The Town of Renewville has ambitious redevelopment plans for several key—but tired and/or underdeveloped—properties along its Main Street. As we know from a prior post examining the limited situations in which a local government may discuss property acquisition in closed … Read more

North Carolina state law requires city councils, boards of county commissioners, and local school boards, to provide at least one public comment period per month at a regular meeting. Many boards have adopted policies governing what may be said and … Read more

Local government property tax offices are very good at what they do, with collection rates averaging around 98%.  But nobody’s perfect.  Mistakes happen. One common mistake is when property that should be taxed isn’t.  Perhaps the tax office never knew … Read more

UPDATED September 2017: As of October 1, 2017, the state legislature has further defined (and limited) the impact fee powers of a County Water and Sewer District. Click here for more info on the new law. An impact fee is … Read more

In anticipation of next week’s attachment and garnishment webinar, today’s post offers a summary of the basic rules governing this extremely effective and popular tax collection remedy.  Join us at the webinar for a more in-depth discussion of the A&G … Read more

When the legislature in 1959 extended zoning powers to counties, it was determined that farming should not be subject to county zoning regulation. Cities had been using zoning since 1923 to address “urban” issues such as the compatibility of adjacent … Read more

It is a crime to allow livestock to run at-large in North Carolina, with the exception of some remarkable horses on the Outer Banks. G.S. 68-16; G.S. 68-42. What’s a local government’s role with respect to these wandering animals? State … Read more

The number of lawyers using Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other social media networks grows daily.  So too does the number of lawyers doing foolish and unethical things on those networks. In this post I highlight some of the more egregious … Read more

I am often asked about the steps that local governments may take to enforce their ordinances. This blog post describes the basic enforcement options available to cities and counties.  It is adapted from a section of my chapter General Ordinance … Read more

Local tax collectors have long known the power of the attachment and garnishment collection remedy.  With just two pieces of paper, a tax collector may grab the entire contents of a bank account or garnish 10% of taxpayer’s wages until … Read more

A federal agency contracts with a North Carolina town to provide water services to the agency’s facility in the town. The agency is routinely late in making its utility payments. The town finally decides to take action after the sixth late … Read more

A developer in town is seeking approval for a large new real estate project. The zoning and subdivision ordinances call for the developer to construct and dedicate public streets and parks and water infrastructure. But, the city has plans for … Read more

Hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) may be coming to Pleasantville. The community is deeply divided about it. A majority of the town council strongly favors this opportunity to bring jobs to the area. The board has met with representatives from Extraction Services, … Read more

Acme Development Co. is proposing to build a 200-unit apartment project on a vacant lot. Under the city’s zoning ordinance, this use of the site is allowed only if a special use permit is secured.  The ordinance standards for the … Read more

One of the most basic yet most misunderstood facets of North Carolina property taxes is the year for which those taxes are levied.  Contrary to popular belief, property taxes are not levied for the calendar year.  All local governments are … Read more

It seems fitting that my first blog post of the 2016 calendar year addresses a new law that became effective on January 1st. S.L. 2015-123 is “An Act to Transition Abuse and Neglect Investigations in Child Care Facilities to the … Read more

There is an open seat—District 2—on the board of county commissioners, up for election.  It will be voted on in November, along with other county offices (like sheriff and school board), district offices (like state senate and district attorney), and … Read more

A Tourism Development Authority (TDA) is a local government entity that is typically created by a county or municipality to administer and expend local occupancy tax proceeds. Generally a TDA is a separate legal entity from the county or municipality … Read more

The city council has scheduled a meeting to discuss four things related to employee salaries: 1) Review of a pay study prepared by a consultant that describes current employee salaries compared with market rates; 2) Whether to authorize an across-the-board … Read more

Several federal and state laws address service animals in government buildings and public accommodations. I included a brief chapter on the topic in my 2008 animal control law book. Since then, there have been some important revisions to the regulations implementing … Read more