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31 <br />Support legislation to authorize alternatives to second primary elections that minimize excessive <br />costs while protecting the integrity of the electoral process. The costs for second primary <br />elections can be very high, especially when compared to voter turnout. New and expanded <br />alternatives, similar to one -stop voting or limited early voting sites and schedules, should be <br />explored and piloted for second primaries and run -off elections. <br />IGR -3: Maintain current requirements for county commission approval of Extraterritorial <br />Jurisdictions (ETJ) designations and expansions. <br />Support legislation that maintains the current requirements for county approval of ETJ changes. <br />With recently enacted changes to the annexation laws, ETJ will certainly be a focus of planning <br />and growth. In certain jurisdictions with higher populations, current law calls for Board of <br />County Commissioner approval for ETJs beyond any one -mile expansion. Counties would like <br />to maintain that level of input and make sure that the county voice is included in further ETJ <br />expansion. <br />IGR -4: Implement combined motor vehicle registration and property tax collection system by <br />July 1, 2013. <br />Support legislation to ensure that the combined motor vehicle registration and property tax <br />collection system be implemented by its statutory deadline of July 1, 2013. In 2005, the NCACC <br />included this issue in our legislative goals and supported its passage. Implementation of the <br />combined motor vehicle registration /property tax system has been delayed several times given <br />the complex automation systems needed for operations, but the program is still important to <br />county governments. North Carolina is the only state that continues to collect motor vehicle <br />property taxes in arrears of license plate registration and renewal. Property tax collection rates <br />for motor vehicles alone are 10 percentage points below that of all other property. It is estimated <br />that once this system is up and running, counties will reap more than $50 million annually in <br />currently uncollected property taxes on motor vehicles. <br />IGR -5: Allow county participation in the State Health Plan. <br />Support continued legislative action aimed at allowing optional participation by counties in the <br />State Health Plan (SHP). Proposed language would allow counties to participate on a short -term <br />basis in order for the State to determine the impacts from the Federal Affordable Health Care <br />Act. <br />IGR -6: Support legislation to grant counties the option to provide notice of public hearings and <br />other legal notices through electronic means in lieu of required publication in any newspaper. <br />Seek legislation to provide counties with options for notice of public hearings, notice of <br />delinquent taxpayers, and other legal notices, through electronic means. Current statutes require <br />counties to purchase expensive ads in local newspapers when announcing various public <br />hearings, meetings or other items. With many more citizens now getting their news online <br />instead of from traditional newspapers, allowing counties to post these notices on their county - <br />owned Web sites will save taxpayers money and make it easier on taxpayers to find the <br />information at their demand. <br />IGR -7: Increase informal let bid threshold for NCDOT local projects. <br />