At the end of this Agenda Item #5, Commissioner Deb Hardin made a motion to delay deciding on this issue until the July 7th meeting. Commissioner Doug Bridges seconded the motion. There was more discussion and the vote was 5-0 to delay the vote until the July 7, 2022 Commissioner’s meeting.
(Note that one thing that County Manager Brian Epley DID NOT inform the Commissioners about was the fact that Cleveland County had the right to appeal to the North Carolina Property Tax Commission regarding the NCDOR’s letter requiring a revaluation. But that if no appeal was made within the allotted time to appeal, an appeal would be automatically denied. This would NOT be the last of Epley’s Malfeasances. Which will be described herein or perhaps in a future article.)
And, this meeting was not over with.
Item #6 on the June 21, 2022 Commissioner’s Meeting Agenda was for an Article 46 Resolution that was presented by Assistant County Manager Kerri Melton.
Note that if Robert A had realized what an Article 46 Resolution was, he might have spoken about that too.
Folks, an Article 46 Resolution is all about INCREASING the County’s SALES TAX. Which requires a Referendum question to be placed on the Election BALLOT. For or Against. In very recent years we have already had TWO such Referendums to increase our Sales Tax by a quarter of a penny. Both these Referendum’s FAILED by a 3-1 margin. Now. we are at it again.
Robert A adds that both these previous sales tax referendums were supported ty the Rogue Republican, Snub-lican, Joe Biden enabling Republican RINO wing of the Cleveland County Republican Party. Note that Robert A stands with the Trump Republicans of Cleveland County, North Carolina and the USA, who want to Make America Great Again. Robert A also wonders, where the heck are the (Taxed Enough Already) TEA-Party people. It seems like “when times get tough, the TEA-Party gets to going” to find a hole to hide in or a rug to hid under. Along with the rest of the corruption.)
Again folks, Watch the Video.
The Commissioners go around and round with this issue. Commissioner Doug Bridges opines that maybe the previous Referendums were not properly presented to the people.
In the previous Referendums this quarter of a penny in sales tax increase was to go to the Fire Departments and EMS. Now Assistant County Manager Kerri Melton says this quarter penny increase will go toward school construction. All Commissioners knowing full well that there are NOOO plans for School Construction at CCS or anywhere else-except for in the mind of Robert A should he decide to run for County Commissioner as some have strongly suggested. And such plans somewhere else that might surprise lots of people. We will introduce that idea that is already close to fruition in another article.
The problem with Assistant County Manager Kerri Melton’s notations that his estimated $3 Million per year in extra sales tax revenue will go toward some future school construction scenario neglects this fatal fact: It is a well settled legal fact that tax revenue raised for one purpose can be spent for other purposes. Or, even wasted if it ends up in the hands of our present school board under Chairman Robert “Luke” Queen.
Robert A predicts this Referendum, passed by a 5-0 vote of the Commissioners, will fail by a four to five to one margin when the voters of Cleveland County get their hands on their ballots in the November 8, 2022 election.
This prediction is based on the fact that there is NO plan by CCS or the Commissioners for anything reasonable in a school construction plan at the present time. Also, Robert A and others still believe this Referendum is in reality a NEW “Fire Tax” intended to fund the County Manager’s Office’s intentions to take over (a HOSTILE Takeover) all the local county Fire Departments like they did with the County Rescue Squads.
The Commissioners, under the Epley Regime, have already established the process for this hostile takeover of the Fire Departments by their actions to adopt the North Carolina Fire Codes. Of course, the action to adopt the NC Fire Codes for Cleveland County is well and good. But when the Commissioners adopted the NC Fire Codes, there were TWO PARTS. The first part was the actual NC Fire Codes. Totally acceptable. The SECOND PART was related to the ENFORCEMENT of the NC Fire Codes. Which included requirements for the subservience of all the local fire departments to the County Fire Marshal. Who works for YOU know who? County Manager Brian Epley.
So, in reality, the Local Fire Departments are already combined into a Cleveland County Fire Department. The local fire departments just don’t realize this yet. That is what happens when the local Fire Departments, like Fallston, let the County increase their funding by raising property taxes, just a little, if they agree to that increase in funding. Then the County takes over completely. Sooner than later. They get suckered, take the bait and later get thrown in the frying pan and get themselves sizzled in the process.
It is an old trick.
One other thing before we go. Robert A has made a public Records Request regarding this new Revaluation and the records the NC Department of Revenue used, provided by Epley to generate a letter of requirement to revaluate property values. The text of this request is as follows:
To: All Commissioners, County Attorneys, County Manager
Under the Public Records laws of North Carolina, I am requesting the opportunity to inspect:
1. The NC Department of Revenue letter that was shown at the June 21, 2022 Commissioner’s Meeting and documents related to the preparation of that letter, all other documents, letters, emails communications of any kind between Cleveland County, the NCDOR and Commissioners, reports, data, PowerPoint Presentations, property transactions, calculations, ratio’s enforcement options and references to NC law related to the June 21, 2022 Commissioner’s Meeting Agenda item 5 of the Regular Agenda – 2022 Revaluation and Update.
2. A schedule of inspections required to take the 3,600 noted County residential home Building Permits to the point of actual commencement home construction processes. Also, any backlogs of inspections that are presently holding up the commencement of home construction.
3. All documents, records, estimates, etc. that might or might not indicate that Cleveland County is or is NOT intentionally using building inspections as a means to hold home supply low in order to maintain high price levels in home sales in order to justify a revaluation; prior to more home supply that would tend to stabilize of even lower home sale transactions to the point a revaluation would not be necessary per the calculated home value ”ratios.”
Since this item, Revaluation, is set for a Commissioner’s vote July 7, 2022, all this information should be readily available, perhaps in the Commissioner’s Information Package for the June 21, 2022 Commissioner’s Meeting, and ready for inspection as soon as possible. Preferably by the end of this week-June 24, 2022.
Thank you in advance for your prompt attention to this matter.
Robert A. Williams
citizensforgoodgovernment.org
Folks, Watch the June 21, 2022 Commissioners Meeting Video. You will be amused if not flabbergasted.