AN ACT providing that the governing body of the brunswick regional water and sewer sanitary district shall be elected at large from five RESIDENCY districts.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.(a)  Notwithstanding G.S. 130A‑50 or any other provision of law, the Brunswick Regional Water and Sewer H2GO Sanitary District (hereinafter H2GO Sanitary District) established pursuant to Part 2 of Article 2 of Chapter 130A of the General Statutes shall, for purposes of the election of the members of the sanitary district board of the H2GO Sanitary District, be divided into five single‑member residency districts. Only a person residing in a district shall be eligible as a candidate in the election for the seat apportioned to that district, but candidates shall be elected at large by the qualified voters of the entire H2GO Sanitary District. Members of the board of the H2GO Sanitary District shall serve staggered four‑year terms. The district boundaries shall be established by resolution by the board of the H2GO Sanitary District after a public hearing on the matter. The districts established shall maximize the geographic diversity of the board of the H2GO Sanitary District and contain not less than 1,000 qualified voters of the H2GO Sanitary District. A map of the district boundaries shall be kept in the office of the clerk to the board of the H2GO Sanitary District and shall be filed in the office of the Brunswick County Board of Elections.

SECTION 1.(b)  The board of the H2GO Sanitary District shall adopt a resolution establishing district boundaries as required by subsection (a) of this section not later than December 1, 2024. The boundaries established shall remain in effect until December 1, 2032, but thereafter shall be reviewed, revised, or reestablished, as required to comply with subsection (a) of this section, every six years thereafter. If the boundaries are reviewed, revised, or reestablished, as authorized in this subsection, the new boundaries shall become effective not later than December 1 of that year.

SECTION 1.(c)  Beginning in 2025, elections shall be held for Districts 3, 4, and 5 of the H2GO Sanitary District. In 2027, elections shall be held for Districts 1 and 2 of the H2GO Sanitary District. Except as specifically provided in this act, the provisions of G.S. 130A‑50 shall apply to elections of the board of the H2GO Sanitary District.

SECTION 2.  This act is effective when it becomes law and applies to elections held on or after that date.