N.C. Government Finance Officers’ Association Summer 2012 Meeting Government Relations Update Rebecca Troutman, NCACC IGR Director
Dec 28, 2015
N.C. Government Finance Officers’ AssociationSummer 2012 Meeting
Government Relations Update
Rebecca Troutman, NCACC IGR Director
Budget & Beyond…Legislative Hot Topics for Counties
• State Budget• Human Services
Flexibility • County Broadband
Grants
• NCACC Legislative Goals• Statewide Tax Reform• 2013 Tax Rate Survey
• Contingency Fee Audits• Fracking• LME Governance• Court Cases of Interest
Looking Back
Looking Ahead
State Budget Impacts to Counties
H950 & S187
State Budget H950 Overall• $20.2 B total
– $230 M > 2012-13 certified– No new taxes, fees; increase per over-
collections, reversions, special fund balances– Year-end general fund base revenue growth
at 6.2 % declines to 4.3% in 2012-13– Most excess dollars to Medicaid– 1.2% salary increase & 1% retiree COLA
• UNC opt for defined contribution• S187 Tech Amend adds 5 days leave
H950 Education Impacts• Sets county lottery funds at $100M
– Allocates per pupil– Statutory allocation if any overage
• Increases K-12 funding by $143.2 M to reduce flexibility cut to $360 M total
• 1.2% teacher salary increase—no flexibility in use
• Includes some components of Senate’s “Excellent Public Schools”
H950 Education Reforms• Reading literacy concentration• No automatic promotion
– Must read at grade level in 3td grade or retained• Schools must publish literacy success/failure
& A-F grades• NC Teacher Corps
– In lieu of Teaching Fellows– Recruit & place college grads & mid-career
H950 Health & Human Services• Adds $9 M for local psych bed additions &
expands capacity in Broughton & Cherry• Cuts community mental health by $20 M nr• Adds $4.9 M nr for county health depts. for
health & wellness activities• New $ contingent on Medicaid funding
sufficiency• Budgets $4.4 M for guardianship transition
H950 Health & Human Services
• Federal policy issues regarding adult care homes– Personal care services & State/County
Special Asst institutional rates create institutional bias
– Certain adult care home pops w/ 50%+ mentally ill lose Medicaid funding; need to transition to community housing
H950 Health & Human Services
• Creates “Transitions to Community Living Fund”– $50 M to transition mentally ill to community &
backfill (temporarily) loss of PCS Medicaid funds to adult care homes
– Implement 1915 I waiver for special care units only
H950 Health & Human Services• Restructures State/County Special Asst. In-Home
program, effective Feb. 15, 2013– All counties must participate (9 do not)– All counties must maintain 2011-12 approps in
2012-13– All counties must maintain filled slots or fill vacant
slots• In-home rate = adult care home rate• No new county service $; case mgt $ may be
needed
H950 Health & Human Services
• Directs NC-DHHS to develop & issue RFP for non-emergency Medicaid transportation– Dept must study impacts on human services
transportation system prior to RFP
H950 Natural & Economic Resources
• Staffs Mining & Energy Commission• Restores DENR regional offices• Funds Clean Water & Drinking Water• Clean Water Trust Fund appropriations
reduced to $10.8 M & made nr
H950 General Government & Transportation
• No add. funds to draw down federal HAVA– Does require vendor maintenance certification
of county tech. staff• DoT to prioritize paving unpaved roads• Provides personnel for combined vehicle
registration/property tax system• S187 delays new/increased ferry tolls 1 yr • Caps gas tax for 1 yr
Legislation of County Interest
Local Human ServicesAdministration (H438)
Key Elements:• Provides option to all boards of commissioners
to restructure human services– Under BOC or create consolidated human services
board• Current law only permits counties with pops. >425,000 to
restructure• Advisory health board req’d if no consolidated HS board
• BOC to consolidate health or DSS or both– No mental health, public health authority or hospital
Local Human ServicesAdministration (H438)
• BOC may consolidate health or DSS agency or both– Under manager’s supervision– Employees under SPA or not
• To receive fed. & state funds, as of 7/1/14, counties must:– Maintain county health AV funding at 2011 levels– Have health depts accredited (current req.)
• Creates incentives for regionalism
County Broadband Grants (S572)
Key Elements:• Authorizes any county to enter
public/private partnerships for broadband investments– Grants to expand service to unserved areas– Only to qualified providers & via public notice
• Counties can only use unrestricted general fund revenue for grants
Contingency Fee Audits (H462 & S847)
Key Elements:• Prohibits contingency fee contracts for 2
years, beginning July 2013• Prohibition sunsets July 2015• Legislative leadership agrees to study
audits– Scope, use, impacts, problems
• Flat fee, hourly fee audits continue
LME Governance (S181)
Key Elements:• Limits area board size 11-21 by 10/2013• Prescribes 10 board categories
– Consumer/family, expertise in managed care organizations across legal, financial, and services disciplines
– Composition to represent participating counties• Boards of county commissioners make appts.• LMEs >= 1.25 M pop flexibility for board
size/compensation
LME Governance (S181)
Key Elements:• Area board members subject to attendance,
training requirements• Single county authorities no longer under county
financial control• Counties precluded from leaving LME for 2 yrs,
pending DHHS rules• Assigns public guardianship solely to county DSS
– Transition funding in budget– Study via tech corrections
Fracking (S820)Key Elements:• Creates Mining & Energy Commission
– 1 voting county member apptd by President Pro Tem
– Charged with developing regulatory program for oil & gas exploration
• Authorizes fracking but no permits pending subsequent legislative action
• NCACC, NCLM & NER develop recs re local regulations– Set backs, placement, light & noise restrictions
– Can’t have effect of prohibiting fracking
Other Legislative Issues of Interest
• H925 – Annexation Reform– Result of Litigation
– Replaces petition process with referendum by registered voters in the “to-be-annexed area”
• H5 – Local Deannexations– County Zoning Fix: H1169– Allows a County, by ordinance, to reinstate
zoning prior to the annexation
Other Legislative Issues of Interest
• Sweepstakes – H1180 (not enacted)– Counties have no express authority to assess
privilege licenses or other fees– Supreme Ct. to rule
• Pretrial Release – S756 (not enacted)– Proposed waiting period before PR/arrestee
contact• Justice Reinvestment Act
– $21 M fund; $3.9 M spent
Court Cases of County Interest
Charter Schools
Sugar Creek Charter School v. Nash County (Sugar Creek II)
• Supreme Court denied Petition for Discretionary Review
• COA decision stands• Current statutory provisions preclude
charter schools from seeking capital funds
Penalties/Forfeitures• Richmond County Board of
Education v. Janet Cowell, et. al. • Complaint for Declaratory Judgment• Challenges $50 improper equipment
fee going to SMCF as cost of criminal action
• Asks court to declare penalty and redirect to school board
Williams v. Pasquotank
• May 3, 2011 COA unanimous opinion - when considering whether governmental immunity applies to a function of government, the task being performed “is proprietary and private when any corporation, individual, or group of individuals could do the same thing.”
• Supreme Court arguments - awaiting decision from Supreme Court
Looking Forward
NCACC Legislative Goals
• All counties asked to submit goals thru Sept. 17– NCGFOA to “brainstorm” needs
• Goals vetted by NCACC steering committee, legislative goals committee, NCACC board of directors, all counties via NCACC Legislative Goals Conference
NCACC Legislative Goals Process(Adopted Goals Remain in Place for 2-Yr. Biennial Session)
Sept - Oct
CountiesSubmit Pro-posed Goals
Goals Referred
to SteeringCommittee
Steering Comms.
Consider & Recommend
Steering Comms.
Consider & Recommend
Goals Referred to Legislative
Goals Comm.
Legis. GoalsComm.
Considers & Recommends
Legis. GoalsComm.
Considers & Recommends
Goals Referred to Board of Directors
Board Considers
& Approves Goals
Board Considers
& Approves Goals
Goals Referred
to Member
County Boards
New BoardsTake Office,Consider &
Select Delegates
New BoardsTake Office,Consider &
Select Delegates
Delegates ApproveGoals at
Legis Goals Conference
Delegates ApproveGoals at
Legis Goals Conference
Dec Jan 2013Dec
General Assembly Convenes Jan. 2013
July - Sept Nov
2013 Statewide Tax Reform
• Legislative commitment to reform NC tax structure
• Legislative leaders invite proposals for property tax reform, sales tax reform
• Conversation may include shift of responsibilities, authority
6 – number of open Senate seats created by redistricting
9 – number of Senators retiring, primary loss
12 – number of Legislators seeking higher office
14 – number of open House seats created by redistricting
24 – number of Representatives retiring, primary loss
42 – number of new faces in 2011-12
~50 – total number of potential new faces for 2013-14
Retirees include Owens, Justice, Stevens, Hackney, Brubaker, McGee, Folwell, Garrou, Purcell
A Challenge for Counties– Preparing for the 2013-14
Legislative Session
2012-13 County Tax Rate Survey Rates
Rate Changes Sales Assess Effective
Avg $0.6208 Avg increase $0.0352 104.5% $0.6396
Avg decrease ($0.0117)
High $1.0300 $0.0600 142.4% $1.1418 Low $0.2790 ($0.0300) 88.1% $0.0000
Summary of Actions SA above 100% Increases = 11 Total = 67 Decreases = 15 Max = 1.42 No change = 73 Total >110% = 16 Interim = 1 Total >115% = 11
100
Questions / Comments
Thank You!