(a) The authority shall be governed by a board of directors consisting of fifteen (15) members:

(1) The mayor of the county, or the mayor's designee;

(2) The mayor of the largest municipality within the county, or the mayor's designee;

(3) The director of the wildlife resources agency, or the director's designee;

(4) The commissioner of the department of economic and community development, or the commissioner's designee;

(5) The commissioner of environment and conservation, or the commissioner's designee;

(6) The commissioner of tourism development, or the commissioner's designee;

(7) One (1) member, appointed by the county mayor from a list of three (3) submitted by the board of directors of the county's chamber of commerce, who shall serve for a term of two (2) years;

(8) One (1) member, appointed by the county mayor, who shall be a resident of the county, and active in a locally organized conservation or outdoor recreation organization, who shall serve for a term of two (2) years;

(9) One (1) member, appointed by the governor, who shall have a background in conservation, who shall serve for a term of three (3) years;

(10) One (1) member, appointed by the governor, who shall have experience in outdoor recreation planning, marketing, or operations, who shall serve for a term of three (3) years;

(11) One (1) member, elected by majority vote of the governing body of the county, who shall serve for a term of two (2) years;

(12) One (1) member, appointed by the speaker of the senate in consultation with the member of the senate representing the majority of the county's population, who shall serve for a term of two (2) years;

(13) One (1) member, appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives in consultation with the member of the house of representatives representing the majority of the county's population, who shall serve for a term of two (2) years;

(14) One (1) member, appointed by the governor from a list of three (3) names submitted by The Nature Conservancy, who shall serve for a term of three (3) years; and

(15) One (1) member of the public at large, appointed by the governor, who shall be a resident of the county or an adjoining county and not otherwise affiliated with any of the groups identified above, who shall serve for a term of three (3) years.

(b) Any board designee or nominee shall be appointed or designated by the filing of a writing, executed by or on behalf of the designator identified in subsection (a), with the secretary-treasurer of the authority and with the secretary of state.

(c) Upon completion of its membership, the appointees shall meet and organize, elect a chair, vice chair, and secretary-treasurer, who shall each serve for a term of two (2) years, and set a regular time and place for meetings of the board. The board shall meet no less often than monthly during its first twelve (12) months of operation, and no less often than once every three (3) months thereafter. In the event of a vacancy in the chair, vice chair or secretary-treasurer position, the board shall fill the vacancy by a vote of the majority of the members appointed at the next regularly called meeting of the board.

(d) Members of the board shall serve without compensation, except reimbursement for actual traveling expenses and other necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their official duties, such expenses to be reimbursed from such funds as may be available to the authority. All reimbursement for travel expenses shall be in accordance with the comprehensive travel regulations as promulgated by the department of finance and administration and approved by the attorney general and reporter.

(e) Each of such officers may be removed at any time by the affirmative vote of a majority of the board of the authority for any of the following reasons:

(1) Three (3) consecutive unexcused absences from meetings of the board;

(2) Refusal to carry out any obligation imposed upon the board member by this chapter, by any other law, or at the direction of the board;

(3) Knowing or willful neglect of the board member's duties; or

(4) Conviction of any felony, or any offense related to a breach of public trust.

(f) In the event of a vacancy on the board created by the death, resignation, or removal of a member, the appointing authority that selected the previous member pursuant to this section, shall fill the vacancy by appointment of an interim board member within thirty (30) days of the creation of the vacancy. If the appointing authority does not fill the vacancy within thirty (30) days, the county governing body, upon petition of the board, may by majority vote elect a person to fill the unexpired term until such time as the appointing authority has acted. The election of any such interim board member by the governing body shall not deprive the appointing authority of its powers to make an appointment of a board member upon the completion of the interim board member's term.