(a) Each regional board shall be served by an executive director, who shall be duly qualified and appointed by the director of the division, with the approval of the regional board. The executive director shall serve as the director of the regional mental health, mental retardation, and substance abuse planning unit, which shall be a unit of the division and shall be governed by the regional board. The executive director shall serve at the pleasure of the division director. An executive director may be appointed to serve the regional board only with such board's approval. At any time during the tenure of the executive director, the regional board may for good cause vote to request the removal of the executive director. Should such a vote for removal be taken and be approved by a majority of the full board membership, the board shall submit its request to the director of the division who shall in turn comply with the request of the board. The director of the division shall be authorized to appoint for a period not to exceed 12 months an interim executive director at any time that the position of executive director is vacant and prior to the appointment of a duly qualified and approved successor.

(b) The executive director of the regional board may appoint such other staff and personnel to work for the unit as that executive director and board deem necessary and appropriate. The executive director and such staff and personnel shall be employees of the division. Expenses for the regional board, the employment of the executive director, other staff and personnel, and the operation of the unit office shall be charged against the funding allocated to the regional board for planning and service delivery within the established region. The department and the division may impose limits on the administrative and operating expenditures of the regional board and the unit.

(c)(1) State, federal, and other funds appropriated to the department, the division, or both, and available for the purpose of funding the planning and delivery of disability services shall be distributed in accordance with this subsection. After July 1, 1995, all funds associated with services to clients residing within a given region shall be allocated through the appropriate regional board; "all funds" shall include funding for hospitals, community service boards, private and public contracts, and any contracts relating to service delivery for clients within the given region; provided, however, that nothing shall prohibit the allocation of funds through any regional board prior to July 1, 1995. The division shall establish a minimum funding amount for regional boards conditioned upon the amount of funds appropriated and a supplemental funding formula to be used for the distribution of available state funds in excess of the minimum funding amount. The minimum funding amount shall be determined, in part, based on consumer service needs, service and program history, population based funding needs, infrastructure mandates, program efficiency and effectiveness, geographic distances, and other factors affecting the cost and level of service needs within each region.

(2) The division shall establish guidelines to ensure that funding is allocated to community service boards and local services based on client population, past and future service delivery needs and capabilities, and in consideration of special needs populations, such as homeless and transient populations. The division shall ensure that funds are allocated based primarily on services to clients and in compliance with all federal, state, and regulatory requirements.

(3) The division, in compliance with the provisions of the appropriations Act and other applicable laws, is authorized to move funds to and between community and institutional programs based on need, and the division shall ensure that the regional boards develop appropriate allocation and accounting mechanisms to move funds in a planned and rational manner between hospitals, community service boards, and other providers based on client needs and utilization.