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101 <br /> Fund was established to account for the Article 46 Sales Tax. The Article 46 Sales Tax was initially <br /> estimated to generate $2,500,000 annually. Article 46 sales tax revenue for the fiscal year ended June 30, <br /> 2024 was approximately $6.1 million, and the County has estimated Article 46 sales tax revenue for the <br /> fiscal year ending June 30, 2025 to be approximately $ million. The Board of County Commissioners <br /> approved a ten-year commitment which authorized equal distributions of the one-quarter cent sales tax to <br /> support Schools and Economic Development. Fifty percent of the one-quarter cent sales tax is allocated to <br /> both County school systems on an average daily membership percent basis to fund capital projects. The <br /> other 50% is allocated to economic development initiatives including supporting water and sewer <br /> infrastructure funding in the County's three economic development districts. <br /> The County's other sales and use taxes(Articles 39,40,42,and 44 Sales Taxes)are reported in the <br /> County's General Fund and are included in the above table with Article 46 Sales Tax. <br /> The County's Articles 40 and 42 one-half cent local option sales and use taxes, which were <br /> authorized by the North Carolina General Assembly in 1983 and 1986, respectively, comprise significant <br /> funding sources for the County's school capital requirements and school debt retirement. <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 2025 <br /> January 3.4% 4.9 3.3 3.2 3.0 3.3% <br /> February 3.4 4.6 3.1 3.1 3.0 2.8 <br /> March 4.2 4.1 2.9 3.0 3.4 <br /> April 9.8 3.7 2.9 2.7 2.8 <br /> May 8.9 4.0 3.3 3.2 3.2 <br /> June 8.0 4.4 3.7 3.3 3.6 <br /> July 7.4 4.3 3.8 3.5 3.9 <br /> August 5.4 4.2 3.8 3.5 3.5 <br /> September 4.8 3.2 3.0 3.0 2.9 <br /> October 4.2 3.3 3.2 3.1 2.8 <br /> November 4.3 3.1 3.3 3.1 3.1 <br /> December 4.6 2.7 2.9 2.9 2.9 <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 3.2% in 2024, as compared to 3.6% for the State and <br /> 4.0%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 /> 30 <br />