§33-1-3. Director.

The chief executive officer of the port authority shall be known as the Director of the Alabama State Port Authority. The director shall have no financial interest in any harbor facilities or property that the port authority or its predecessors have acquired or may acquire or manage, nor shall the director have any financial or personal interest in any business or enterprise of any sort which shall interfere or be inconsistent with his or her duties as director. The duties of the director shall be as follows:

(1) Exercise the chief executive authority of the port authority, and exercise, consistent with this chapter and other applicable law, all the powers, authority, and duties vested by this chapter or other applicable law in the port authority.

(2) Appoint, with the advice and consent of the board of directors of the port authority, no more than nine persons as executive level employees. These persons shall be non-merit system employees and may replace current Merit System executive level employees who retire or otherwise leave the employment of the port authority. The director shall fix the salaries of these non-merit system executive level employees giving due consideration to the salaries of comparable positions in other states and in private industries. These non-merit system executive level employees, though not participants in the classified service of the state under the Merit System Act, shall be entitled to the other benefits, including, but not limited to, retirement, sick and annual leave, and insurance benefits afforded other state employees, except that the board of directors of the port authority may provide and fund an alternate benefit package for them.

(3) Employ, with the advice and consent of the board of directors of the port authority, all persons necessary to the efficient operation of the Alabama State Port Authority, including a secretary-treasurer, fix their conditions of employment and tenure in office, and be responsible for the efficient discharge of their duties.

(Acts 1943, No. 122, p. 123, §1; Acts 1955, No. 103, p. 345, §§2, 7; Acts 1961, Ex. Sess., No. 208, p. 2190, §1; Acts 1961, Ex. Sess., No. 302, p. 2362, §1; Acts 1987, No. 87-592, p. 1030, §1; Act 2000-598, p. 1199, §2; Act 2007-384, p. 766, §1.)