The will of the general public is theoretically the driving force behind every decision made by Alamance County’s top brass. But the public’s role was unusually conspicuous this week when county manager Heidi York presented the board of commissioners with her proposed spending plan for the forthcoming financial cycle.
During her pitch to the board, York declared that she and her fellow administrators have used this year’s budgetary preparations to “expand the ways” that the county is “engaging with the public.” She went on to present the results of a brief survey that the staff has circulated to gauge the financial priorities of area residents.
York told the commissioners that 889 members of the community ultimately filled out this survey – either online or at the county agencies where it was available. Of these individuals, some 78 percent had identified the local school system as a top priority for county funding, while another 59 percent emphasized the financial needs of emergency medical services.
The survey also inquired about county agencies that may be ripe for the chopping block. On this count, the sheriff’s office led the pack with 40 percent of the survey’s respondents arguing it may be due for some cuts.
In the meantime, York said that about 48 percent of the survey’s respondents were willing to entertain a property tax hike to maintain current levels of service. She added that another 32 percent were opposed to a tax increase while the remaining 21 percent said they didn’t know enough to venture an opinion.
York went on to admit that the results of this survey don’t necessary represent a truly random cross-section of public opinion in Alamance County.
“I did not seek to make this a scientifically-valid survey,” she insisted. “This was simply a way to create another opportunity for public input…and if you compare this to the amount of people who speak at your public hearing – which is typically 40, 50, maybe 60 – this is a considerable amount.”
Aside from the residents who filled out this survey, others with strong feelings about the county’s finances have appealed to commissioners directly during the public comment periods that kick off all of their semimonthly proceedings.
During the board’s meeting on Monday, 19 people took advantage of that evening’s comment period to address the commissioners. Seven of these individuals were primarily concerned with a pair of large, residential subdivisions that are proposed near the unincorporated community of Saxapahaw. The other 12, however, were preoccupied by some aspect of the county’s finances.
The speakers who aired these budget-related remarks were split down the middle between opponents of higher property taxes and defenders of the local school system and other beneficiaries of the county’s largesse.
The former category included several current and past officers in the local GOP, whose leaders had turned out in force on Monday to put pressure on the four Republicans who serve on the five-member board of commissioners.
These GOP stalwarts included Kathy Page, who formerly served as the chair of Alamance County’s Republican party, who assured the commissioners that this simply isn’t the time to ramp up the tax rate.
“I have never been a no-tax-ever kind of citizen . . and I supported last year’s property tax increase. But if you’re going to be a ‘yes’ on a property tax increase this cycle, I don’t want to hear that you had no idea how dire the county’s situation and needs were. I don’t want to hear that you are a fiscal conservative, and I don’t want to hear about your past as a fighter for low taxes.”
– Former GOP County Chair Kathy Page
“I have never been a no-tax-ever kind of citizen…and I supported last year’s property tax increase,” Page conceded during Monday’s comment period. “But if you’re going to be a ‘yes’ on a property tax increase this cycle, I don’t want to hear that you had no idea how dire the county’s situation and needs were. I don’t want to hear that you are a fiscal conservative, and I don’t want to hear about your past as a fighter for low taxes.”
The other five speakers who objected to a tax increase included Paula Davis, a self-described 72-year-old campaigner for various Republican candidates. Davis told the county’s Republican commissioners that she intends to hold them to the anti-tax pledges they made when they were trying to line up their party’s support for their current positions on the county’s governing board.
“I am up here to tell you, I cannot have my property taxes to go up again. I am expecting you to do what’s best to keep our property taxes affordable.”
– Paula Davis
“I am up here to tell you, I cannot have my property taxes to go up again,” she added. “I am expecting you to do what’s best to keep our property taxes affordable.”
The commissioners heard a much different battle cry from the six remaining speakers who addressed them on Monday.
These individuals included four Democratic contenders for either the board of commissioners or for North Carolina’s General Assembly. Also on Monday’s speaker list were two others who echoed the concerns of these candidates about county-funded programs and agencies the Alamance-Burlington school system.
Tasha Miles, a resident of Elon’s rural outskirts, urged the commissioners to get better acquainted with the school system’s needs before they second guess the budget request they’ve received from the Alamance-Burlington school board.
“Have you all sat in a classroom the entire day? Rode a bus, sat at a front desk, worked in a cafeteria, or sat with a school nurse or guidance counselor? [If not], I would like to give you a homework assignment. I would like to see if you all would be willing to shadow one or two of these positions. Then, maybe you would see what it’s like and understand why you see so many job postings.”
– Tasha Miles
“Have you all sat in a classroom the entire day?” she inquired. “Rode a bus, sat at a front desk, worked in a cafeteria, or sat with a school nurse or guidance counselor? [If not], I would like to give you a homework assignment. I would like to see if you all would be willing to shadow one or two of these positions. Then, maybe you would see what it’s like and understand why you see so many job postings.”
Meanwhile, Tabitha Boswell, the vice president of the local teachers’ union, argued that an increase in teacher pay would be the fiscally responsible move for the board of commissioners.
“If you pay teachers poorly, they’re going to go to districts that pay more. Competitive teacher pay is the conservative response because it saves money long-term.”
– Tabitha Boswell, vice president of Alamance-Burlington Association of Educators
“If you pay teachers poorly, they’re going to go to districts that pay more,” she said. “Competitive teacher pay is the conservative response because it saves money long-term.”
All of the remarks that the commissioners took in on Monday were proffered before York presented her proposed budget. The commissioners will ultimately hold a formal public hearing to receive feedback on the particulars of this spending plan. This hearing is slated to take place at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, June 1 inside Alamance County’s Historic Court House.
