(a) Board created.--The Children's Trust Fund Board is created in the Department of Public Welfare.¹ The board shall administer the program and award grants. The department shall perform budgetary, accounting, procurement and other support services.

(b) Board composition.--The board shall consist of 15 members. Three shall be members of the Senate appointed by the President pro tempore of the Senate, and three shall be members of the House of Representatives appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives. In no case shall more than two members from either the Senate or the House of Representatives be from the same political party. The Governor shall appoint nine public members, to be confirmed by majority vote of the Senate. Public members appointed under this subsection shall demonstrate knowledge in the area of children's services; be representative of the demographic composition of this Commonwealth; and, to the extent possible, be representative of parents, the educational community, the religious community, organized labor, the business community, the legal community, and professionals and volunteers in the field of children's or victims' services.

(c) Term of office.--The term of each public member shall be three years and until a successor is appointed and qualified. However, of the public members first appointed, three shall serve for three years, three shall serve for two years and three shall serve for one year. A public member shall serve no more than two consecutive terms, whether partial or full. A vacancy shall be filled for the balance of the unexpired term in the same manner as the original appointment.

(d) Votes.--No public member of the board may delegate his vote. Legislative members may delegate votes to a designee acting on their behalf only after informing the chairman in writing.

(e) Officers and rules.--The board shall elect a chairperson every two years from among the public members and may elect other officers and establish committees as it deems necessary and has provided for in the regulations it promulgates. Business transacted by the board shall be conducted in accordance with the act of July 3, 1986 (P.L. 388, No. 84), known as the Sunshine Act.²

(f) Meetings.--The board shall meet not less than three times annually at the call of the chairperson.

(g) Compensation.--Board members shall serve without compensation but shall be reimbursed for actual and reasonable expenses incurred in the performance of their official duties. Reimbursements shall be allocated from funds available from the trust fund, under this act.