KRS 74.450: Membership of water commission -- Term -- Compensation -- Removal --

Status.

(1) After the county judge/executive has made an order creating a water commission,

the presiding officer of each of the cities, water associations, or water districts

which proposed the creation of the commission with the approval of its governing

body, and each federal agency which joined in a proposal shall appoint one (1)

commissioner. If the number of commissioners so appointed by the presiding

officers of the cities, water associations, or water districts and by the federal agency

or agencies shall e qual or exceed five (5), no further commissioners shall be

appointed and the commissioners shall be and constitute the water commission.

(2) If the number of commissioners appointed by the presiding officers of the cities,

water associations, water districts, or federal agencies shall be less than five (5), the

county judge/executive who entered the order creating the commission shall appoint

additional commissioners to the commission as necessary to make the number of

commissioners equal five (5). The comm issioners shall constitute the commission,

which shall be a public corporation and a public body corporate and politic with the

powers and duties specified in KRS 74.420 to 74.520. The commission may in its

corporate name contract and be contracted with, s ue and be sued, adopt and alter at

its pleasure a corporate seal, and purchase, own, hold, and dispose of all real and

personal property necessary for carrying out its corporate purpose under KRS

74.420 to 74.520.

(3) The commissioners originally appointed shall meet and select by lot their respective

terms of office so that approximately one -third (1/3) of the commissioners shall

serve for a term of two (2) years, a like number for a term of three (3) years and the

remaining commissioner or commissioners f or a term of four (4) years. The terms

shall be deemed to commence from the first day of the month during which the

order of the county judge/executive creating the commission was entered.

(4) Upon the expiration of the term of office of each of the commis sioners, a successor

shall be appointed to succeed him for a term of four (4) years and the appointment

shall be made in the same manner as the original appointment.

(5) Each commissioner shall serve until his successor has been appointed and has been

qualified. Each commissioner shall be a resident of the service area of the water

systems or an employee of the federal agency which is represented by the

commission. A commissioner shall be eligible for reappointment upon the

expiration of his term. A vacancy shall be filled for the balance of the unexpired

term in the same manner as that prescribed for the appointment of the person who

has ceased to hold office. Each commissioner shall receive the same compensation,

which shall not be more than five hundred dollars ($500) per year, to be fixed by the

commission and to be paid out of commission funds, except that a commissioner

representing a federal agency shall serve without compensation. Each commissioner

shall furnish a bond for faithful performance of his official duties. This bond shall

not be less than five thousand dollars ($5,000); the amount shall be fixed by the

commission; and its cost shall be paid by the commission.

(6) Each commissioner may be removed by the official by whom he was appointed, for

cause, after hearing by the appointing official and after at least ten (10) days' notice

in writing has been given to the commissioner, which notice shall embrace the

charges preferred against him. At the hearing he may be represented by counsel.

The finding of the appointing official shall be final and removal results in vacancy

in the office. A federal agency shall determine its own appointment and removal

procedures for its representative.