(a) There shall be a Board of Trustees for the Department of Veterans Affairs. On and after July 1, 2015, the board shall be comprised of eighteen voting members who by education or experience shall be qualified in health care, business management, social services or law and who shall have a demonstrated interest in the concerns of veterans. A majority of the members of the board shall be veterans, including veterans of armed conflicts authorized by the President of the United States. The members shall include (1) the president of the Veterans Residential Services facility’s veterans council, (2) the president of the Healthcare Center’s council, and (3) sixteen members appointed in accordance with subsection (b) of this section.

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(b) Sixteen members shall be appointed as follows: (1) Ten by the Governor, who shall serve at the pleasure of the Governor, and (2) one each by the president pro tempore of the Senate, the speaker of the House of Representatives, the majority leader of the Senate, the majority leader of the House of Representatives, the minority leader of the Senate and the minority leader of the House of Representatives, whose terms shall be coterminous with the term of the appointing authority. Any vacancy on the board shall be filled by the appointing authority in the same manner as the original appointment, for the unexpired portion of the term. Members shall be sworn to the faithful performance of their duties. They shall receive no compensation for their services but shall be reimbursed for their reasonable expenses in the performance of their duties.

(c) The Commissioner of Veterans Affairs, or the commissioner’s designee, shall serve as a nonvoting, ex-officio member of the board and shall attend the meetings of the board.

(d) The Governor shall appoint a chairperson from among the membership of the board. The board shall meet at least quarterly and upon the call of the commissioner, the chairperson or a majority of the board members. A majority of the members shall constitute a quorum. On and after January 1, 2016, any board member, except the Commissioner of Veterans Affairs, absent from (1) three consecutive meetings of the board, or (2) fifty per cent of such meetings during any calendar year shall be deemed to have resigned from the board, effective immediately.

(e) The board shall advise and assist the commissioner in the operation of the Veterans Residential Services facility, the Office of Advocacy and Assistance, the administration, expansion or modification of existing programs and services of the department and the development of new programs and services.

(f) The board shall (1) review and approve any regulations prior to adoption by the commissioner concerning: (A) Procedures relating to admission and discharge or transfer of veterans in the Veterans Residential Services facility; (B) a per diem fee schedule for programs, services and benefits provided therein; and (C) the participation of eligible family members in programs or services provided by said facility, and (2) review and comment on (A) the budget for the Department of Veterans Affairs; and (B) major policies relating to the Veterans Residential Services facility.

(g) The Commissioner of Veterans Affairs shall provide the board with information necessary for the board to monitor the performance of the Department of Veterans Affairs. Such information shall be provided to the board in a timely manner and shall include, but not be limited to, (1) the department’s budget for each fiscal year; (2) quarterly reports on the department’s actual revenue and expenditures for the preceding four months; (3) quarterly reports on the staffing levels at the Veterans Residential Services facility, direct care staffing at the Healthcare Center and case manager to resident ratios for the preceding four months; (4) resources management, including current projects and planned projects; (5) quarterly summaries of applications for admission to, departures from and occupancy rates at said facility and admissions to and discharges from the Healthcare Center for the preceding four months; (6) program performance, including programs for employment assistance and assistance to veteran residents interested in securing housing outside of said facility; (7) results of annual resident satisfaction surveys conducted by the department; (8) quarterly reports summarizing incident rates at the Healthcare Center for the preceding four months; (9) reports on the number of rules violations against residents of said facility and patients of the Healthcare Center and penalties issued therefor; (10) performance reports on programs operated by the Office of Advocacy and Assistance within the Department of Veterans Affairs; (11) annual customer satisfaction reports from veterans who request assistance from said office; (12) caseload figures for veterans’ service officers; (13) results of any federal and state inspections; (14) quarterly reports summarizing by type, frequency and resolution, concerns raised by residents of the Veterans Residential Services facility and patients of the Healthcare Center, petitions and complaints filed by any such residents or patients and any relatives or authorized representatives of such residents or patients received by the commissioner under subsection (d) of section 27-102l-54 of the regulations of Connecticut state agencies for the four preceding months and copies of any such petitions and complaints; and (15) the bylaws, minutes of meetings and list of officers of the Veterans Residential Services facility’s veterans council for the previous quarter.

(h) All board meeting notices, minutes and reports bearing a date of January 1, 2012, or later shall be posted in a conspicuous place on the department’s Internet web site. Minutes from board meetings held on or after July 1, 2015, shall be posted to such Internet web site not later than seven days after each such meeting is held. If applicable, minutes shall contain a statement that such minutes are considered draft minutes until approved by the board.

(i) Not later than February fifteenth of each year, the board shall submit an annual report to the Governor and the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to veterans’ and military affairs, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a, on its activities during the previous calendar year, progress in fulfilling its mission based on programmatic outcomes and recommendations, if any, for improving the delivery of services to veterans and the addition of new programs.