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POSSIBLE 1999 ORANGE COUNTY LEGISLATIVE TOPICS <br />2/11/99 <br />The following potential topics for 1999 legislation in the North Carolina General Assembly have been identified <br />by Commissioners, staff, advisory boards /commissions, and/or citizens. To assist the Commissioners with their <br />discussion, these topics have been organized into two categories — those issues that are revenue related, and those <br />that address all other issues. Within those two categories, the topics have been further subdivided into those that <br />would require local legislation (pertinent to Orange County only); those that could be either local to Orange <br />County or Statewide in their applicability; and those that would likely be Statewide in their application. <br />Should the Board encounter time constraints in discussing this agenda item at the February 16 meeting, the <br />Manager recommends that the Board focus its attention first on those items that would be specific to Orange <br />County, and second to those topics that could be applicable either locally or Statewide. Many of the topics that <br />would be applicable Statewide are being tracked by the North Carolina Association of Commissioners, so the <br />Board's immediate attention to those topics is not as critical as the matters that would pertain to Orange County <br />only. <br />I. REVENUE ISSUES <br />a) Local Legislation <br />1. School impact tax, to replace school impact fee <br />2. Entertainment tax <br />b) Local/Statewide <br />1. County authority to levy land transfer taxes <br />2. Authority for counties to levy additional sales taxes <br />3. Additional one cent sales tax that might be allocated to school capital <br />4. Addition of Orange County to list of counties authorized to garnish/levy /attach for payment of <br />EMS fees <br />5. Payment in lieu of taxation for UNC properties <br />6. Require other jurisdictions to reimburse Sheriff s Department for providing transport for <br />involuntary commitment of mental health patients (from UNC Hospitals) residing in those other <br />jurisdictions <br />7. Deferral of accrued taxes when agricultural property changes hands from farmer to farmer <br />8. Allowing farms enrolled in Voluntary Agricultural Districts to defer 50% of their property taxes <br />9. Exempting farms in Voluntary Agricultural Districts with land in conservation easements from <br />property taxes on that land <br />10. Exempting farms enrolled in Voluntary Agricultural Districts from property taxes on farm <br />buildings, machinery and equipment <br />c) Statewide <br />1. Expanded menu of county revenue sources <br />2. Increased State role in paying the costs of Medicaid <br />3. Restoring growth in reimbursements for lost local property tax revenue <br />4. State funding for increased school utility costs <br />5. Local government exemption from State sales taxes (to supplant current reimbursement approach) <br />6. Increased court fees to provide counties with revenue for court facilities <br />7. Increased Medicare reimbursements for County EMS bills <br />8. Opposition to measures to restrict annual increase in the valuation of real property to 2% <br />9. Prevent tax base erosion that would occur from property tax exemption for non - profit retirement <br />facilities <br />10. Amendment of Machinery Act to clarify that a measurement error is a basis for refund <br />