Good afternoon.
The focus is on Orange County’s Joe Hackney this morning—in a good way. It’s looking more and more like the Chatham native is in line for the Speakership.
AP: Tolson pulls out of Speaker race, backs Hackney.
Also Raleigh related: Been listening (albeit through a glitchy audio connection) to hearings at the legislature this morning on aging issues and school construction—the needs of the young and not-so-young.
In the aging hearings, legislators took some time to make sure that state health officials are looking into the problems with housing younger, mentally ill patients in nursing homes alongside the elderly. NC Policy Watch’s Chris Fitzsimon has a good essay on the issue.
Revisions in the state’s guardianship laws and new nursing home regulations were also in the discussion at this morning’s hearings.
On school construction, the state is considering a package of local option growth controls and revenue measures. From this morning’s Exile on Jones Street:
A legislative committee looking at school construction needs heard proposed legislation this morning that would set up an new array of potential revenue streams for school construction including a real estate transfer tax. The legislation would also and increase regulatory authority, allowing counties to set up adequate public facility ordinances.
Each county would have to hold a referendum on whether to opt in to the new system. Counties that already have local option real estate transfer taxes and and special impact fee arrangements would have to choose either the new system or their current one.
Counties would also have the option of creating Adequate Public Facilities Ordinances.
Orange County is likely one of those counties that will have to take a look at how the changes in state law mesh with the existing local bills that allowed the OC to set up SAPFO. It’s all preliminary legislation and is sure to undergo some, ahem, changes.
Look for a battle royale with the Homebuilders’ Association.
In other news, the Board of Aldermen are meeting tonight and school construction is one item on the agenda. But we’ll have to see if the board is ready to open the public hearing on the proposed Elementary School Number Ten. There are still a few reviews of the project coming in.
Full agenda follows:
- CONSENT AGENDA
- OTHER MATTERS
- PUBLIC HEARING
- WORKSESSION