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HUMAN SERVICES REORGANIZATION TAKES STEP FORWARD IN SENATE

The Senate approved S433 (Local Human Services Administration) in its second reading on Wednesday, but the chamber adjourned on Thursday before it took up the third and final reading. The bill enjoyed bi-partisan support Wednesday when it passed by a 38-11 vote. Sen. Fletcher Hartsell (Cabarrus), the bill sponsor, spoke eloquently on the need for additional local authority to organize local services. He noted the success that both Mecklenburg and Wake have experienced in their 15-plus years of practice, and said that smaller counties could also realize efficiencies if the consolidated model of human services delivery works for their communities.

Sen. Richard Stevens (Wake), a former Wake County manager, spoke to the improvements in services afforded to Wake County clients under the consolidated model, and cautioned his fellow senators that those opposed to expanded local authority are making the same arguments and perceived threats that he heard when he sought to include Wake County under 153A-77. None of their concerns have come to be realized, Stevens said, and Wake County has been able to respond more appropriately to the holistic needs of its clients.

PRESS ASSOCIATION FIGHTING ELECTRONIC NOTICE BILL

H472, sponsored by Reps. Chuck McGrady (Henderson) and Bill Owens (Pasquotank), two former county commissioners, as well as House Majority Leader Paul Stam (Wake) and Rep. Darren Jackson (Wake), would authorize any county or municipality at its option to publish required public notices on the local government's website instead of purchasing expensive ads in local newspapers. NCACC surveyed its county membership and found that statewide, counties would save more than $2 million annually by choosing the electronic publication option. The N.C. Press Association is mounting a widespread campaign to keep the county taxpayer dollars flowing to their members. Please contact your members who serve on the House Government Committee, which has scheduled H472 for its first hearing on April 28, and let them know you support this NCACC Legislative Goal.

HOUSE BUDGET BEGINNING TO TAKE SHAPE

The House is a little behind on its original budget schedule, but the pieces of the puzzle are starting to come together, and leaders in both chambers continue to eye an early June adoption for the state budget. The Association encourages county officials to contact their House members as soon as possible and reaffirm the importance of the county lottery funds for school construction needs. The fate of lottery funds is still up in the air, as is the fate of the share of the corporate income tax devoted to counties for school construction needs (commonly known as the ADM Fund).

JUSTICE REINVESTMENT ACT ASSIGNED TO HOUSE APPROPRIATIONS

H642 (Justice Reinvestment Act) received a favorable report from House Judiciary B Committee and is now in the House Appropriations Committee. The bill's sponsors are Reps. David Guice (Transylvania), John Faircloth (Guilford), Alice Bordsen (Alamance) and Earline Parmon (Forsyth). Of particular concern to counties are provisions in the bill that implicate offenders serving time in county jails. Rep. Guice has been open to working with NCACC and recognizes that counties have significant concerns about the current proposed shift of most misdemeanants to county jails. NCACC staff is working with Rep. Guice to find a solution that will work for counties.

EMAIL LIST BILL PASSES

The Senate concurred with House changes to a bill that applies statewide a local law passed in 2010 that states that copies of subscriber email lists maintained by local governments are not required to be provided to someone requesting a copy. S182 (Statewide E-mail Subscription Lists) was originally a local act that added Carteret County and the City of Greenville to those jurisdictions already covered. The House changed the bill to make it statewide, and the Senate concurred with the House changes on April 20. The bill has been sent to Governor Perdue for her signature. The new law allows a local government to make the lists available for public inspection in either printed or electronic format – or both, if the government chooses – but does not require the government to provide the list to anyone making the request. The NCACC adopted a goal to "seek legislation to protect the privacy of email notification and distribution lists of citizens who have requested electronic communication with their local governments" because many citizens signed up for these notification lists thinking their personal contact information would be protected.

OMNIBUS BILL ADDRESSES THREE COUNTY PRIORITIES

First-term Sen. Jim Davis, a former Macon County commissioner, has another first to add. He is the sponsor of the first "Omnibus" county bill, S572. Omnibus bills are commonly deployed to address under umbrella legislation differing issues dealing with a single area of interest. S572 would realize three of the Association's goals as adopted by the county membership. It would establish a "Records Preservation Modernization Commission" to explore digitized options for records archives. It would establish June 1 as the application deadline for all property tax exclusions and exemptions, modeled after the application deadline for the elderly homestead, circuit breaker, and disabled veterans exclusions. Finally, S572 would require large retail vendors (those collecting at least $20,000 per month in sales tax receipts) to site the retail sale for delivered goods based on the zip+4 addressing scheme. Sole reliance on the 7-digit zip code, regardless of having a full street address, means some counties do not get credit for a sale made and delivered to their residents.

'A' FOR EFFORT

Rep. Mickey Michaux (Durham, primary sponsor) and Reps. Earline Parmon and Larry Hall (co-sponsors) are to be commended for offering up legislation that would realize one of the Association's priority goals – a menu of revenue options. It has been long-standing Association policy that any revenue source available to one county should be available to all. H861 would allow any and all counties to consider levying a 1 percent prepared meals tax, an occupancy tax up to 6 percent, a 1 percent tax on conveyances, and an impact fee based on development costs. The additional taxing authority would be subject to a vote of the people. H861 has been assigned to the House Rules Committee; normally the Finance Committee would have jurisdiction over taxes and fees.

CHECK US OUT ON YOUTUBE, TWITTER AND FACEBOOK

The Association has several ways members can receive up-to-date legislative information. The NCACC's Twitter feed has more than 500 followers. Sign up to follow us at twitter.com/ncacc. You can also view our latest Twitter posts on the NCACC Web site (www.ncacc.org). If you are on Facebook, search for "NCACC" and click on the "Like" button to receive our updates. The Association posts breaking news on both the Twitter and Facebook pages. The Association is also creating weekly legislative video reports for the NCACC's YouTube Channel (www.youtube.com/ncacc1908). "This Week at the General Assembly" will be posted each Friday afternoon and will feature interviews with legislators and NCACC staff, reports on legislation impacting counties and updates on county legislative priorities.

BILLS OF INTEREST

The Association maintains a section on its website to track bills of interest to county officials. Visit www.ncacc.org/legislation/about.html for updates on these and other bills we are tracking.

– David F. Thompson, Executive Director
– Kevin Leonard, Director of Government Relations