Under the compromise, the board likely will be required to include six members who are not from the governor's political party, Bowie said. The compromise also could shift responsibility for confirming the governor's appointees from the General Assembly to a legislative committee. Right now, the transportation board has 26 members who oversee the state Department of Transportation and control billions of dollars in road and highway projects. That makes it one of North Carolina's most powerful appointed bodies, but lately, it's been one of the more scandal-ridden. During the past year, newspaper reports have suggested that wealthy donors used thousands of dollars in political contributions to Democratic Gov. Jim Hunt to win seats on the board.
Hunt denies the charges.
An FBI investigation also is under way to determine if federal transportation money was misspent. Both the House and the Senate passed different bills earlier this summer to change the make-up of the board, along with other reforms. A conference committee headed by Bowie, the sponsor of the House bill, and Sen. Beverly Perdue, a Craven County Democrat who sponsored the Senate version, was appointed to develop a compromise. Both the Senate and House reform bills would reduce the board to 19 members, with one member from each of the state's 14 highway districts and five selected at-large. All 19 members would be appointed by the governor, and both plans would require board members to disclose campaign contributions they or their families make to the appointing governor.