What’s the only type of property that can change from real property to personal property and back again in the blink of an eye? The answer is mobile homes, the species of property that produces more headaches per tax dollar than … Read more

In this post about access to emails, I described three categories of public employee emails: 1)emails that are public records and subject to public access; 2) emails that are public records but an exception either prohibits disclosure or eliminates the right … Read more

“Where do you go in this town to get a tat, to find someone who can sling some ink? I wanna find somebody like they have on L.A. Ink that can do some real work on me. You know, a … Read more

Your governing board recently instructed you to look at any and all means to cut costs. In reviewing ways to streamline administrative expenses you discover that the unit can reduce its utility fee collection costs significantly by printing and mailing … Read more

Hard times have come to Emerald City, North Carolina.  People are out of work, no one is buying or building anything, and it doesn’t look like things will get better anytime soon.  The Emerald City Council has decided that they … Read more

On October 1, 2010, a North Carolina city receives a request under G.S. 160A-168(b)(11) for a copy of the written notice of the final dismissal of former police chief Chris Jones, setting forth the specific acts or omissions that were … Read more

In her regular budget update for the town council, Mayor Juanita Beasley advised the council that the budget cuts implemented for the current fiscal year appeared to be adequate. She cautioned, however, that  the town’s budget outlook for next year … Read more

Few things can get the attention of a business owner as effectively as can the sight of that business’ inventory being loaded into a truck by a deputy sheriff to pay off outstanding taxes.  Most local government officials know that the levy, seizure and sale remedy … Read more

During its last term, the U.S. Supreme Court held in U.S. v. Stevens (130 S. Ct. 1577 (April 20, 2010), that a federal animal cruelty statute (18 U.S.C. § 48) was unconstitutional. The law criminalizes the creation, sale, or possession … Read more

Last fall I blogged about new legislation (S.L. 2009-522 (H 1389) and S.L. 2009-525 (S 97) (hereinafter 2009 Acts)) authorizing North Carolina counties and municipalities to adopt programs to finance certain energy efficiency improvements and distributed generation renewable energy sources … Read more