(a) The board is hereby vested and charged with those powers and duties necessary and proper to enable it to fully and effectively carry out this chapter, including, but not limited to:

(1) The authority to select and recommend to the appropriate state officials the employment or transfer of all personnel required for the operation of the board, except, however, the initial transfer of any preferred service employee pursuant to the merger of probation and parole field services and community corrections pursuant to this chapter shall not result in any impairment, interruption or diminution of employee rights, salary, benefits, leave accumulation or employment. The commissioner of human resources is authorized to determine if there has been any impairment of rights, salary, benefits, leave accumulation or employment as a result of the initial transfer. Any preferred service employee may seek redress of any such determination through a request for declaratory order by the commissioner of human resources pursuant to § 4-5-223;

(2) The authority to promulgate reasonable substantive and procedural rules in accordance with the Uniform Administrative Procedures Act, compiled in title 4, chapter 5;

(3) The authority to develop and implement guidelines for granting or denying parole, which guidelines shall be reviewed and reevaluated by the board at least annually and copies of the guidelines shall be provided to the governor, the commissioner of correction and the appropriate standing committees of the general assembly;

(4) The authority to prescribe all forms to be used by the board in the transaction of its business;

(5) The authority to adopt an official seal by which its acts and proceedings shall be authenticated, and of which a court or other officials concerned with actions of the board shall take judicial notice. The certificate of the chair of the board, under seal and attested to by the executive director, shall be accepted in any judicial or administrative proceeding as adequate and sufficient proof of the acts and proceedings of the board so described therein;

(6) The authority to employ other employees and to incur such other expenses, within the limits of appropriations, as may be necessary for the proper discharge of its duties;

(7) The authority to issue subpoenas subject to this chapter;

(8) The duty to cooperate with other state agencies in developing and promoting effective parole programs;

(9) The duty to keep appropriate records of all its official actions and to make them accessible in accordance with law and the regulations of the board;

(10) The duty, upon the request of the governor, to consider and to make nonbinding recommendations concerning all requests for exonerations, pardons, reprieves or commutations. The board shall have discretion to make either favorable or unfavorable recommendations based upon its application of guidelines and criteria adopted by the governor;

(11) The duty to adopt written long-range goals and objectives. The goals and objectives shall be reaffirmed or changed, as appropriate, by the board at least once each year;

(12) The duty to adopt written policies and procedures to govern its internal operations, taking into consideration the policies and procedures as are reflected in the management standards of the Manual of Standards for Adult Parole Authorities, published by the Commission on Accreditation for Corrections and the American Correctional Association or other authorities that it may wish to consult, it being the legislative intent that the board have authority to freely adopt policies and procedures to meet its own particular needs. Prior to final board adoption of the policies and procedures and prior to change, a draft shall be submitted to the attorney general and reporter for review and comment; and

(13) The authority to employ staff attorneys who are licensed to practice law in the state and to employ others as the board may deem necessary.

(b) As soon as convenient after their appointment, the members of the board shall meet and organize. They shall appoint an executive director who shall be chief administrative officer of the board whose duties shall include:

(1) Supervising the scheduling of appropriate hearings at each correctional institution or facility as may be required;

(2) Arranging for the maintenance of parole eligibility lists for the board;

(3) Assisting the board in the formulation, development and implementation of procedures and policies;

(4) Assisting in the preparation of the necessary forms and maintaining the records required for decisions of the board;

(5) Conducting conferences and managing correspondence with interested persons who wish to be heard concerning the parole or revocation of parole of any committed person eligible for consideration;

(6) Supervising all employees of the board; and

(7) Developing and maintaining communication and cooperation between the board and other state agencies.