Commissioners to meet with lawmakers
By Steve Herring
Published in News on April 4, 2013 1:46 PM
Wayne County's state legislative delegation will meet Friday at 8:30 a.m. with Wayne County commissioners at the Goldsboro Country Club.
The meeting is open to the public.
State Sens. Louis Pate and Don Davis and state Reps. John Bell, Larry Bell and Jimmy Dixon are scheduled to attend the breakfast meeting that is expected to last two hours or less.
It comes just a week after commissioners met in special session for about three hours on March 28 to discuss their legislative goals and concerns.
As of Wednesday afternoon, a list of talking points for the Friday meeting summarizing the March 28 session had not been finalized
Wayne County Manager Lee Smith, who has been out sick, said he hoped to have the list completed sometime today.
However, during the March 28 session the board seemed mainly concerned about unfunded state mandates, shifting state responsibilities onto the backs of counties and the erosion of state funding for programs like libraries and the Department of Social Services.
Commissioners said legislators need to understand how actions on the state level affect local government.
They also want to see legislation protecting Seymour Johnson Air Force Base and eastern North Carolina's other military installations.
Commissioners also have endorsed the legislative goals of the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners.
The top goals include opposing the shift of state transportation and other responsibilities to the counties; reinstating average daily membership and lottery proceeds for school construction; ensuring funding for mental health; and preserving the existing local revenue base.