Update 10:25 p.m. on 1/6/25:

The Vance County Board of Commissioners elected Yolanda Feimster as its new vice chair at its meeting Monday evening.

The board also held the first of two public hearings to hear from residents about priorities for the 2025-26 budget during its first regular meeting of the year, and the first meeting with Carolyn Faines as chair. Faines was elected to lead the board during a special called meeting last week, following Sean Alston’s announcement that he was stepping down to take a job as a Warren County magistrate.

Several residents spoke during the public hearing, which lasted about 15 minutes, but their messages shared a common theme: reconsider the current tax rate and have a revenue neutral budget in place for FY 2025-26.

Laura Perkinson told commissioners she owns properties in both the city and the county, and she advocates a revenue neutral budget. During her four minutes of allotted time, Perkinson also said property owners should not be charged late fees when paying 2024 tax bills “so we all can catch up.”

The deadline to pay without incurring a 2 percent penalty was today, Jan. 6.

Caroline Burnette has spoken to commissioners during previous public comment periods and she reiterated her concerns about the current tax rate. Burnette asked the commissioners to reconsider the tax rate and said the board should be held accountable for raising the rate during the most recent budget process.

Lee Chandler said he wants to see budget cuts and next year’s budget be “below revenue neutral.”

When Commissioner Dan Brummitt stood up and moved away from his seat briefly, Angela Ryan paused her remarks to the board, stating that she would wait for Brummitt’s return.
“We need to be heard and I want to make sure that I am,” Ryan said.

In remarks following comments from the residents, Commissioner Leo Kelly said “We hear you.” Kelly said he’s lived in Vance County his entire life, and when he voted on the budget, it meant his taxes went up, too.

“I paid my taxes, (but) I paid them grudgingly,” he said.

Before the public hearing was closed, Brummitt thanked those who had approached the podium to address the board. He commented that in his close to two decades as a commissioner, Monday’s hearing was “only the second public hearing where people have spoken.”

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Update 2:15 p.m. on 1/6/25:

The Vance County Board of Commissioners is expected to elect a new vice chair at the first regular meeting of 2025 scheduled for this evening, following last week’s resignation of Commissioner Sean Alston, who stepped away from the board to accept a magistrate’s position in Warren County.

The board unanimously elected Carolyn Faines as chair of the board during a special called meeting on Monday, Dec. 30, but tabled a vote to elect vice chair.

The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. According to the agenda, selection of a new vice chair will be the first order of business, followed by several appointment and then a public hearing to collect comments from county residents as county leaders continue planning for the 2025-26 budget.

The public hearing on the budget is listed as Item 6 on the agenda. This public hearing is the first of two that are scheduled; the second is scheduled for June 2 – after the recommended budget has been submitted to commissioners for review.

Other items for discussion from County Manager C. Renee Perry’s report to the board include the fire marshal budget, amendments to the personnel policy, jail inspection reports from 2023 and 2024, sheriff legal fees, board work sessions and the EMS substation.

View the meeting at https://www.youtube.com/@VanceCountyNC/streams.

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Update 1/5/25:

Straight from the Vance County Commissioners meeting 1-6-25 agenda, the meeting will include within the first few items a fiscal year 2025-2026 pre-budget public hearing.

The public notice says, “The Vance County Board of Commissioners will conduct a FY 2025-26 Pre-Budget Public Hearing at 6:00 p.m., or shortly thereafter, on January 6, 2025 in the Commissioners’ Meeting Room at 122 Young Street, Henderson, NC.”

Before the Board of Commissioners begins work on next year’s budget, the board “is interested in receiving suggestions and priorities from residents to help them in the development of the budget.”

This is one of two required public hearings that will be held on the budget.

“The county manager will submit a recommended budget in May and a second public hearing will be held on the proposed budget on June 2, 2025,” the notice within the agenda states.

The budget is supposed to be adopted before July 1, 2024.

The agenda says, “This notice was published on December 24, 2024,” which in North Carolina means it was published in the newspaper.

TownTalk Broadcast 1-6-25 Prior to Meeting!