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Plant Manager Paul Idarosa said that on behalf of the 720 employees, he wanted to thank the Board of County Commissioners for this resolution. They are very proud to be the 100th Star sight in the General Electric Company globally. He said that this is not amanagement-driven program, but employee-driven. He introduced Paul Taylor, head of the committee on safety awareness; Sydney Rogers, Manager of Shop Operations for 2nd shift; and John Lee, head of the Audit Committee for Housekeeping and Safety for 2nd shift. 6. SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS a. Human Services Advisory Commission (HSAC) 2001 Forum Report The Board received a report on the 2001 HSAC Forum. Rosetta Wash, Co-Chair of the Human Services Advisory Commission, summarized the report. The topic was "Poverty in Orange County: The Issues that Remain." The recommendations are listed below: • County Commissioners consider this as an ongoing issue of great importance in the County and that the status of the community is reviewed periodically. • Support for a centralized information and referral system and enhancing the local transportation system; specifically, there appears to be a lack of knowledge and coordination about available services in the community. There should be a concerted effort among the County and private non-profit agencies to utilize and promote access to the information available from the United Way's 211 system. • An assessment of the current transportation system and the development of a plan of action to include an expansion on routes and pickup locations, especially for the northern and southern connections; and a marketing strategy to increase public awareness about the pickup locations. Commissioner Carey said that he was in Washington today and at one of the meetings a comment was made that it was hazardous to your health to be poor. He said that poverty affects people in many ways. He said that he hopes we can make some progress in breaking the cycle of poverty in Orange County. Commissioner Brown said that one thing she noticed about the report was the lack of knowledge of the services that are available in Orange County. While there are lots of gaps, there are a lot of services available. Commissioner Halkiotis said that, as a person who has worked in the schools for a lot of years, he is familiar with hungry children. For some children, the only balanced meals they get are in the school lunch program. There are a significant number of children on free or reduced priced lunches. While we are one of the top 10 wealthiest counties in the state, there are a lot of children in both school systems that are poor. Chair Jacobs thanked the HSAC for all they do and asked that they keep the County Commissioners informed on the many issues they address. 7. PUBLIC HEARINGS a. NCDOT Rural Operating Assistance Grant Funding This item was presented for the purpose of receiving public comments and considering approving a FY 2002-2003 Rural Operation Assistance Program (ROAP) fund application in the amount of $96,131, and a FY 2002-2003 Discretionary Rural General Public (RGP) fund application in the amount of $116,684. Department on Aging/Transportation Director Jerry Passmore said that this is continuation funding for which there is a requirement of a public hearing. He explained the programs that the monies would fund. There is a local match for these programs, and the funds will come from the budget. Commissioner Brown made reference to the Hillsborough inter-city route and asked for an explanation of the importance of this route and what the next phase may include (i.e., Efland into Hillsborough). Jerry Passmore said that there is a senior citizen route that goes to Efland two times a