DHHS Directive Number II-5

Title:	Delegation of Authority to the Senior Advisor
Effective Date:	November 3, 2008
Revision History:	January 1, 2002
Authority:	G.S. 143B-10

Purpose

The purpose of this directive is to delegate, clarify and specifically confirm certain authorities of the Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NC DHHS) to the Senior Advisor. The Senior Advisor shall have responsibilities for the Office of Housing and Homelessness, Citizen Services, and Boards and Commissions. This position reports directly to the Deputy Secretary.

Delegation of Authority

The powers and duties as vested in the Secretary of the DHHS in G.S. 143B-10 are delegated to the Senior Advisor with respect to the department’s internal and community relations, in accordance with the guidelines set forth below.

1. The budget documents for the department’s operational support agencies, which shall include continuation, expansion and supplemental budgets, shall be approved by the Senior Advisor prior to submission to the Secretary or the Deputy Secretary for final departmental review and approval.
   
   The Senior Advisor shall have authority to make necessary changes, modifications, alterations, etc., to the Certified Budget of the operational support agencies as required by the Secretary or the Deputy Secretary to meet departmental budget demands.



2. In consultation with the Secretary, authority is delegated to the Senior Advisor for approval of the hiring and removal of staff within the aforementioned department’s operational support agencies. In the execution of a reduction in force, the determination of positions to be eliminated or reallocated, including both filled and vacant positions shall be approved by the Senior Advisor prior to submission to the Secretary or the Deputy Secretary for final departmental review and approval.



3. When deemed an administrative emergency by the Secretary, such as a fiscal crisis, the Senior Advisor may pursue avenues of relief among the aforementioned department’s operational support agencies including the adoption, amendment, or repeal of rules, contracting, and any other alternative actions deemed necessary and appropriate to address the crisis, subject to submission to the Secretary or the Deputy Secretary for final departmental review and approval.
   

This delegation of authority shall not deprive the Secretary from performing, in lieu of the Senior Advisor, any of the acts set forth above. This delegation of authority may be amended or withdrawn by the Secretary at any time and without notice. This delegation of authority shall not apply to any actions which by law, state policy or Governor’s Executive Order, may only be executed by the Secretary.

	APPROVED
	Dempsey Benton, Secretary
	Department of Health and Human Services