May a board of county commissioners abolish the consolidated human services board and assume its powers and duties?

Yes. If a board of county commissioners (BOCC) abolishes its consolidated human services board, the BOCC acquires the board’s powers and duties, described here. Prior to serving as the governing board for the new CHSA, the BOCC must hold a public hearing. The law requires “30 days’ notice of said public hearing given in a newspaper having general circulation in said county.” The hearing requirement is triggered by the BOCC assuming the powers and duties of another board – which could be a county board of health, a county board of social services, or a CHS board. [1]

If the CHSA includes public health and the BOCC assumes the powers and duties of the governing board, the BOCC must appoint an advisory committee for public health. [2]  The advisory committee membership must, at a minimum, meet the requirements for a county board of health found in G.S. 130A-35. The requirement for a health advisory committee applies only to counties that abolish their health or CHS boards after January 1, 2012. This amounts to an exception for Mecklenburg County, which abolished its boards (a county board of health, and subsequently a consolidated human services board) before that date.

If the CHSA will include a department of social services, the advisory committee could have a broader scope and include people with social services expertise or interests. The BOCC also has the option of appointing a separate advisory committee for social services or other issues, but that is not required by law.