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Tuesday, February, 9 2010

Workers’ groups, a threat to workers
Posted February 9th, 2010 at 2:05 PM by Bob Smith

Governor Perdue has instructed state agencies by executive order to meet with “five unions or organizations (that) represent workers,” according to an Associated Press article reprinted in the Wilmington Star-News (Feb. 5, 2010, p.3B).
Some of us don’t like the idea. Clearly, this government initiative is intended to bring our state [...]

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By the way, it’s an election year
Posted February 9th, 2010 at 8:05 AM by John Hood

WHQR covers Rep. Mike McIntyre’s two recent votes against spending bills advanced by the Democratic majority in Congress:
Congressman Mike McIntyre was the only Democrat in the North Carolina delegation to vote against the “Pay As You Go” legislation aimed at curbing federal spending. It requires any new spending to come with corresponding cuts. McIntyre was [...]

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Easley behavior was nothing new
Posted February 9th, 2010 at 8:01 AM by John Hood

The Jacksonville Daily News zeroes in on the latest disclosures of wrongdoing by the Easley administration:
In this country, everyone has the right to private communication, even the governor of this great state. But there is a limit on what the governor can discuss with the expectation of complete privacy, and that limit clearly does not [...]

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Bypass around common sense
Posted February 8th, 2010 at 7:52 AM by John Hood

Readers of this StarNews piece about a federally funded “fish bypass” project on the Cape Fear River may have gotten the impression that I meant to heap scorn on it. See what you think:
…[N]ot everyone thinks it’s wise for the government to spend $12 million in economic recovery dollars on a steppingstone ladder for fish.
“This [...]

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You may already have lost
Posted February 8th, 2010 at 7:47 AM by John Hood

There are many reforms, big and small, that would help put constitutional restraints back on government and rein in the debilitating influence of longtime incumbency, demagoguery, and special-interest pleading. Here’s one of the small ones that I still think would be helpful: prohibit all lawmakers, state and federal, from physically handing federal checks — or [...]

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• Localities Show Different Spending Trends
  While city government growth in Wilmington tracked inflation and population growth pretty closely from 2002 to 2007, Jacksonville's revenues climbed 24 percent faster than inflation and population. A new John Locke Foundation Policy Report offers details.
• Wilmington Drops In Tax-Burden Ranking
  Local taxes and fees in Wilmington topped $2,121 per person in the 2007 budget year, according to a new report from the Center for Local Innovation. Despite an increased tax burden, Wilmington's ranking among the state's largest cities dropped from No. 2 to No. 5.
• Annexation Reform Needed
  Wilmington is only one of many N.C. cities that are using the state’s overly broad annexation law to harm local residents.
• Time to Fix the Beach Plan
  North Carolina could face a "property insurance disaster" unless it takes steps soon to shore up its coastal Beach Plan, according to a new John Locke Foundation Policy Report.
• Parent-Unfriendly Schools
  New Hanover County public schools and other North Carolina school districts are not very "parent-friendly.” No area school district earns a higher grade than the C assigned to Whiteville City Schools and Columbus, Onslow, and Pender county school districts. Brunswick matches New Hanover's D+ grade.
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New Hanover superintendent announces retirement
WILMINGTON — New Hanover County School Superintendent Al Lerch will retire after the school year for personal reasons. Lerch, who has worked for the county schools since 1983 and has served as superintendent since July 2007, will retire June 30, according to a school system news release sent Monday announcing Lerch’s decision. When reached Monday, Lerch did not go into detail about his decision, only saying he knew the time was right to hang it up.

Fish bypass in Cape Fear River to cost $12 million
WILMINGTON — More than a decade after it first promised to do it, the Army Corps of Engineers has announced plans to build a fish bypass at Lock and Dam No. 1 on the Cape Fear River. The $12 million project, which was mandated by environmental regulators in the late 1990s as mitigation for the deepening of the Cape Fear River shipping channel, has languished because of budget constraints and a lack of priority for the corps. But President Obama’s stimulus bill freed up money for the work.

Titan says plant won’t pollute Northeast Cape Fear
WILMINGTON — Titan America officials say they have no plans to discharge any mercury-laden wastewater into the Northeast Cape Fear River. The comments come after news reports revealed a January letter from the state’s top water quality regulator stating that federal regulations would prohibit new mercury discharges into the river, which contains some fish already too contaminated with the toxic heavy metal. The company is still seeking an air pollution permit, which state regulators are reviewing.

River’s mercury level may bar cement plant permit
RALEIGH — The river near a proposed cement plant in New Hanover County can’t tolerate any more mercury pollution, state officials say, a judgment that could block the controversial factory from opening. The state environmental agency is considering permits for the plant planned for Castle Hayne near the already mercury-tainted Northeast Cape Fear River. The factory built by Titan America would produce a number of pollutants, including mercury.

DA uses office e-mail to announce re-election bid
WILMINGTON — District Attorney Rex Gore used public resources to announce his re-election campaign Tuesday, a violation of state campaign laws. Gore’s executive assistant Libby Carlisle, a state employee, sent the announcement via e-mail shortly after 1 p.m. State law prohibits public employees from doing campaign activities while at work or using state equipment or resources for political purposes. Violating the campaign law is a Class 1 misdemeanor.

Cost of Wilmington convention center rising
WILMINGTON — The cost of building the Wilmington Convention Center is rising, and the anticipated completion date has been pushed back a couple of months to November. The city’s original construction contract with J.M. Thompson Co., the main contractor, was for $28.5 million. But 16 change orders since construction began have pushed the cost to about $36.2 million, a 27 percent increase, according to city documents.

More headlines »

North Carolina's Beach Plan: Who pays for Coastal Property Insurance?
North Carolina’s little-known Beach Plan imposes an enormous fiscal liability on the state. Intended largely to provide windstorm insurance for coastal residents unable to find coverage elsewhere, the Plan has grown to become one of the nation’s largest entities of its type.

By its own accounting, the plan does not have the capacity to survive a once-in-six-years storm without imposing significant taxes (called assessments) on North Carolina residents and businesses. One study from an independent actuarial firm shows that North Carolina could face liabilities of up to $6.2 billion from the plan — a figure that’s almost certainly low. In recent years, the Beach Plan has grown at a rate of roughly $1 billion a month, growth that shows no sign of stopping.

The Beach Plan’s growth stems from deliberate public policy decisions rather than North Carolina’s physical environment. By nearly all accounts, neighboring Virginia faces a greater economic risk from hurricanes than does North Carolina, but that state’s equivalent plan imposes essentially no burden on the state or its taxpayers.

The risk of special taxes — assessments — from the plan could result in higher insurance costs for nearly all North Carolina residents, lead to a massive withdrawal of insurance companies from the North Carolina market, and cause fiscal turmoil throughout the state. One major company, Farmers, already has withdrawn from the North Carolina market because of the Beach Plan’s liabilities, and others may follow.

The Beach Plan needs change, and, fortunately for the state, Insurance Commissioner-elect Wayne Goodwin seems committed to reform. A credible plan for change would consist of effort —mostly undertaken by the commissioner and Beach Plan Board — to stop the Beach Plan’s growth and stabilize it. Following these stabilization efforts, the legislature, commissioner, and board would do best to consider comprehensive reforms that would return the Beach Plan to its intended place as a true market of last resort for people who cannot find insurance anywhere else.

Author: Eli Lehrer

Does Onslow need a sales tax increase?
The Onslow County commissioners are asking voters to approve a sales-tax increase on November 4. This report identifies almost $36.7 million in revenue and savings the county could use to meet its needs — more than nine times the amount that the proposed tax increase would produce.

Authors: Dr. Michael Sanera, Terry Stoops, and Joseph Coletti

Does Onslow need a sales tax increase?