Minutes 05-29-2025-Work Session - Laserfiche WebLink

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9 PUBLIC COMMENTS: Mae St. George said she thought there could more done to help people stay in their homes and asked the Board to reduce the budget. She asked the commissioners to check their hearts when making budget decisions. Lynn Nilssen said she is a volunteer with Public Schools Strong. She said that there are economic and social benefits to good schools. She said that good schools are high priorities for families and benefit communities. She said there is great value provided by public schools. She said Orange County Schools (OCS) and Chapel Hill Carrboro City Schools (CHCCS) are the county's 31 and 4th largest employers. She said that she is also a real estate agent and understands the rise of property values and taxes over time. She said the tax burden has been shifted to local governments because the state has a state regressive tax policy that will cut the corporate and personal income tax to zero by 2030. She said that these cuts will result in $13 billion less in state revenue. She said that is equivalent to the total state budget revenue for 2024. She said that the schools have requested an expansion budget from the commissioners. She said that we are fortunate in Orange County to have the best quality education for the students, and she hopes the county votes to approve the expansion budget. Katie Harper said her children have attended Orange County Schools (OCS) and that her family has been very happy there. She noted the high level of financial support given by the county to the school systems. She asked the Board to fully fund the continuation budget and some of the expansion budget. She thanked the Board for all the work that went towards the 2024 bond referendum. Spring Dawson said she was born in Orange County and her dad is a farmer. She said that her work focuses on early childhood education. She said that she is a parent of two children with one in middle school and one in high school in Orange County. She said that North Carolina is 481h in the nation for per pupil spending and 43rd for teacher pay. She said that the average teacher salary in the state is below living wage. She said many of her children's teachers work second and third jobs. She said even with this, Orange County is thriving. She said that the Center for Holocaust, Genocide, and Human Rights Education in NC has honored a teacher for the first time in its history and that award went to Orange County 7th grade teacher, Serena Massey. She asked that the commissioners read Mr. Jason Johnson's statement when he was honored as the North Carolina Principal of the Year. Chair Bedford noted that they will be doing a proclamation in honor of Mr. Jason Johnson. Rachel Heller said her children attended CHCCS and OCS schools. She discussed opportunity vouchers which provide subsidies for children to attend private schools. She said opportunity scholarships were started to "reduce the socio-economic achievement gap." She said they were targeted to families below a certain income level. She said that now, those income caps have been removed and wealthy families already sending their children to private schools can now receive the vouchers that are a tax-payer subsidy. She said over$3 million in voucher funds have been given to students in Orange County. She said that private schools are not accountable to the public and they are not required to track or report on academic achievement. She said they are not required to hire licensed teachers or even teachers with a college degree. She said that private schools have raised their average tuition 16% over the last year. Kelly Suttles said that education for everyone is foundational to democracy. She said that funding cuts at the state levels have put the funding burden on local governments. She said they have been steadily losing investment in public education over the last two decades in NC. She said the federal government is also cutting spending on education and there are two programs that will directly affect students in Orange County. She discussed federal cuts to education that affect Orange County. She said the two programs are: the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and Title I. She said these two federal programs account for 15%-20% of Orange County school funding. She said that the county has some of the best educators. She said that this has placed the county in a place of burden. She noted the award-winning programing and staff. She