WHAT HAPPENED: Bill-filing at the legislature picked up in pace slightly, with 81 filed between the House and Senate, including some of local-government interest described later in this Bulletin.
WHAT IT MEANS: Legislators weren't expecting a heavy week anyway, as committees are still firing up -- some were vetting bills over recent days while others just met for discussion -- and the chamber-floor action was mostly procedural. One thing that understandably impacted the pace was attention to
the passing of U.S. Rep. Walter Jones of the state's Third Congressional District. His funeral was Thursday, and the flags at half-staff outside the Legislative Building were as such in his honor. The League extends its sincerest condolences to his family and will remember Rep. Jones for his service.
ON TAP: Various appropriations committees are scheduled to meet in the coming week, ahead of public state budget discussions. But the big-ticket event is the
2019 Town & State Dinner, a League-hosted program bringing municipal leaders and legislators together for relationship-building and celebration of teamwork. This Feb. 20 gathering at the Raleigh Convention Center, with speakers including General Assembly leaders,
is sold out; no on-site registration will be available. We'd like to thank everyone who pre-registered.
THE SKINNY: City and town officials from across North Carolina are looking forward to sitting with their legislators for dinner and conversation Wednesday at the Raleigh Convention Center. We're excited to see everyone in what is sure to be a memorable event as the General Assembly moves further into its long-session.
A legislative committee tasked in part with vetting proposals for local government received a primer Wednesday from League Executive Director Paul Meyer on the efforts, goals and responsibilities of today's cities and towns -- notably their investments, partnerships and resourceful thinking toward the creation of jobs and prosperous living. "That's what we do," Meyer told the House State and Local Government Committee, chaired by Reps. Kevin Corbin of Franklin and Harry Warren of Salisbury. The group invited Meyer along with N.C. Association of County Commissioners Executive Director Kevin Leonard for briefings as North Carolina's primary organizations representing local government.
Meyer pointed out that North Carolina's municipalities vary in size and style, from the hundreds of small-population rural communities to dense urban areas. And while local-level issues and priorities vary just as much, what each has in common is that its municipal government is the closet to the people and is in the best position to craft local solutions. Challenges, as referenced in the legislative goals that cities and towns have adopted, include the maintenance or development of necessary, economy-developing infrastructure amid limited budget support, with the property tax rate being the only locally controlled source. While more diverse sources would alleviate strain, municipalities are seeing impressive results from homegrown initiatives, Meyer told the committee, from downtown revitalizations to efforts that support or directly lead to the recruitment of employers -- especially vital for the many communities having to reinvent themselves after mill closures and other industrial losses.
Cities and towns today represent 80 percent of all jobs in the state, Meyer added. Further, 75 percent of all retail sales in North Carolina occur within cities and towns, though only 36 percent of all local sales tax revenue returns to them. North Carolina's cities and towns would like to thank the State and Local Government Committee for the opportunity to provide this and other context and look forward to continuing service as a resource in policymaking and economic development.
The Joint Legislative Program Evaluation Oversight Committee gave its approval to legislation this week that would make some changes to the state’s ABC system but stop well short of privatization. The provision most concerning to local governments would require mergers of local ABC systems in which there were two or more within a county by June 30, 2021. But that provision would not necessarily mean any store closures, and the prospects for its advancement remained uncertain. Other provisions in the bill would give local systems the option to open on Sundays, allow free tastings of liquor at ABC stores and allows local ABC boards to charge delivery fees to mixed beverage permittees to cover delivery costs. The committee’s approval of the bill followed a General Assembly staff presentation examining the ABC system. Contact Demetrius Deloatch
Please share with the stormwater contact in your municipality that
registration is now open for free training sessions for National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System, or NPDES, Phase II MS4 permittees, of which there are more than 110 municipalities. League affiliate group the Storm Water Association for North Carolina has partnered with the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to host these trainings in order to get vital permit compliance information to MS4s.
The trainings are expected to run from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. as follows:
• March 14, Jacksonville, Jacksonville Youth Center
• March 26, Cary, Herb Young Community Center
• April 4, Charlotte, Mecklenburg County Land Use & Environmental Services Agency
• April 5, Hickory, Western Piedmont Council of Governments
• April 11, Kernersville, Forsyth County Public Library, Paddison Memorial Branch
More details are available on the N.C. Division of Energy, Mineral and Land Resources' Stormwater Program
MS4 permitting webpage. If you have questions, contact
Jeanette Powell, DEQ’s MS4 Program Coordinator, at (919) 707-3620.
