WATCHDOG REPORT- 3 DECEMBER 2013
Craven County Board
Change of Leadership
This was seemingly a cordial meeting to change the leadership of
the Board. Commissioner Scott Dacey's term as Chairman was completed at this
meeting, and, after a unanimous vote, the gavel was passed to Tom Mark of Fairfield Harbour
Chairman Mark stated that he intended to support basically the
same fiscal policy that has been followed during the past year. I believe a
more conservative fiscal policy should be followed, a policy that reduces the
extravagant way the federal government has thrown money at the local level, and
often these programs are in areas that the Constitution of the United States
does not give the federal government any jurisdiction at all, so the feds are
usurping power pure and simple. Whether it's federal tax money, state tax
money, or county tax money, as Commissioner Allen remarked last night,
"It's all our money!" It was a good observation, but like all the
other commissioners, Commissioner Allen unfortunately voted to approve the
additional expenditures as long as they do not contain direct funding by county
taxpayers.
Chairman Mark also plans to consider "the concerns of
citizens first and foremost." I contend that if he really does that, he
will lead the charge to do away with frivolous spending at all levels of
government, reduce dependency on government support, and lower the burden on
the taxpayers.
Lastly, Chairman Mark put great emphasis on economic development
in the County. We contend that the best way to do that is to reduce the
regulatory burden, tax burden, and fees charged for doing business in Craven County Craven
County East Alliance , I think he is way off base. I
hope we'll find that is not the case; time will tell.
Last night, at the first meeting presided over by Chairman Mark,
the materials supporting the agenda items contained a copy of an amendment to a
Memorandum of Understanding between Smart Start, Inc. and Craven County. This
addendum acknowledged a funding increase from $259,196 to $518,392. Smart
Start, Inc. is another one of those 501(c) 3 Private/Government organizations
that have screwed up almost everything they have touched in North Carolina
"Experiences during early childhood literally shape the
structure of the brain. Because today's children are tomorrow's leaders, parents and workers, everyone has a stake in making
sure that all children have the experiences they need to thrive. Smart Start
brings together all the people involved in a young child's life-families,
teachers, doctors, caregivers, social workers, and many others-to ensure every
child has all they need for healthy growth and development."
Not a word of explanation did I hear about this program last
night. The addendum raising funding was not mentioned. The reason for the
increase was not mentioned. This could, of course, be an oversight, but the
program smacks of Agenda 21, global collectivism, and an "it takes a
village to raise a child" attitude. Our parents surely did not consult a village
to tell us right from wrong. This kind of government interference tends to be
detrimental to families.
DayCare Combined, Smart Start, and Low Energy Assistance
Programs
In an agenda item that was discussed and voted on, these three
programs (which are outside the appropriate scope of government) received a
total of $199,223 in additional funding last night. I'd say Smart Start Inc.
had a good night! This was what prompted Commissioner Allen's remark that,
"It's all our money!"
BOTTOM LINE - Nearly a half million
taxpayer dollars were committed without ten minutes worth of discussion. This
is the kind of thing that's so frustrating.
On a happier note, Commissioner Tyson was commended for his key
role in raising more than $2 million dollars to send wounded Marines home for
the holidays! We can all celebrate that! Thanks, Steve.
Community Development Block Grants (CDBG)
It was announced last night that the CDBG program had been
discontinued by the North Carolina
Community
Development Block Grant - The budget
removes the state's portion of federal Community Development Block Grant
funding ($7.2M) for the scattered site housing program in favor of increasing
CDBG funding for infrastructure. This will not affect the use of CDBG funds in
entitlement cities and counties.
The General Assembly didn't go far enough, but it is still good news.
Progress has been made. At one time, I thought we had accomplished this at the
County level through the Commissioners, but I guess that was just not to be.
Although some Commissioners expressed support for our position on this subject,
it didn't last, and they went back to building houses for individuals which is
a deplorable use of our tax money.
Craven County
Employee
CCTA won a victory here. We commented that the originally
proposed policy gave too much power to the County Manager County
Manager
Now let's look at Chairman Dacey's list of the past year's
accomplishments. My comments are in blue.
Accountability to the Public
I do believe the Board has listened to the citizens and taken
our concerns into account in Board decisions. They also have listened to
special interest groups and tried really hard to keep everyone happy. We at
CCTA would be happier if the Board strictly adhered to the practice of
providing only services that are appropriate for government to provide, leaving
charity to the private sector, reducing taxes and regulation, and shrinking the
size of government.
Community Housing - Reform of
Scattered Site Housing Program under the CDBG Program to implement responsible
homeownership policies and requirements for grant recipients.
This was a totally inadequate, though no doubt well intentioned,
attempt to placate us. However, the North
Carolina
ABC Reforms - Strengthened the
governance of the ABC Board by expanding its membership from 3-5; Increased
return to the county's general fund by over $500k this year.
Yes, this was a very good step. Bravo. With any luck, there
should be more annual income to the county from this source on an ongoing
basis. If the government has to be involved in liquor sales, I hope it results
in a smaller burden on taxpayers. (The truth is it's not a good idea for the
government to do things which could be done by free enterprise, but if the
decision to privatize liquor sales is to be made, it will have to be at state
level. This is not something the county
Board
Eastern Region - Worked with our
local General Assembly delegation in support of legislation allowing the County
to reclaim funds generated by Craven residents - Returning $1.5 million to Craven County
CCTA proposed the resolution to the Board that they passed to
ask the General Assembly for this legislation. We appreciate the Board's action
on it. CCTA also worked with our representatives to the General Assembly to
gain their support for this legislation, and CCTA also appreciates their
support.
NOW, I'm afraid the county staff will convince the Board of
Commissioners to transfer this money (or a large portion of it) to NC East Alliance . NC East Alliance
is the new name for NCRC which took that name after Global TransPark became a
dirty word for wasting millions of taxpayer dollars. This new 501 (c) 3
corporation will also prove to be a boondoggle like most of the others have.
Joining the NC East Alliance would be a
classic case of "out of the frying pan and into the fire" even if it
does have state blessings. I suspect the General Assembly hasn't gotten around
to really evaluating them yet, but they need to. This type of organization is
currently the most fashionable method of putting taxpayer money into private
pockets and giving very little benefit to show for it.
Lowered Property Taxes - With the adoption of the FY2013-2014 Budget we reduced property
taxes for the second year in a row, reducing the rate from 47.75 cents per $100
in property value. ) Over one-half cent in two years.)
This is a small step in the right direction. Thank you. On a
typical home assessed at $150,000, the savings to the taxpayer is a whopping
$11.25. MUCH better than a raise would have been, but can't we do better still?
Eliminated Positions - Eliminated and realigned nearly a dozen positions, consistent
with funding availability from state and federal sources.
Well, as Commissioner Allen stated, "It's all our
money." What was the overall effect? Was there any actual reduction in the
payroll?
Refinanced Long-term Debt - Restructured $35 million in Certificates of Participation,
saving taxpayers over $2 million in interest costs.
Yes, that was a very good thing! It's a good tactic used by
several counties and discussed by the County Financial
Reappointment of Commissioners Districts - Restored the principal of one-person, one vote and brought all
seven commissioners districts into alignment with about 15,000 residents in
each district while fully respecting the Voting Rights Act.
The re-districting does seem to have been well done, especially
if you consider the effort to keep a couple of Commissioner's residency in the
District they were elected to represent.Long Term
Management Priorities
Water Expansion - In an effort to meet state
mandates relating to our water usage, completed plans, initiated purchase
agreements and provided funding for a new water treatment facility.
This is a great project perfectly within local government
purview. Thank you.
Eliminated Red Tape - Register of deed, planning,
and the tax departments have migrated some services to Internet based systems,
allowing developers and real estate professionals easier access to critical
information.
This is a great service to all who can use this information. This
is the type of thing government can legitimately do to assist economic
development. Thank you.
911 Emergency Operations Center - Approved funding and contractors for the construction of this
new center.
This is another great project that benefits all citizens and is
a perfectly legitimate use of taxpayer money. Thank you.
Jury Protection - With the construction of the
911 Emergency Operations Center, we were able to accommodate the construction
of a jury pool room at the courthouse.
No, the jurors are not going to shoot pool, dear reader. The
jury will just gather in the "jury pool room" so that they will no
longer have to mingle with defendants, witnesses, and the like. Kidding aside,
this is altogether a good thing! Thank you.
This seems like a really good plan. I do question the use of the
term "plan for the long-term use of the Clarks
facility." In my experience, such plans do not last indefinitely by any
means. It is a good solution for now, and may hold up longer than I expect.
Good work.
Hospice - Approved an inter-local agreement between the County and the
Hospital to bring in-patient hospice care to Craven County
This is just a way to provide a revenue stream to
an already affluent hospital that pays no rent to the owner of the
hospital (the taxpayers). Such service is already available just down the road
in Newport
Agriculture - Approved a Farmland
Development Plans as proposed by the Cooperative Extension.
The Cooperative Extension is a government agency. How do the
farmers of Craven
County
Solid Capital Construction Account - Using funds made available from debt refinancing and additional
ABC funds, we have fully funded our capital construction account through FY
2017, allowing us to address necessary repairs at the Community College and
Library, among other priorities.
Is this really good news to the taxpayers who need relief? A
member of the ABC Board commented to me when the large check was prepared that
he hoped the Board of Commissioners would use this revenue source to give
relief to the taxpayers. DREAM ON!
Protection of our Economic Infrastructure
Base Protection Efforts
· Beginning in 2011, secured funds to support lobbying efforts at
state and federal levels
· Worked to strengthen Allies for Cherry Point Tomorrow through recruitment of surrounding counties and local
governments as members
· Adopted a tall structures ordinance to protect training routes
from encroachment of wind turbines and other tall structures
· Worked with the Pentagon and our congressional delegation to
promote the adoption of this ordinance - Reaffirming our status as a military
friendly community.
An effort to help Marine Aviation locate an Outlying Landing
Field (OLF) for Cherry Point would have done a lot more good. I think the local
organizations that fought the OLF have done irreparable harm to our reputation
as a "military friendly community." However, I have no problem with
what the Board did do, and the tall structures ordinance to protect training
ability was a really good idea. Thank you.
Economic Development
· Again, beginning in 2011, we began our efforts to redirect our
economic development program by eliminating the county's ED Commission and
Staff.
· This past year an economic development consultant was hired
(RKG) and a plan was finalized.
· The County Board, working in conjunction with a number of our
community's business leaders and the Community of 100, are working to develop a
structure to effectively implement the recommendation provide by RKG.
This is just what I feared. Getting rid of the ED
Commission and staff was a really good thing. It should have ended there. The best
thing government can do to help economic development is to reduce government
intervention in business and reduce tax burden on business. Our State
legislators realize this and are working hard in that direction. Our County
government and especially the staff (ever seeking overall growth in staff for
government and it's consultants) is working hard to get that $1.5 million into
NC East Alliance (old NCER, older Global TransPark) to pay for staff work and
administration. You can bet no private business or industry will pay more than
a token amount toward that. These 501 (c) 3 corporations do nothing except
consume enormous amounts of taxpayer dollars. The Board of Commissioners is not
evil here, just drinking the Kool-Aid, but they still appear to be poised to do
a really bad thing and WASTE TAXPAYERS' HARD EARNED MONEY.
· Continue to advocate with the Governor and Members of the
General Assembly to support this outstanding educational and cultural tool.
· We are working to coordinate services to avoid duplication of
efforts between the County's tourism efforts and the Palace.
The Tryon
Palace Tryon Palace
As you can see, it is a mixed bag. There has been some movement
toward a fiscally conservative governing body with ideas that match CCTA's
mission statement, but there is a very long way to go to get there. We still
are headed toward bigger government and ever more social dependency on
government. This Board has just moved us there at a slower pace than the
previous Board did.
We need bold action to return to a constitutional
conservative republican form of government at all levels.
Respectfully Submitted,
Hal James,
Watchdog Committee Chairman
Coastal Carolina
