[1] The department was to be led by a Commissioner of Revenue, with the inaugural commissioner to be appointed by the Governor of North Carolina to a four-year term with the advice and consent of the State Senate and, beginning in 1924, the office holder was to be chosen in statewide popular elections.

[2] At its inception, the Department of Revenue had 16 employees and worked out of the State Capitol's Senate Chamber, clerk's office and committee rooms.

The department expanded over the following years and moved to different quarters as it was given new responsibilities, including management of the gasoline, licensing, and bus and truck franchise taxes and oversight of the North Carolina State Highway Patrol through a Motor Vehicle Bureau.

[3] The department was equipped with a computer system to host an integrated records database and collect and process taxes electronically in the 1990s; computerization was completed by 1997.

Appointed by the governor, the secretary is an ex officio member of the State Tax Review Board and the North Carolina Local Government Commission.

[7] The five assistant secretaries' responsibilities are defined as follows:[7] As of January 2024, the department has 1,309 employees retained under the terms of the State Human Resources Act.

[10] The department maintains other offices to serve the public in Raleigh, Asheville, Charlotte, Durham, Elizabeth City, Fayetteville, Greensboro, Greenville, Hickory, Rocky Mount, and Wilmington.