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4 <br /> 1 Chapter 160D provides comprehensive planning and zoning authority to local governments and <br /> 2 would be significantly eroded by the passage of Senate Bill 205, which would diminish the input <br /> 3 and will of local communities. <br /> 4 <br /> 5 It was requested at the June 17th meeting that staff present a resolution for Board consideration <br /> 6 at this July 8, 2025 meeting opposing Senate Bill 205. <br /> 7 <br /> 8 John Roberts said that Senate Bill 205 would make substantial changes to land use law <br /> 9 in North Carolina, effectively stripping local governments of significant authority. He said the bill <br /> 10 was opposed by the Board, as well as other local governments across the state. He said the bill <br /> 11 would have a substantial impact on local land use planning. <br /> 12 Commissioner Portie-Ascott said she brought it to the Board on the recommendation <br /> 13 from the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners. She said that the bill takes <br /> 14 power from local government and silences community voices. <br /> 15 Cy Stober, Planning Director, expressed appreciation to the County Attorney's Office for <br /> 16 detailing the impacts of the law for the county and his department. He said this bill would <br /> 17 fundamentally change how applications are received and administered in Orange County, and <br /> 18 would limit public participation and notification of land use changes. <br /> 19 Commissioner McKee said he was recently invited to meet with senators crafting <br /> 20 legislation for local regulations. He said that was only the second time in 15 years that he had <br /> 21 been invited to provide input into a piece of legislation at the General Assembly. He said that <br /> 22 bills are often drafted in-house and can be developed and approved very quickly if there are the <br /> 23 votes. He said that this bill will have a lot of effects on how Orange County does Planning. <br /> 24 <br /> 25 A motion was made by Commissioner Portie-Ascott, seconded by Vice-Chair Hamilton, <br /> 26 to approve the resolution and authorize the Chair to sign. <br /> 27 <br /> 28 VOTE: UNANIMOUS <br /> 29 <br /> 30 7. Reports <br /> 31 a. Report on 2025 Revaluation Review Efforts <br /> 32 The Board: <br /> 33 1) Received descriptions of the types of analyses that are being performed on the 2025 <br /> 34 revaluation results based on different property characteristics and provide acceptable <br /> 35 margins; and <br /> 36 2) Received information outlining the actions that will be taken by the Tax Office for <br /> 37 properties outside of the acceptable margins. <br /> 38 <br /> 39 BACKGROUND: On June 1, 2025, the Tax Office requested that vendor Spatialest provide a <br /> 40 study to compare valuation data from 2024 to 2025 to determine whether specific property or <br /> 41 building types experienced greater percentage growth, and if so, identify the corresponding <br /> 42 growth rates. Additionally, the vendor will conduct a vertical equity analysis to assess whether <br /> 43 lower-value homes are being overvalued and higher-value homes undervalued. <br /> 44 <br /> 45 The analyses includes three projects: <br /> 46 • Residential <br /> 47 • Non-Residential <br /> 48 • 2024 vs 2025 Value <br /> 49 <br /> 50 The purpose of the Residential and Non-Residential analyses is to review the vertical equity in <br /> 51 the 2025 Revaluation to ensure that assessment levels are consistent over the range of values, <br />