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1 <br /> ORANGE COUNTY <br /> BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br /> ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT <br /> Meeting Date: April 2, 2024 <br /> Action Agenda <br /> Item No. 6-a <br /> SUBJECT: Preliminary Resolution Stating an Intent to Proceed with a November 2024 <br /> Referendum on $300 Million General Obligation School Bonds <br /> DEPARTMENT: Finance and Administrative <br /> Services <br /> ATTACHMENT(S): INFORMATION CONTACT: <br /> Attachment 1. Resolution Gary Donaldson, (919) 245-2453 <br /> Attachment 2. PowerPoint Presentation Chaz Offenburg, (919) 245-2071 <br /> Robert Jessup, (919) 933-9891 <br /> PURPOSE: To consider a preliminary resolution expressing the County's intent to proceed with <br /> a voter referendum on November 5, 2024, to authorize up to $300 million of County general <br /> obligation school bonds. The resolution states the County's preliminary intent to proceed, directs <br /> County staff to proceed with an application for approval from the North Carolina Local Government <br /> Commission (LGC), and makes certain "findings of fact" requested by the LGC staff, including the <br /> need for the bonds and the expected tax rate impact. <br /> BACKGROUND: Since the presentation of the Woolpert School Facility Study in December <br /> 2023, the Board has considered at several meetings plans to respond to the funding needs <br /> described in the study and how to balance school capital needs, other County capital needs and <br /> the resources available. <br /> At the January 19, 2024 Board Retreat, the Board made the determination to start the bond <br /> authorization process based on a referendum amount of$300 million in County general obligation <br /> school bonds for both school districts. The attached resolution represents the first formal step in <br /> calling for a November 5, 2024 bond referendum. <br /> Based on revisions as noted in the Manager's Recommended FY 2024-34 Capital Investment <br /> Plan (CIP), the County's assumptions for repaying the $300 million in proposed County general <br /> obligation school bonds and related interest is estimated to have a tax rate equivalent impact of <br /> 3.41 cents per $100 of valuation, with all that increase scheduled for the County's 2025-26 Fiscal <br /> Year. The attached presentation delineates the additional CIP tax rate impacts separate from the <br /> general obligation bonds tax rate impacts. <br /> If the Board adopts the attached preliminary resolution, the Board will be asked to take additional <br /> action at subsequent meetings, currently scheduled as follows: <br />