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103 <br /> Employment <br /> The North Carolina Department of Commerce has estimated the percentage of unemployment in <br /> the County to be as follows: <br /> 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 <br /> January 3.2% 4.6% 3.1% 3.0% 2.7% <br /> February 3.2 4.3 2.9 2.9 2.8 <br /> March 4.01 3.8 2.7 2.8 <br /> April 9.01 3.5 2.7 2.5 <br /> May 8.21 3.8 3.1 2.9 <br /> June 7.4 4.1 3.4 3.1 <br /> July 6.8 4.1 3.6 3.2 <br /> August 5.0 3.9 3.6 3.2 <br /> September 4.4 3.1 2.9 2.8 <br /> October 3.9 3.1 3.1 2.8 <br /> November 4.0 2.9 3.1 2.8 <br /> December 4.3 2.5 2.7 2.6 <br /> 1 Layoffs began in March,April and May due to the COVID-19 pandemic. <br /> Note: Not seasonally adjusted. <br /> Source:N.C.Department of Commerce:Labor and Economic Analysis Division. <br /> The County's unemployment rate averaged 2.9% in 2023, as compared to 3.5% for the State and <br /> 3.6%for the United States. <br /> Government and Major Services <br /> Government Structure. The County has a commission-manager form of government with a seven- <br /> member Board of Commissioners comprising the governing body. The commissioners are elected on a <br /> partisan basis for staggered four-year terms.The County manager is appointed by and serves at the pleasure <br /> of the Board of Commissioners. The Board of Commissioners annually adopts a balanced budget and <br /> establishes a tax rate for the support of the County's programs. The County Manager has the responsibility <br /> of administering these programs in accordance with the policies and the annual budget adopted by the Board <br /> of Commissioners. <br /> Education. Two separate school administrative units, Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools <br /> ("CHCCS")and Orange County Schools("OCS"),provide public education in the County. CHCCS serves <br /> the Towns of Chapel Hill and Carrboro and a small area outside the Towns, and OCS serves the remainder <br /> of the County. CHCCS has the highest average SAT scores in the State for public school systems and its <br /> high schools have been recognized in national publications for their excellent academic performance. Non- <br /> partisan elected boards of education administer both units. <br /> The State pays for the basic minimum education program for each school administrative unit. <br /> Funding for this basic program is provided by appropriations from the State Public School Fund.Additional <br /> funding is provided by special State and federal grants. The County also appropriates funds to each school <br /> system, which provides for program expansions beyond the State basic minimum. The County has <br /> consistently maintained among the highest per pupil appropriations of any county in the State. A special <br /> school district tax is levied in CHCCS. This tax is a significant revenue source for the CHCCS system. <br /> (See the section"Tax Information"below.) The County Commissioners have adopted a policy of allocating <br /> approximately 50%of unrestricted locally-generated revenues to public school purposes. <br /> 31 <br />