KRS 63.080: Officers appointed by Governor may be removed without cause --

Exceptions -- Removal of university or KCTCS board members for cause or to

comply with proportional representation requirements.

(1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this se ction and otherwise provided by law,

any person appointed by the Governor, either with or without the advice and

consent of the Senate, may be removed from office by the Governor for any cause

the Governor deems sufficient, by an order of the Governor entered in the executive

journal removing the officer.

(2) (a) Except as provided in subsections (3) and (4) of this section, members of the

Kentucky Board of Education; the board of trustees of the University of

Kentucky; the board of trustees of the Universi ty of Louisville; and the board

of regents respectively of Eastern Kentucky University, Western Kentucky

University, Morehead State University, Kentucky State University, Northern

Kentucky University, Murray State University, and the Kentucky Community

and Technical College System shall not be removed except for cause.

(b) Members of the Council on Postsecondary Education shall not be removed

except for cause.

(c) A member of a board of trustees or board of regents specified in paragraph (a)

of this subsection may be removed for cause as follows:

1. The Governor or the board of trustees or board of regents, as applicable,

shall notify, in writing, the member and the Council on Postsecondary

Education that the member should be removed for cause and shall

specify the conduct warranting removal;

2. The member shall have seven (7) days to voluntarily resign or to provide

evidence to the Council on Postsecondary Education that the member's

conduct does not warrant removal;

3. Within thirty (30) days after receipt of notice from the Governor or the

board, the Council on Postsecondary Education shall review the written

notice, investigate the member and the conduct alleged to support

removal, and make a nonbinding recommendation, in writing, to the

Governor as to whether the member should be removed, a copy of which

shall also be provided to the Legislative Research Commission;

4. The Governor shall then make a determination, in writing, whether the

member should be removed and shall notify the member, the applicable

board, the Council on Postsecondary Education, and the Legislative

Research Commission of the determination; and

5. If the Governor's determination is to remove the member, the Governor

shall remove the member by executive order, and shall replace the

member with a new appointment according to the applicable statutes for

the board of trustees or board of regents.

(d) For the purposes of this subsection, a member may be removed for cause for

conduct including but not limited to malfeasance, misfeasance, inco mpetence,

or gross neglect of duty.

(3) For a board specified in subsection (2)(a) of this section that is required by law to

have proportional representation in its membership based on residence, political

affiliation, gender, minority racial composition, or professional qualifications, the

Governor or other appointing authority may remove any member of the board and

replace him or her with another individual in order to bring the membership into

compliance with the statutory proportional representation requirement for the board,

provided that the Governor or other appointing authority shall:

(a) Only exercise the removal authority granted in this subsection if appointment

at the end of the next expiring term of a member, or at the end of the next

expiring term of members if two (2) or more members' terms expire at the

same time, cannot cure the de ficiency in the proportional representation

requirement;

(b) Remove the fewest number of members necessary to bring the membership

into compliance with the proportional representation requirement for the

board;

(c) Identify the order in which the members w ere appointed to their current terms

on the board and, beginning with the most recently appointed member who

may be removed and replaced to bring the membership into compliance with

the proportional representation requirement, remove the member or members

according to the length of their tenure on the board, without taking into

account any prior term of service on the board by the member;

(d) Provide any member proposed to be removed with the following:

1. Written notice, at least seven (7) days prior to th e member's removal

from the board, stating the statutory proportional representation

requirement that the member does not satisfy; and

2. An opportunity during the seven (7) day notice period for the member to

voluntarily resign or to provide evidence to t he Governor or other

appointing authority that the member does satisfy the proportional

representation requirement or that another member on the board who

also does not satisfy the requirement has a shorter tenure than the

member proposed to be removed;

(e) Replace any removed member with only those individuals who will bring the

board into compliance with the proportional representation requirement; and

(f) Appoint any new member in the same manner as provided by law for the

member being removed and to fil l the remainder of the removed member's

unexpired term.

(4) For a board of trustees or board of regents specified in subsection (2)(a) of this

section, the Governor may remove for cause all appointed members of the board

and replace the entire appointed membership as follows:

(a) The Governor shall notify, in writing, the board and the Council on

Postsecondary Education that the entire appointed membership of the board

should be removed for cause and shall specify the conduct warranting

removal;

(b) The board or its members shall have seven (7) days to voluntarily resign or to

provide evidence to the Council on Postsecondary Education that the conduct

of the board or of individual members does not warrant removal;

(c) Within thirty (30) days after receipt of notice from the Governor, the Council

on Postsecondary Education shall review the written notice, investigate the

board and the conduct alleged to support removal, and make a nonbinding

recommendation, in writing, to the Governor as to whether the appoint ed

board membership should be removed, a copy of which shall also be provided

to the Legislative Research Commission;

(d) The Governor shall then make a determination, in writing, whether the entire

appointed board membership should be removed and shall no tify the

members, the Council on Postsecondary Education, and the Legislative

Research Commission of the determination; and

(e) If the Governor's determination is to remove the entire appointed membership

of the board, the Governor shall remove the members by executive order, and

shall replace the members with new appointments according to the applicable

statutes for the board of trustees or board or regents.

For the purposes of this subsection, the entire appointed membership of a board of

trustees or boa rd of regents may be removed for cause if the board is no longer

functioning according to its statutory mandate as specified in the enabling statutes

applicable to the board, or if the board membership's conduct as a whole constitutes

malfeasance, misfeasa nce, incompetence, or gross neglect of duty, such that the

conduct cannot be attributed to any single member or members.