North Carolina State Treasurer

State Treasurer of North Carolina
Seal of the North Carolina Department of the Treasury
Incumbent
Dale Folwell
since January 1, 2017 (2017-01-01)
Member ofCouncil of State
SeatRaleigh, North Carolina
Term lengthFour years, no term limit
Inaugural holderMemucan Hunt
Formation1715 Province of North Carolina
January 1, 1784
(239 years ago)
 (1784-01-01) State of North Carolina
Websitewww.nctreasurer.com

The North Carolina State Treasurer is a statewide elected office in the U.S. state of North Carolina responsible for overseeing the financial operations of state government. The current state treasurer is Dale Folwell.

The office of state treasurer has existed since 1715 in the Province of North Carolina; at that time, the treasurer was appointed by the lower house of the legislature. In 1740, the treasurer's office was divided into two districts, and in 1779, into four. In 1784, the North Carolina General Assembly brought the treasurers under one single office, appointed jointly by both houses of the legislature.

Under the North Carolina Constitution of 1868, the treasurer became a position elected by popular vote, rather than appointed.

The North Carolina State Treasurer is an ex officio member of the North Carolina State Board of Education, the State Board of Community Colleges, the State Banking Commission, and the Council of State.

History of the office

North Carolina State Treasurer's Office in State Capitol, c. 1890s

The Fundamental Constitutions of Carolina, adopted in 1669, provided for a treasurer to handle "all matters that concern the public revenue and treasury" with the assistance of 6 undertreasurers and 12 auditors. Despite this, early colonial governors of the Province of Carolina acted as their own treasurers due to minimal revenue. After the province incurred large debts during Cary's Rebellion and the Tuscarora War, the governor and his council appointed treasurers for each of the seven precincts of the province in 1711. In 1714 Governor Edward Hyde appointed Edward Moseley as treasurer of North Carolina and overseer of all precinct treasurers. He held the office until 1735, when he was made responsible for overseeing the "southern district" and William Downing was made responsible for the "northern district". The split system continued with different officeholders until 1776, when the North Carolina General Assembly required all treasurers to be appointed by themselves and barred them from holding other public offices.

In 1779 and 1782, four and one additional treasury districts were respectively added, bring the total number to seven. In 1784, the positions were folded into one office located in Hillsborough with a two-year term on a salary. Memucan Hunt was the first person to hold the new office. In 1795, the state treasury was relocated to Raleigh, the new capital of the state, and some of the treasurer's bookkeeping functions were given to the state comptroller. In 1868 North Carolina ratified a new constitution which stipulated that the office be filled by a popularly elected candidate with four-year terms. From 1887 to 1899, the treasurer was responsible for oversight of the state banking industry.

North Carolina received a triple A bond credit rating for the first time in the early 1960s—during the tenure of State Treasurer Edwin M. Gill—and maintained the rating throughout the rest of his time in office. The Department of State Treasurer was created by the General Assembly in 1971. John Haywood, who served for 40 years from 1787 until 1827, was the longest-tenured treasurer. Janet Cowell, who assumed office in 2009, was the first woman to serve as state treasurer. The incumbent, Dale Folwell, has served as treasurer since January 1, 2017. He is the first Republican to hold the office since David A. Jenkins served during the Reconstruction era from 1868 to 1876.

Powers, duties, and structure

The state treasurer is a constitutional officer. Article III, Section 7, of the Constitution of North Carolina stipulates the popular election of the treasurer every four years. The office holder is not subject to term limits. In the event of a vacancy in the office, the Governor of North Carolina has the authority to appoint a successor until a candidate is elected at the next general election for members of the General Assembly. They sit on the North Carolina Council of State and are ex officio chairman of the State Banking Commission, member of the State Board of Education, and member of the State Board of Community Colleges. They are sixth in line of succession to the governor.

The treasurer leads the Department of State Treasurer, which has six divisions: Retirement Systems Division, State Health Plan Division, Investment Management Division, State and Local Government Finance Division, Financial Operations Division, and Unclaimed Property Division. The Local Government Commission is a subagency of the department and the treasurer serves ex officio as chairman of the body. The treasurer is the sole fiduciary of the governmental employee pension fund and manages the State Health Plan. As with all Council of State officers, the treasurer's salary is fixed by the General Assembly and cannot be reduced during their term of office. In 2022, the treasurer's annual salary was $146,421.

List of State Treasurers

Joseph Montfort

Colonial Treasurers

Northern District

  • William Downing, 1735–1739
  • William Smith, 1739–1740
  • John Hodgson, 1740–1747
  • Thomas Barker, 1748–1752
  • John Haywood, 1752–1754
  • Thomas Barker, 1754–1764
  • Joseph Montfort, 1764–1775
  • Samuel Johnston, 1775

Southern District

State Treasurers

Districted

From 1777 to 1779, the State was divided into two districts, Northern and Southern, each with a treasurer. From 1779 to 1782, there were six districts, each with a treasurer, as follows: Edenton, Salisbury, Hillsboro, Halifax, New Bern, Wilmington. In 1782, a seventh district-Morgan-was created. In 1784, the district system was abandoned.

  • John Ashe, 1777–1781 (Southern District, later Wilmington District)
  • William Skinner, 1777–1784 (Northern District, later Edenton district)
  • Green Hill, 1779–1784 (Halifax District)
  • Richard Cogdell, 1779–1784 (New Bern District)
  • William Cathey, 1779–1781 (Salisbury District)
  • Matthew Jones, 1779–1782 (Hillsboro District)
  • Timothy Bloodworth, 1781–1784 (Wilmington District)
  • Robert Lanier, 1782–1784 (Salisbury District)
  • Memucan Hunt, 1782–1784 (Hillsboro District)
  • John Brown, 1782–1784 (Morgan District)
  • Benjamin Exum, 1782–1784 (New Bern District)

Whole state

State Treasurers (legislatively appointed)
No. State Treasurer Term in office Source
1 Memucan Hunt 1784 – 1787
2 John Haywood 1787 – 1827
3 William S. Robards 1827 – 1830
4 William S. Mhoon 1831 – 1835
5 Samuel F. Patterson 1835 – 1837
6 Daniel W. Courts 1837 – 1839
7 Charles L. Hinton 1839 – 1843
8 John H. Wheeler 1843 – 1845
9 Charles L. Hinton 1845 – 1851
10 Daniel W. Courts 1851 – 1863
11 Jonathan Worth 1863 – 1865
12 William Sloan 1865 – 1866
13 Kemp P. Battle 1866 – 1868
State Treasurers (elected)
No. State Treasurer Term in office Party Source
14 David A. Jenkins 1868 – 1876 Republican
15 John M. Worth 1876 – 1885 Democratic
16 Donald W. Bain 1885 – 1892 Democratic
17 Samuel McDowell Tate 1892 – 1895 Democratic
18 William H. Worth 1895 – 1901 Populist
19 Benjamin R. Lacy 1901 – 1929 Democratic
20 Nathan O'Berry 1929 – 1932 Democratic
21 John P. Stedman 1932 Democratic
22 Charles M. Johnson 1933 – 1949 Democratic
23 Brandon P. Hodges 1949 – 1953 Democratic
24 Edwin M. Gill 1953 – 1977 Democratic
25 Harlan E. Boyles 1977 – 2001 Democratic
26 Richard H. Moore 2001 – 2009 Democratic
27 Janet Cowell 2009 – 2017 Democratic
28 Dale Folwell 2017 – present Republican

This page was last updated at 2023-10-31 09:44 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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