Tag Archive for: #vancecountynews

TownTalk: Vance Commissioners Elect Vice Chair, Hold Public Hearing On 2025-26 Budget At Monday Meeting

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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!

Vance County Schools Closed Monday For Students; Optional Workday Begins At 10 A.M.

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-from Aarika Sandlin, Vance County Schools Chief Officer of Communication & Innovative Support

Vance County Schools are closed for students Monday, and staff will have an optional workday beginning at 10 a.m.

The area is under a winter weather advisory and the forecast is calling for below-freezing conditions and frozen precipitation, so school officials made the call to close school for students. Essential personnel will report to their locations at 9:30 a.m.

 

Leadership Vance 2025 Application Period Open Now Through Jan. 24

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The 2025 class of Leadership Vance is forming now, and local Chamber of Commerce officials encourage individuals to consider applying for a spot now.

Applications will be accepted through Friday, Jan. 24, according to information from Chamber President Sandra Wilkerson. This will be the 34th class to participate in the program, which gives participants a chance to learn all about Vance County from A to Z.

Over seven months, the structured program is designed to create a corps of informed and dedicated emerging leaders, giving members an in-depth knowledge of the county in which they live and work.

 

The class will be capped at 18; Wilkerson asks that no payment be made until participants are notified of acceptance.

Contact the Chamber office for more information about the cost and time commitment. The initial orientation is scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025.

Call or drop by the Chamber office, 414 S. Garnett St., Henderson (252.438.8414) or email Wilkerson sandra@hendersonvance.org.

 

Kerr-Tar COG Seeks Sponsors For 2025 N.C. Senior Games

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Local businesses and individuals still have time to become sponsors for the 2025 Kerr-Tar Regional Senior Games, held each spring across the five counties that comprise the Kerr-Tar Regional Council of Governments.

Sponsorship levels include:

Gold – $1,500

Silver – $1,000

Bronze – $500

Family – $250

Friend – $100

Sponsors can choose to provide regionwide support or a specific county, according to information from KTCOG officials. Make checks payable to Kerr-Tar Regional Council of Governments to provide regionwide support or to your local Senior Center to support a particular county.

The Senior Games holds events in all five counties and involves adults 50 years and older in a variety of athletic events, as well as Silver Arts, which includes creative and performing arts.

In 2024, more than 223 local athletes participated in more than 50 sporting events and Silver Arts categories. Even more participants are expected for the 2025 games. First- and second-place winners qualify for the state finals, and state finals winners advance to the National Senior Games, held every two years.

For more information, contact local coordinator Michael Patterson or local co-coordinator Crystal Allen at 252.436.2040 or by email at mpatterson@kerrtarcog.org or callen@kerrtarcog.org.

Vance Taxpayers Have Until Jan. 6 To Pay Tax Before Penalty Period Begins

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Vance County residents and taxpayers have until Jan. 6, 2025 to pay their property tax bills before getting hit with a 2 percent interest penalty. That may add insult to injury this year, when many taxpayers are facing higher bills as a result of the recent revaluation.

Vance County is among a handful of counties across the state that waits eight years – the state’s mandatory maximum interval to conduct revaluation – and some county leaders have said it needs to be done more often to reduce the sting and surprise of pricey tax bills.

Neither Vance County nor Henderson stayed with a revenue neutral rate, meaning an increase in value and an increase in the rate charged by each entity went up, combining in a way that nearly all parcel owners have had to pay more.

One issue that county officials said they will explore is splitting the tax bill to show the breakdown between city tax and county tax for those city residents who must pay both. This hasn’t been done in more than a decade, and a change could come as soon as the 2025 tax bill.

County commissioners adopted the 2024-25 budget on June 24, which included a 10-cent tax increase per $100 valuation. The basic breakdown of that 10-cent increase is $.01 for salary increases to help attract and retain county employees and $.09 for future capital projects.

As the county faces more opportunities for growth, be they commercial, industrial or residential, there also is a demand for adequate infrastructure to support that growth.

The question that municipalities and counties face is how to balance that growth – providing more services for residents, creating a better and bigger tax base that ultimately may reduce an undue burden on homeowners.

The Vance County budget was approved 4-2, with then-Board Chair Dan Brummitt and Tommy Hester casting votes of no. Commissioner Yolanda Feimster was not present. The motion was made by Commissioner Sean Alston and seconded by Commissioner Leo Kelly and rounding out the affirmative votes were Commissioner Carolyn Faines and then-Commissioner Archie Taylor.

It was not a unanimous decision, but the Henderson City Council voted to increase the property tax rate per $100 valuation to 65 cents, just before adopting the FY 2024-25 budget totaling more than $47 million.

In the budget recommended by City Manager Terrell Blackmon, the tax rate was 55 cents per $100 valuation, which was 10 cents above the revenue-neutral rate. The new property tax rate adopted, though, is 20 cents above the revenue-neutral rate.

Council Member Tami Walker made the motion to increase the tax, which she said would bring in more than $2.5 million in additional tax revenue. Council Member Ola Thorpe-Cooper seconded the motion. Council members Sam Seifert and Garry Daeke cast votes of no, and Council members Lamont Noel, Michael Venable, Geraldine Champion, Sara Coffey voted yes with Walker and Thorpe-Cooper.

IRS Reminder About Deadlines For RMDs From Certain Retirement Accounts

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If you’re 73 years or older, the Internal Revenue Service reminds you of important deadlines regarding required minimum distributions for those with certain retirement accounts.

An RMD is an amount that an account owner must withdraw annually. The withdrawals are considered taxable income and may incur penalties if they aren’t taken on time, according to information from IRS officials.

The IRS.gov Retirement Plan and IRA Required Minimum Distributions FAQs webpage provides detailed information regarding the new provisions in the law.

If you turned 73 in 2024:

  • Your first RMD is due by April 1, 2025, based on your account balance on Dec. 31, 2023, and
  • Your second RMD is due by Dec. 31, 2025, based on your account balance on Dec. 31, 2024.

 

A new law called the Secure 2.0 Act raised the age that account owners must begin taking RMDs, while eliminating RMDs for Designated Roth accounts in 401(k) and 403(b) retirement plans.

The minimum distribution rules generally apply to original account holders and their beneficiaries in these types of plans:

 

  • IRAs: IRA withdrawals from traditional IRAs and IRA-based plans occur every year once people reach age 73, even if they’re still employed.
  • Retirement plans:The RMD rules apply to employer-sponsored plans, with delays allowed until retirement unless the participants own more than 5% of the sponsoring business.
  • Roth IRAs:Roth IRA owners are not required to take withdrawals during their lifetime, however beneficiaries are subject to the RMD rules after the account owner’s death.

 

Designated Roth accounts in a 401(k) or 403(b) plan will not be subject to the RMD rules while the account owner is still alive for 2024. The RMD Comparison Chart outlines key RMD rules for IRAs and defined contribution plans.

 

Taxpayers can find easy-to-use tools such as forms, instructions and publications at IRS.gov.

Wallace Vaughan Receives Order Of The Long Leaf Pine

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Wallace T. Vaughan recently was presented The Order of the Long Leaf Pine for 45 years of exemplary service to Granville Vance Public Health.

GVPH Health Director Lisa Macon Harrison made the presentation on Nov. 26. “We are so proud of Wallace’s 45 years of service to public health as an Environmental Health Specialist. When he began his career with the Granville-Vance District Health Department on July 16, 1979, no one could have foreseen that his career with our agency would span over 40 years, with growth and development along the way. Thankfully, even as a retired member of our team, he returns to assist part-time with the important work of Environmental Health at GVPH.”

Vaughan began his career with the Granville-Vance District Health Department as a Sanitarian I, focusing exclusively on wastewater disposal. His position changed to Sanitarian II and then Environmental Health Specialist as duties and responsibilities increased through the years. When the environmental health supervisor retired in 2002, Vaughan took over, and was responsible for overseeing all environmental health duties and the professional development of eight employees in both counties. In 2007, his position was reclassified to Environmental Health Supervisor III to accurately reflect the complex duties of managing a district program.

Vaughan was presented the award at a luncheon in Oxford, NC – his lifelong home. In attendance were his wife, Brenda Vaughan, three children and four grandchildren. Also on hand for the presentation were several GVPH staff who have worked with him over his noteworthy career.

Vaughan is a lifetime member of Tungsten Baptist Church, serving as a deacon and Sunday School teacher, and he also trains Tennessee Walker horses.

Keep Safety In Mind When Decorating This Holiday Season

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Some folks have had their homes – inside and out – decorated for weeks, and others have taken a slower approach to decking the halls to create a festive Christmas look.

No matter how far along you are in your holiday decorating, however, the American Red Cross has some timely reminders about safety this time of year.

“Many people are getting ready for holiday celebrations and time with loved ones and we want everyone to be safe while doing so,” said Sharonne Hayes, communications manager with Red Cross North Carolina Region. “This time of year is a peak time for home fires involving things like candles and holiday decorations. You can help help keep things safe and fun for your family by practicing some extra safety — using battery-operated candles, checking your cords, and even practicing a two-minute escape plan with everyone in your household.”

Here are a few tips to keep in mind as Christmas and New Year’s approach:

  • If you must use candles, keep them away from anything that could burn, and place them out of reach of pets and children. Never leave burning candles unattended.
  • Check all holiday light cords to ensure they aren’t frayed or broken. Don’t string too many strands of lights together — no more than three per extension cord.
  • Ensure outside decorations are for outdoor use and fasten lights securely to your home or trees. If using hooks or nails outside, make sure they are insulated to avoid an electrocution or fire hazard.
  • If buying an artificial tree, look for a fire-resistant label.When putting it up, keep it away from fireplaces, radiators and other sources of heat. Never use electric lights on metallic trees.
  • If getting a live tree, make sure it’s fresh and keep it watered. To test if the tree is fresh, bend the needles up and down to make sure no needles fall off.
  • Don’t light the fireplace if hanging stockings or other decorations on the mantel.

Visit redcross.org/fire to learn more.

Drewry Volunteer Fire Dept

Brame, Drewry FD Team Up To Help Family In Need At Christmas

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Vance County Sheriff Curtis Brame extends a big thank you to everyone who attended the Drewry Volunteer Fire Department’s annual Christmas gathering.

Brame was among those who enjoyed the fellowship and a meal. Before the event concluded, “I received a telephone call from our neighboring county seeking assistance with a family in distress,” Brame told WIZS News.

He got permission to share the information with those gathered.

“I relayed the message that I received from Officer Kenny Bullock, which he was attempting to assist a family of four with shelter for the night,” Brame explained.

And just like that, volunteer firefighters, guests and their families collected $370 to assist that family in need. It was enough to pay for two nights at a local hotel, as well as meals for the family of four and gas for their vehicle.

 

Veteran Law Enforcement Officer Mike Grissom Awarded Order Of The Long Leaf Pine

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Veteran law enforcement officer Michael D. Grissom received the Order of the Long Leaf Pine Wednesday during a ceremony at the Vance County Courthouse.

N.C. Rep. Frank Sossamon presented the award to Grissom with family and friends looking on in recognition of his nearly 30-year career in law enforcement that Sossamon stated is “marked by extraordinary dedication, leadership, and a profound commitment to public safety and community well-being.”

In 1973, Grissom was a patrolman with the Henderson Police Department. He quickly distinguished himself through his strong connection to the community, his unwavering ethical standards and sense of duty. He rose through the ranks, first as detective and then as detective sergeant.

Grissom was promoted to lieutenant in 1988 and he served in that role until 1991. As a lieutenant, he played a pivotal role in enhancing the department’s strategic planning, resource management and interdepartmental collaboration.

Then, he became an agent with the City-County Bureau of Identification in Raleigh, bringing with him a wealth of experience and commitment to excellence. By 1994, he was promoted to field supervisor, a position he held until his retirement in June 2002.

Throughout his career, Grissom has embodied the principles of justice, fairness and service, and has left an indelible impact on the organizations he served and the communities he protected. His unwavering dedication to the safety and well-being of others has made him a model of public service and a deserving recipient of this distinguished honor.

“Mike Grissom represents the best of North Carolina,” Sossamon stated. “His lifelong commitment to protecting and serving his community has inspired many and ensured a lasting legacy of integrity and leadership.”