There is in the department the Apiary Board, consisting of seven members appointed by the secretary, six of whom shall be registered beekeepers who reside in California and who are representative of the industry functions of queen breeding, pollination, or honey production. The secretary may appoint the seventh member of the board, who shall be a public member.

Upon the director’s request, the board shall submit to the director the names of three or more natural persons, each of whom shall be a citizen and resident of this state and not a producer, shipper, distributor, packer, or processor, nor financially interested in any of those entities, for appointment by the director as a public member of the board. The director may appoint one of the nominees as the public member on the board. If all nominees are unsatisfactory to the director, the board shall continue to submit lists of nominees until the director has made a selection. Any vacancy in the office of the public member of the board shall be filled by appointment by the director from the nominee or nominees similarly qualified submitted by the board. The public member of the board shall represent the interests of the general public in all matters coming before the board and shall have the same voting and other rights and immunities as other members of the board.

It is hereby declared, as a matter of legislative determination, that beekeepers appointed to the board are intended to represent and further the interest of a particular agricultural industry concerned, and that the representation and furtherance is intended to serve the public interest. Accordingly, the Legislature finds that, with respect to persons who are appointed to the board, the particular agricultural industry concerned is tantamount to, and constitutes, the public generally within the meaning of Section 87103 of the Government Code.

In making his or her selection of the membership of the board, the director shall take into consideration the recommendations of the beekeeping industry, including, but not limited to, the California State Beekeeper’s Association.

The term of office of the members of the board is four years. Appointments shall be for full four-year terms. The director shall solicit the views of the industry, including, but not limited to, the California State Beekeeper’s Association before allowing any member to serve as a member of the board; however, no person shall serve successive terms as a member of the board.

The secretary may appoint a department representative as the secretary to the board. In consultation with the board, the secretary may identify a representative from the California Agricultural Commissioners and Sealers Association and a member of the industry that represents pollinated crops to serve as subject matter experts at meetings.

The board shall be advisory to the director on all matters related to the beekeeping industry and may make recommendations on all matters affecting the activities of the department in relation to the beekeeping industry including an annual review of the department’s apiary program.

The board shall meet at the call of the director or at the request of any three members of the board. It shall meet at least once a year.

Each member of the board shall serve without compensation, but each member shall be reimbursed for actual and necessary expenses, including travel expenses, incurred in attending meetings of the board and any other official duty authorized by the board and approved by the director. The reimbursements shall be made in accordance with the rules of the Department of Human Resources.