tenure as a member of the council, is enrolled as a graduate student in an institution of higher education in this state. The student member shall be appointed by the council from nominations submitted by university faculty members at such institutions.

(b) In addition to any other requirements for membership on the council, all persons appointed or otherwise named to serve as members of the council shall be bona fide residents of this state, and shall continue to reside in this state during their tenure on the council.

(c)

(1) All appointments to the council shall be made by July 1, 2017.

(2) In order to stagger the terms of the newly appointed council members, initial appointments shall be made as follows:

(A) The members listed in subdivision (a)(2) shall serve initial terms of one (1) year, which shall expire on June 30, 2018;

(B) The members listed in subdivision (a)(3) shall serve initial terms of two (2) years, which shall expire on June 30, 2019; and

(C) The members listed in subdivision (a)(4) shall serve initial terms of three (3) years, which shall expire on June 30, 2020.

(3) The student member appointed pursuant to subdivision (a)(6) shall serve a term of two (2) years, but shall not serve more than two (2) consecutive terms as a member of the council.

(d)

(1) Following the expiration of members' initial terms as prescribed in subdivision (c)(2), all three-year terms shall begin on July 1 and terminate on June 30, three (3) years thereafter.

(2) All members shall serve until the expiration of the term to which they were appointed and until their successors are appointed and qualified.

(3) In case of a vacancy in the membership on the council prior to the expiration of a member's term, a successor shall be appointed within thirty (30) days of the vacancy for the remainder of the unexpired term by the appropriate appointing authority and in the same manner as the original appointment.

(e) The appointing authorities may remove any member of the council for misconduct, incompetency, willful neglect of duty, or other just cause.

(f) Prior to beginning their duties, each member of the council shall take and subscribe to the oath of office provided for state officers.

(g) In making appointments to the council, the appointing authorities shall strive to ensure that the council is composed of persons who are diverse in professional or educational background, ethnicity, race, sex, geographic residency, heritage, perspective, and experience.