A.__"Board" means the Health and Human Services Advisory Board.

2.__Establishment.__In order to provide advice to the Commissioner of Health and Human Services, the Health and Human Services Advisory Board is established pursuant to Title 5, section 12004-J, subsection 14.

3. Composition.__The board consists of 9 members appointed by the Governor, 2 of whom must be consumers of the services of the department, 2 of whom must be providers of services of the department and 5 of whom must be members of the general public.

A.__The 2 consumer appointees serve 3-year terms, except that of the initial 2 appointees, the first appointee serves a 3-year term and the 2nd appointee serves a 2-year term;

B.__The 2 provider appointees serve 3-year terms, except that of the initial 2 appointees, the first appointee serves a 3-year term and the 2nd appointee serves a 2-year term; and

C. The 5 public member appointees serve 3-year terms, except that of the initial 5 appointees, the first 3 appointees serve 3-year terms and the remaining initial 2 appointees serve 2-year terms.

A vacancy on the board must be filled by a person from the constituency represented by the original appointment.

4.__Chair.__From the 9 members of the board, the Governor shall appoint a chair to schedule, set the agendas for and preside at meetings of the board.__The member serving as chair serves in that position until the conclusion of the term for which the member was appointed originally.

5.__Meetings; public proceedings.__The board may meet as often as necessary for the performance of its duties but shall meet at least 4 times per year.__Meetings of the board are public meetings and the records of the board are public records unless designated confidential by state or federal laws, rules or regulations.

6.__Staffing.__The board may use department staff to provide necessary assistance.