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Whereas, new legislation filed in the North Carolina House (HB 574) and Senate (SB 462) <br /> would take away half of the dedicated funding for the Parks and Recreation Trust Fund <br /> (PARTF) and the Natural Heritage Trust Fund (NHTF), redirecting this revenue to the North <br /> Carolina Housing Trust Fund largely as a result of lobbying by homebuilders and realtors <br /> groups; and <br /> Whereas, tourism in North Carolina generated $17 billion in 2010, much of which comes from <br /> visitors to state parks, beaches, and outdoor areas — areas that existing thanks to investment <br /> from these trust funds, and tourism brings $150 million annually to Orange County, much of it <br /> recreation-related; and <br /> Whereas, a study by the Trust for Public Land found that investing in conservation lands more <br /> than pays for itself with every $1 invested in land conservation returning $4 in economic value <br /> from natural resource goods and services alone; and <br /> Whereas, NHTF and PARTF revenues are already down significantly due to the real estate <br /> slowdown, and the permanent 50% cut that would result from HB 574 and SB 462 would mean <br /> that essential conservation projects will not be funded, harming the State's tourism economy, <br /> leading to dirtier water and air, and result in a massive decline of parkland, park facilities, <br /> and/or gamelands; <br /> Now, Therefore, Be it Resolved that the Orange County Board of Commissioners expresses its <br /> opposition to Senate Bill 462 and House Bill 574 and any other similar legislation that attempts <br /> to redirect funding away from the Parks and Recreation Trust Fund and the Natural Heritage <br /> Trust Fund, which perform critically-important roles in protecting North Carolina's natural <br /> resources and parks and open space. <br /> This the 12th day of April 2011. <br /> VOTE: UNANIMOUS <br /> 3. Update on Proposed Dissolution of the Hyconeechee Reqional Library Svstem <br /> Library Services Director Lucinda Munger said that this is an update about the <br /> proposed dissolution of this library system. This change passed and went into effect April 1, <br /> 2011. Since September 14th, she and the three library directors have met with the State <br /> Librarian and with the Chief of Library Development to go over the new rules and how they <br /> would impact the current setup of Hyconeechee. The current financial officer for the region <br /> happens to be Orange County Financial Services Director Clarence Grier. Under the new <br /> regulations, this would not be allowed. An outside agent would have to be hired, which would <br /> cost the region an additional $24,000. She said that the State Library supports the notion of <br /> the dissolution of the region and a transition from a regional library system to three <br /> independent county library systems. This is shown in a letter that was sent to the Board by the <br /> State Librarian. <br /> She made reference to a resolution and a dissolution transition plan. Both documents <br /> were drafted by the Orange County Attorney's Office. These documents lay out the history of <br /> the Hyconeechee library system and a multi-year transition plan. If the Board does vote <br /> tomorrow night to go forward with the dissolution, Hyconeechee will still be in existence for one <br />