GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
1997 SESSION

S.L. 1997-7
HOUSE BILL 77

AN ACT TO DIRECT THE SECRETARY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES TO DISSOLVE CERTAIN AREA MENTAL HEALTH AUTHORITIES.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

Section 1.  The Secretary of the Department of Human Resources shall dissolve all area mental health, mental retardation, and substance abuse authorities that are comprised of three counties at least two of which each have a population of 90,000 or more according to the most recent decennial federal census.  Prior to dissolution, the Secretary shall make the necessary and appropriate provisions relating to personnel and other matters, and dealing with the distribution of the assets and liabilities of the area authority. The dissolution shall take effect not later than June 30, 1997.   The Secretary shall permit counties that were part of an area authority dissolved pursuant to this act to provide mental health services as a single-county area authority or to align with another single-county or multicounty area authority.
Section 2.  This act is effective when it becomes law.
In the General Assembly read three times and ratified this the 18th day of March, 1997.

s/	Dennis A. Wicker
President of the Senate

s/	Harold J. Brubaker
Speaker of the House of Representatives

s/	James B. Hunt, Jr.
Governor

Approved 2:24 p.m. this 26th day of March, 1997