Officials bring their residents' concerns to Raleigh for
Town Hall Day

Approximately 650 municipal elected officials and key staff members participated in the League's 2008 Town Hall Day activities, visiting with their legislators and advocating for legislation to meet the needs of their residents. Town Hall Day events included two legislative briefings and those who attending the 10:30 a.m. briefing heard House Speaker Joe Hackney discuss the prospects for a moratorium on annexation being enacted this session.

Hackney said that it is difficult to predict the outcome of the issue. He noted that there is a lot of support for a moratorium in the House as well as a lot of opposition. The Speaker told municipal officials that he had appointed the House Select Committee on Annexation because he believed it was time to review the state's annexation statutes again and remedy any identified problems.

On other issues, Hackney predicted that the 2009 session would be where action would be taken to address the state's significant transportation problems and that the funding solutions could include toll roads, tax increases on fuels and borrowing.

His appearance at Town Hall Day coincided with the House's initial adoption of state budget adjustments. Hackney said that the state, like many cities and towns, is struggling to keep up with growth and the accompanying strain on the state's resources. More children need to be educated, more young people need college educations, workers need better job training, and growth in Medicaid and mental health program needs are straining the budget.

We thank Speaker Hackney for speaking at Town Hall Day on what was a particularly busy day for the House. We also thank all of the municipal officials who came to Town Hall Day. We know it requires a significant investment of time and effort to attend, and we appreciate it. Your presence makes a positive difference – we hear from legislators just how effective you are. Thank you.

Annexation opponents at Town Hall Day

Annexation opponents were also in town Wednesday to present their views. The Associated Press reporter estimated their attendance at 200. In the late afternoon, what organizers described as a silent protest against the League turned rowdy. Anti-annexation demonstrators stood at the door of the Local Government Federal Credit Union Conference Center, where the Town Hall Day reception was to be held. The demonstrators chanted, “Let us in, let us in,” and said they wanted to eat “dinner.” They later moved back across the street, in accordance with the city permit, after being asked to do so by police officers. Earlier that day, the opponents held a rally near the Legislative Building.

House approves budget proposal

The House gave approval to a $21.3 billion budget without tax increases. HB 2436 – Modify Appropriations Act of 2007 includes a 3 percent raises for teachers and a 2.75 percent raise or $1,100 for most other state employees. The proposal, which had strong bipartisan support, increases the state budget by 3.2 percent, the smallest increase in five years. Governor Mike Easley had requested bigger raises for teachers and more funding for the More at Four preschool program, but the House declined to increase cigarette and alcohol taxes as he had proposed.

The plan expands counseling and legal help for homeowners at risk of foreclosure. It increases the earned income tax credit for the working poor and implements a sales tax holiday in November for energy-efficient appliances. The bill grants a property tax exclusion for honorably discharged veterans who are permanently and totally disabled. The exclusion is $48,000 or 50 percent of the appraised value of the residence. The cost to local governments is estimated at around $8.6 million, and the budget includes a hold harmless provision to reimburse the revenue loss to local governments on an annual basis.

The House version of the budget reserves a $10 million nonrecurring appropriation for implementation of pending gang legislation. It would begin the phase-out of the highway trust fund transfer to the general fund, reducing it by $25 million. It appropriates $50 million to the Rural Economic Development Center for local water and sewer improvement grants within the rural counties and $50 million toward Land For Tomorrow conservation land acquisition. The bill authorizes $549 million in new certificates of participation to build prisons, university buildings and other projects. The budget now goes to the Senate.

Heavy equipment tax to be debated

A bill to exclude certain earthmoving and construction equipment from the property tax base will be heard next week in House Finance. HB 2446 – Tax on Short-Term Heavy Equipment Rentals , sponsored by Rep. Drew Saunders, would instead allow cities and counties to levy a tax on the gross receipts from the short-term lease or rental of such equipment. We understand that the total revenue at issue is approximately $6 million statewide but are continuing to work on determining the potential impacts.

Stormwater rules status
Supporters of new coastal stormwater rules also appeared at the legislature on Wednesday to urge the General Assembly to allow the rules to go into effect as scheduled later this year. Bills have been introduced in the House and Senate that would disapprove the new rules, which apply to 20 coastal counties. If no bill passes this session the rules will go into effect. The League is participating in a stakeholders' working group facilitated by General Assembly staff that continues to work toward a compromise, but the issues are complex and it is unclear whether that can be accomplished in the short session. It is possible that legislation will delay the rules' effective date to allow more time for the interested parties to work on the issues of concern.

Gang conferees appointed

A conference committee has been appointed to work out the differences between the House and Senate versions of HB 274 – Street Gang Prevention Act. House conferees are Reps. Michaux (chair), Frye, Walker, Blue, Cotham, Current, Carney, Hall and Sutton. Senate conferees are Sens. Graham (chair), Boseman, Clodfelter, Hartsell, Malone, McKissick, Nesbitt, Rand and Snow. Another bill focusing on intervention and prevention, SB 1358 – Street Gang Prevention Act , is pending in the House.

Make contacts on inspection bill

Don't forget that a bill to significantly erode local inspection authority for both residential and nonresidential property passed the Senate in 2007 and is still eligible this session. SB 1507 – Housing Conditions/Inspections would prohibit local government periodic inspection programs and require “probable cause” to inspect any residential or nonresidential building. It would broadly preclude routine inspections for unsafe, unsanitary or hazardous conditions that may exist in housing, as well as in stores, schools, day care centers, churches, factories, offices and other buildings. Local governments are given the duty and responsibility to protect the public by enforcing the state's building and fire codes. In fact, the state fire code has for some time required periodic inspections by local governments. Local governments are also authorized to protect the public by enforcing minimum housing codes and, with the adoption of legislation last session, minimum nonresidential codes. SB 1507 is currently assigned to House Commerce.

Please let all your House members, especially those on House Commerce, know that you vigorously oppose this effort to erode the ability to perform inspections of property in order to ensure the health, safety and welfare of the public.

Members of the House Commerce Committee are:

Chair: Rep. Margaret Dickson; Vice-Chairs: Reps. Becky Carney, Bill Daughtridge, Earline Parmon, Edgar Starnes, Winkie Wilkins; Members: Reps. Lucy Allen, Cary Allred, Curtis Blackwood, Van Braxton, Larry Brown, Debbie Clary, Nelson Cole, Tricia Cotham, Bob England, Jean Farmer-Butterfield, Phillip Frye, Mitch Gillespie, Bruce Goforth, Ty Harrell, Bryan Holloway, Bill McGee, Wil Neumann, Bill Owens, Louis Pate, Garland Pierce, Ray Rapp, Karen Ray, Ruth Samuelson, Fred Steen, Cullie Tarleton, Edith Warren, Ray Warren