FROM: W. Calvin Horton, Town Manager
Ralph D. Karpinos, Town Attorney
SUBJECT: Resolution Calling a Hearing on Potential Legislative Requests
DATE: February 24, 2003
The attached resolution would call a public hearing March 3, 2003, to receive public comment on potential items to be included in the Council’s Legislative Program for the upcoming long session of the N.C. General Assembly.
At the January 29 Public Forum on the Budget, the Council identified potential issues for discussion with the Legislative Delegation. The items are listed below under the “Potential Issues” section. The Council was scheduled to meet with the Legislative Delegation on February 17, but that meeting had to be canceled because of the ice storm. A new date for the breakfast has not been set.
The General Assembly convened this year on January 29. The deadline for submission of local bills to Legislative Bill drafting is March 12 for the N.C. Senate and March 19 for the N.C. House.
DISCUSSION
On February 10, the Council adopted a resolution establishing the following possible legislative matters for consideration as local bills or issues of State-wide concern:
· Common Funding Source for Transportation Infrastructure Needs. The Council suggested requesting an annual $50 million, distributed equitably through the region, to address transportation infrastructure needs. The 2001 Regional Transportation Strategy for the Research Triangle Region of North Carolina identified between $50 million and $60 million that could be raised through funding mechanisms such as increases to vehicle registration, driver’s license, or other fees, combined with a 2-cent fuel tax increase and revisions to the Highway Use Tax. The Council emphasized that Chapel Hill’s interest would be in funding public transportation and not in building more roads.
· Equity of Funding for Orange County within Highway Division 7. Orange County has been included in Division 7 for purposes of administering the allocation of federal and State transportation funding as part of the State Transportation Allocation Formula. Division 7 is composed of Guilford, Orange, Alamance, Caswell, and Rockingham counties. The draft State Transportation Improvement Program would provide 70 cents per capita in funding to Orange County, below the Division average of $1.58 and all other counties except Alamance. We believe that it would be reasonable to seek a larger proportion of funding in the Transportation Improvement Program, using the district’s average per capita revenue as a goal.
· A Funding Mechanism to Convert Overhead Power Distribution Lines to Underground Lines. If the Council were to pursue burial of electrical or other utility systems underground, special enabling legislation would be necessary in order to finance the project. The funding mechanism could involve formation of a Utility Tax District and/or the creation of a Municipal Service District with a special property tax. Utilities Commission and Duke Energy officials have stated that a “requesting party” is responsible for the cost of burying utility lines.
The Council also included the following topics for discussion with the Delegation:
· Provide Increased State Staffing for Sedimentation and Erosion Control Enforcement.
Council members also expressed interest in these items:
· South Columbia Street improvement issues
· Inclusionary Zoning.
NEXT STEPS
The Council may wish to consider adding items to the list of those included in the proposed resolution or deleting some of those already listed. In consideration of the March 12 deadline for submittals, we will recommend that the Council adopt the Legislative program following the hearing on March 3.
RECOMMENDATION
We recommend that the Council adopt the attached resolution, calling a public hearing for March 3, 2003, to receive comment from the public prior to considering adoption of a legislative program for the Town, with whatever revisions the Council determines.
ATTACHMENT
1. February 10 Memorandum to Council (p. 4).
A RESOLUTION CALLING A PUBLIC HEARING FOR MARCH 3, 2003, TO RECEIVE PUBLIC COMMENT ON PROPOSALS FOR CONSIDERATION AS PART OF THE TOWN OF CHAPEL HILL’S LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM FOR THE UPCOMING SESSION OF THE NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL ASSEMBLY (2003-02-24/R-4)
BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill that the Council calls a public hearing for March 3, 2003, at 7 p.m. in the Council Chambers of Town Hall on the following proposed items for consideration as part of the Legislative Program for the upcoming session of the General Assembly:
· Common Funding Source for Transportation Infrastructure Needs
· Equity of Funding for Orange County within Highway Division 7
· Funding Mechanism to Convert Overhead Power Distribution Lines to Underground Lines
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Council may wish to seek further advice on ways to:
· Provide Increased State Staffing for Sedimentation and Erosion Control Enforcement.
This the 24th day of February, 2003.
ATTACHMENT 1
FROM: W. Calvin Horton, Town Manager
Ralph D. Karpinos, Town Attorney
SUBJECT: Resolution Authorizing Potential Legislative Topics for Discussion
DATE: February 10, 2003
The attached resolution would authorize potential topics for discussion with the Orange County Legislative Delegation at the Legislative Breakfast on February 17 at the Sheraton Chapel Hill Hotel.
On January 29, the Council held a Public Forum on the 2003-04 Budget and Related Matters, and included discussion of potential Legislative items as part of the forum. That night, the Council identified two particular items of interest for discussion with the Legislative Delegation: (1) A common funding source for transportation infrastructure needs; and (2) equity of funding for Orange County within Highway Division 7. These issues are explained in more detail below.
While considering the Land Use Management Ordinance during 2002, the Council indicated interest in another potential item for discussion: the pursuit of enabling legislation to fund burial of electric distribution lines. We have included information about this topic below, and have provided an additional agenda item with tonight’s packet to provide more details.
We have also provided a copy of the May 13, 2002 Legislative Program as adopted by the Council. The Council may wish to consider potential items raised during last year’s discussions of Legislative issues (Attachment 1).
The Council will have further opportunity to discuss its potential Legislative goals through the process outlined later in this memorandum.
The General Assembly convened for its “long session” this year on January 29. The deadline for submission of local bills to Legislative Bill drafting is March 12 for the N.C. Senate and is yet to be determined for the N.C. House, although it is likely to be on or near March 12.
DISCUSSION
On January 29, the Council discussed possible legislative matters for potential consideration. Topics for discussion were:
· Common Funding Source for Transportation Infrastructure Needs. The Council suggested requesting an annual $50 million, distributed equitably through the region, to address transportation infrastructure needs. The 2001 Regional Transportation Strategy for the Research Triangle Region of North Carolina identified between $50 million and $60 million that could be raised through funding mechanisms such as increases to vehicle registration, driver’s license, or other fees, combined with a 2-cent fuel tax increase and revisions to the Highway Use Tax (Attachment 2). The Council emphasized that Chapel Hill’s interest would be in funding public transportation and not in building a greater number of roads.
· Equity of Funding for Orange County within Highway Division 7. Orange County has been included in Division 7 for purposes of administering the allocation of federal and State transportation funding as part of the State Transportation Allocation Formula. Division 7 is composed of Guilford, Orange, Alamance, Caswell, and Rockingham counties. The draft State Transportation Improvement Program would provide 70 cents per capita in funding to Orange County, below the Division average of $1.58 and all other counties except Alamance (Attachment 3). We believe that it would be reasonable to seek a larger proportion of funding in the Transportation Improvement Program, using the district’s average per capita revenue as a goal.
· A Funding Mechanism to Convert Overhead Power Distribution Lines to Underground Lines. If the Council were to pursue burial of electrical or other utility systems underground, special enabling legislation would be necessary in order to finance the project. The funding mechanism could involve formation of a Utility Tax District and/or the creation of a Municipal Service District with a special property tax. Utilities Commission and Duke Energy officials have stated that a “requesting party” is responsible for the cost of burying utility lines.
Past Topics
On May 13, 2002, the Council adopted the attached Resolution B, establishing Town Legislative Program guidelines, including:
· Provide Increased State Staffing for Sedimentation and Erosion Control Enforcement.
Also on May 13, 2002, the Council adopted the attached Resolution A, endorsing the N.C. League of Municipalities’ suggested statutory provisions and proposed Constitutional amendment to secure local reimbursements and State-collected local taxes endorsing selected revenue alternatives suggested by the N.C. Metropolitan Coalition. The additional sources endorsed by the Council were:
The Council may wish to consider adding matters to the list of those included in the proposed resolution or deleting some of those already listed.
NEXT STEPS
The tentative schedule to consider Legislative items includes the following dates:
· February 17, 7:30 a.m. – Breakfast with Orange County Legislative Delegation
· February 24, 7 p.m. – Resolution Calling a Hearing to Receive Public Comment on Legislative Items
· March 3, 7 p.m. – Public Hearing on Legislative Items and Adoption of Legislative Program.
· March 12 – Deadline for Legislative Bill drafting.
RECOMMENDATION
We recommend that the Council adopt the attached resolution, authorizing potential topics for discussion with the Orange County Legislative Delegation at the Legislative Breakfast on February 17 at the Sheraton Chapel Hill Hotel, with such further items as the Council may choose to identify.
ATTACHMENT
1. May 13, 2002 Adopted Legislative Program (p. 5).
2. Regional Transportation Strategy for the Research Triangle Region of North Carolina, 2001 (pages 13-20).
3. Division 7 Per Capita Draft STIP Funding (FY 2004-2010) (p. 21).
A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING POTENTIAL TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION WITH THE ORANGE COUNTY LEGISLATIVE DELEGATION ON FEBRUARY 17, 2003 (2003-02-10/R-9)
WHEREAS, the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill is preparing a list of topics for discussion with the Orange County Legislative Delegation; and
WHEREAS, the Council will seek enabling legislation to undertake various projects throughout the year; and
WHEREAS, the Council will meet with Legislators at the Sheraton Chapel Hill Hotel on February 17 to discuss these and other matters of interest;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill that the Council authorizes the following proposed topics for discussion as part of the Legislative Breakfast Meeting at 7:30 a.m., February 17, 2003, at the Sheraton Chapel Hill Hotel:
· Common Funding Source for Transportation Infrastructure Needs
· Equity of Funding for Orange County within Highway Division 7
· Funding Mechanism to Convert Overhead Power Distribution Lines to Underground Lines
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Council may wish to seek further advice on ways to:
· Provide Increased State Staffing for Sedimentation and Erosion Control Enforcement.
This the 10th day of February, 2003.