The North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission is meeting in New Bern today to take comments on draft proposals to supplement Amendment 1 of the Southern Flounder Fishery Management Plan. That might sound like a routine housekeeping step needed to ensure the viability of the state’s fishery resources. However, it is not. For newcomers to the […]
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Legislative update: Sales tax redistribution is back, will still hurt Dare
General Assembly members worked at break-neck speed last week. Substantial additions were made to some bills, language was stripped out and new topics added into others, and a bill about local government reform became an elections bill. But the bill that gained the most attention was one that had been dormant for months but now […]
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Legislative Update: Sales tax redistribution bill gets more traction
While bills bounced between the chambers and the governor in the General Assembly this week, one issue that appeared to be out of play suddenly seems to have found new life – sales tax redistribution. Two bills that include a total of seven scenarios, all of which would have major negative impacts on the local […]
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BOC discusses school funding, endorses using occupancy tax funds for dredging
In a lengthy meeting yesterday, the Dare County Board of Commissioners heard public comment on its proposed budget for 2016, passed a resolution supporting using occupancy tax money from the beach nourishment fund for dredging Oregon Inlet, and decided not to merge two advisory panels on inlet and waterways issues. Shortly after the meeting began […]
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A morning of protests at First Flight High School
Bringing their message of God’s hatred for anyone who sins to the Outer Banks, the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kansas, protested against the students and parents of First Flight High School (FFHS) in Kill Devil Hills because the school’s clubs include a Gay/Straight Alliance (GSA). Declaring in their press release about the Kill Devil […]
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Legislative Update: Two days, two vetoes
On Thursday, May 28, Governor Pat McCrory vetoed Senate Bill 2 just hours after it landed on his desk. The bill, if it became law, would allow employees of magistrate and register of deeds offices to avoid issuing marriage licenses and/or presiding over marriages of same-sex couples if it conflicted with their own religious beliefs. […]
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Legislative Update: Bill aims at opportunities for Oregon Inlet Lifesaving Station
While the North Carolina House of Representatives wrestled with its version of the budget this week, the N.C. Senate continued moving other bills forward, amending many along the way. A bill seemed designed to quasi-privatize some public properties had been dormant until it came alive on May 20 when it was amended and moved forward […]
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Notorious church, labeled ‘hate group,’ plans demonstration at FFHS
The Westboro Baptist Church, an organization characterized by the Southern Poverty Law Center as “arguably the most obnoxious and rabid hate group in America,” is planning a protest at First Flight High School in Kill Devil Hills, according to an article posted yesterday on the Outer Banks Sentinel’s website. The protest is planned for the […]
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Commentary: Inlet issues engender distrust and divisiveness
For the third time in about 10 weeks, the Dare County Board of Commissioners (BOC) has been notified by N.C. Senator Bill Cook’s office that major funding changes have been made to proposed legislation, which if signed into law is, in part, to support the dredging of Oregon Inlet. Such legislation is ordinarily developed at […]
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Legislative update: New taxes for fishermen and new purpose for occupancy taxes
The surface appeared calm, but there was a definite undercurrent this week as North Carolina General Assembly House committees began their work on the state’s 2015-16 fiscal year budget. A draft budget bill that includes the various committee offerings is expected to be published online either on the evening of Sunday, May 17, or early […]
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