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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - 20060530APPROVED 8/22/2006 MINUTES ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS BUDGET PUBLIC HEARING May 30, 2006 The Orange County Board of Commissioners met on Tuesday, May 30, 2006 at 7:30 p.m. at the Southern Human Services Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The purpose of this meeting was to hold a public hearing on the County Manager's recommended 2006-2007 budget. COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair Barry Jacobs and Commissioners Moses Carey, Jr., Valerie P. Faushee, Alice M. Gordon, and Stephen H. Halkiotis COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: County Manager John M. Link, Jr., Assistant County Managers Rod Visser and Clerk to the Board Donna S. Baker (All other staff members will be identified appropriately below} NOTE: ALL DOCUMENTS REFERRED TO IN THESE MINUTES ARE IN THE PERMANENT AGENDA FILE IN THE CLERK'S OFFICE. 1. Oaening Remarks- Chair Chair Jacobs said that this would be the last year that three of the longstanding participants in the budget process will be working with the County. John Link, Commissioner Halkiotis, and Rod Visser combine 55 years of service. 2. Presentation of Manager's Recommended FY 2006-07 Budget Jahn Link thanked staff and Superintendents for help on the budget. Manager's Recommended Budget Fiscal Year 2006-07 Orange County, NC May 2b, 2006 Presentation to Board of County Commissioners Achievements • Long-term commitment to enhancing quality of life far citizens - One of the highest per pupil expenditures in the State - Almost one-third of a billion dollars dedicated to construction and renovation of schools since 1988 - Master Aging Plan that provides along-term strategic plan for offering services to our senior population - Construction of state of the art senior centers - Affordable Housing opportunities for families and individuals who otherwise could not afford to live in Orange County • Lands Legacy program has protected just over 1700 acres • Progressive partnerships with Towns and neighboring Counties to provide park, recreational and library services to citizens in all areas of the County Fiscal Year 2006-07 Budget Briefs General Fund Budget totals $164.7 million - Original fiscal year 2QQ5-06 budget totaled $149.9 million - Recommendation represents a 9.9 percent increase over 2005-06 original budget • Countywide ad valorem tax rate of 91.3 cents per $100 of assessed valuation - Increase of 7 cents over the 2005-06 rate of 84.3 cents - One cent on the property tax rate should generate $1,207,023 in upcoming fiscal year General Fund Revenues (chart) Revenue Highlights Lottery Proceeds • Change in environment regarding the likelihood that counties will likely receive lottery proceeds next year • Recommended budget anticipates receipt of $2.4 million in Lottery Proceeds • Earmarked for school construction and school-related debt service • As lottery revenue stream becomes more established and predictable Board may wish to update its May 2005 capital funding policy Education Funding Overview • Overall funding far bath School districts totals $79.8 million - 48.4 percent of total General Fund appropriations -Increase of $7.6 million from fiscal year 2005-06 approved budget for operations and capital Education Funding Current Expense • Total current expense funding equals $53.8 million - Chapel Hill-Carrboro Schools - $33.1 million (increase of $2,748,390} - Orange County Schools - $20.7 million (increase of $1,064,058} Per pupil appropriation totals $2,957 - Reflects an increase of $161 for each of the 18,192 students projected for next year • Increase is sufficient to cover cost of Governor's most recent pay plan that provides an 8 percent pay increase for teachers and certified staff Per Pupil Allocations to Each District State Mandated Funding Formula (table) Education Funding Observation • Based on higher per pupil increase request by OCS of $746, full funding of both school system requests equates to another 8 to 9 cents on tax rate beyond the 7 cents recommended by the County Manager. Fair Funding for Schools Reserve $800,000 Reserve provides Commissioners with same flexibility to consider providing additional resources to both school districts - E.g. should County pick up costs for school resource officers now paid by schools Consistent with Manager's suggestion during last year's budget process that the Boards consider a new paradigm for funding - Boards of Education and Commissioners agreed to consider funding outside the per pupil formula on health and safety related functions - Fair Funding Work Group established jointly by Commissioners and Boards of Education in April 2006 ^ Group meeting in May and June, passible recommendations pending • In light of continuing Fair Funding discussions, recommending that Chapel Hill Carrboro City Schools District Tax remain at current rate of 18.34 cents per $100 valuation Debt Service • Net increase amounts to $3.7 million - Equivalent of 3 cents on the countywide property tax rate • Between last year at this time and next year at this time, County will have issued $92.6 million in new debt for school and County projects Debt Funded Projects {table) Human Services • Mental Health - Statewide reform remains troubling and complex - Recommendation includes $1.294 million in base funding - Commissioners may choose to use safety net funds to ensure that local programs remain viable • Medicaid - Recommended funding level remains at fiscal year 2005-06 level of $4,024,800 - Outlook for State offering Medicaid relief for counties in fiscal year 2006-07 still unclear Employee Pay and Benefits • 2.5 percent Cost of Living Increase for all permanent County employees - Effective July 1, 2006 • 2.5 percent In-Range Salary Increase linked to employee performance • Increase in Living Wage from $9.34 per hour to $9.67 New Staff Prapasals • Environmental Health Inspectors to inspect public eating establishments and privately owned alternative wastewater treatment systems and ensure they meet public health requirements • Paramedics and 911 Telecommunicators to answer the increased number of critical calls • Assistant Fire Marshal to investigate fire origins and review fire plans for high risk facilities such as child and adult care facilities • Administrative Assistant position in Purchasing to free up time for Purchasing and Central Services Director to spend expediting County capital projects • Social Worker to provide case management for increasing number of frail, elderly, or disabled adults who choose to remain in their homes instead of being placed in adult care facilities • Additional changes, such as increases in hours or changes in funding sources, recommended for other existing positions Reserve Funding • Court Operations Relocation - $400,000 • Critical NeedslSafety Net - $275,000 - To be combined with $225,000 anticipated carry forward from current fiscal year • Downtown Campus Parking - $150,000 • Fair Funding for Schools - $800,000 • Fire and Rescue Study Outcome - $100,000 • Public Works Custodial Strategic Plan - $50,000 • Senior Center Openings - $66,050 • SportsPlex - $700,000 • Water Resources Initiative - $75,000 Solid Waste Enterprise Fund • New C&D landfill opens soon • Planning for shift from landfilling to transfer station when capacity reached in 2010 • 3R fee implemented in 2004-05 has stabilized Solid Waste Fund financials • Recommend modest increases in 3R fee far 2006-07 to reduce that subsidy to about $400,000 Document Availability • Orange County Budget Office - 208 South Cameron Street, Hillsborough • Clerk to the Board - 200 South Cameron Street, Hillsborough • Public Libraries in Hillsborough, Chapel Hill, Carrboro and Cedar Grove • County's website - www.co.orange.nc.us Budget Schedule • Public Hearings - May 30, Southern Human Services Center, Homestead Road, Chapel Hill - June 1, F. Gordon Battle Courtroom, 106 Margaret Lane, Hillsborough • Budget Work Sessions - {All meetings, except for June 19, at Southern Human Services Center in Chapel Hill; June 19 at Government Services Center) • June 5 -Southern Human Services Center • June 8 -Southern Human Services Center • June 15 -Southern Human Services Center • June 19 -Government Services Center • June 22 -Southern Human Services Center • June 27 (adoption) -Southern Human Services Center Chair Jacobs said that the June 5t" work session will be related to new staff proposals, June 8t" will be related to school funding, June 15t" will be departmental requests and the County's Capital Investment Plan, June 19t" will be non-profit requests and fire department requests, June 22"d will be follow up items, and June 27t" will be adoption of the budget. Chair Jacobs reviewed the procedures for the public hearing and said that when they discuss the schools, the Board of County Commissioners does not approve money for individual programs and it is not the Board of County Commissioners' call on how the schools determine how to use their funds. 3. Public Comment Kate Sanford said that this is her third year coming to the County Commissioners. She thanked the Board for the support given to working families, the working poor that are on waiting lists for subsidy for childcare. She asked for $350,000 to be earmarked to address 10°I° of the families on the waiting list. She said that they have not been able to remove any families from their waiting list this past year. She said that they would also like to request to put more funds back into the subsidy program, which is around $50,000. She thanked the County Commissioners for putting a task force together to look at and address childcare issues. Maya Barton read a prepared statement. "Commissioners and Mr. Manager, thank you for allowing us this opportunity to speak. My name is Maya Barton. I am the President of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools PTA Council. As a student advocacy organization, our legislative position to fully fund our School Board's budget request comes with a vote of approval from all the 15 schools in our community. Please take this position seriously and fully fund our School Board's Budget request. As an example of the budget items that are at risk, I would like to point out that it is extremely important to staff the 7-period class schedule with much needed teachers. The 7- period schedule will help students across all achievement levels. The high achievers will be able to satisfy the state of North Carolina requirements for graduation, while taking the courses required to qualify for colleges to pursue their specific subject interests. The study hall will facilitate additional tutoring for students who need to catch up on subjects they are falling behind in. Please fully fund the budget request so that this teacher need and other requirements can be met." Tom Konsler was asked by the Orange County Employee Relations Consortium to talk about the County Manager's recommendation for employee benefits in the proposed budget. He said that this is a committee that represents all County employees who are in support of this message. He said that the cost of living is going up -gas costs more, health insurance premiums have increased, auto insurance has skyrocketed, utility costs have risen, employees are coping with putting children in daycare or college or caring for elderly parents. He reminded the County Commissioners that in the past 4 years, only one cast of living adjustment was made to County employee salaries, which consisted of a 2°lo increase in 2004. He said that they are in support of the Manager's recommendation for the pay and benefits plan, which includes COLA and in-range increases. They ask that the County Commissioners give serious consideration to enhancing COLA adjustment. He said that the benefit plan is good but has lost some ground in the past few years, and they want Orange County to regain the competitive edge. He said that Orange County employees were truly the heart of the organization. Frank McBride read a prepared statement. "Orange County Baard of Commissioners, My name is Frank McBride and I am here to speak on behalf of the Scroggs Elementary School Parent Advocacy Committee (our SGC). We realize that we do not need to convince you of the importance of the highest quality of education possible for the children of this county. Currently, it seems that education is a headline topic everywhere we look. - The importance of educating our children in math, science, and technology in order for our nation to continue to compete globally The importance of raising our children to be international citizens of the earth. The importance of smaller high schools in order to reach mare students and increase the graduation rate. I could go on, but we have all heard and read the same headlines. We feel that the schools in this area are doing a tremendous job meeting these education challenges. That is why we are concerned that the County Manager has recommended a budget that is $2 million short of Dr. Pedersen's requested budget. Although we appreciate that there are competing interests far County funds, educating our nation's young people has never been mare critical and must be viewed as a top priority. Yet, it seems that we continue to have to fight for the funding that is required to do this. Orange County is known nationally (perhaps even internationally) for its high quality of education. High quality schools are often a main reason cited for bringing families to this area. Indeed, the student enrollment far CHCCS is projected to grow by 3 percent next year. We should be doing everything we canto promote the vision and initiatives of the school system. We feel that the CHCCS school board's request for an 11 % increase in funding is reasonable. Costs associated with the Governor's and State Senate's proposed salary increases of 8%, the opening of Carrboro High School, and the new high school schedule will use much of that 11 °~ increase. Therefore, a two million dollar gap in funding will not provide sufficient funds to continue the current level of services. This is unacceptable to us. This amount of a shortfall will farce the school board to include cuts that will negatively impact instructional personnel and services. We need our schools to remain strong for our children and for our community. We respectfully request that you fully fund the budget as presented by the CHCCS School Board." Ray E. Martin, President of CHCCS Association of Educators, said that they represent about 300 of the educators in the best school system in the country and the state. He said that they are so good because education is so important. He said that the citizens would rather elect the County Commissioners to raise their taxes than to sit back and let the schools fail. He said that the CHCCS Association of Educators request that the County Commissioners fully fund both the operational and capital budget. He said that the school system requested an increase in the district tax but it was not approved in the County Manager's recommended budget. They don't know why that happened.. He made reference to the lottery and said that some of this money may or may not be available. It would be nice to reduce taxes in the future with the lottery, but there are too many questions and the number of people playing the lottery has gone down. He said that it would be better to get what you know you will get, rather than guessing at it. Gwen Kansler has been a registered nurse at UNC for 25 years. She said that 3 years ago she received a call from the Orange County Health Department to join the newly formed Public Health Reserve Corps. The Corps wanted to draw on the expertise of health professionals living in Orange County and to provide leadership, training, and coordination of public health services to assist the health department staff. She said that she jumped at the chance to do this and since 2003, the Health Department has recruited and trained 193 volunteers for Orange County during natural disasters, disease outbreaks, orbio-terrorism instances. The Corps consists of 130 nurses and other health professionals and they have been trained in staffing emergency shelters, mass medication dispensing, disaster preparedness, and bio-terrorism response. They have demonstrated their training in several events, and she listed them. She said that the federal grant that funded the initiation in early years of the corps is due to expire this fall. She asked the County Commissioners to consider funding the Public Health Reserve Corps. Lynn Lehmann read a prepared statement. "I am a parent of two children in the Chapel HilUCarrboro City School District. I am currently a member of the Carrboro Elementary SBC and PTA, the Chapel Hill High School PTA, the school district's PTA Council, and I am the incoming President of the Chapel Hill/Carrboro's Public School Foundation Board. I am here tonight to ask the Commissioners to please rework the County Manager's recommended budget and to approve the superintendent's request for a fully funded school budget. With each year that we are faced with this situation, I wonder why we are continuously challenged to provide the money for services to all children of both the Orange County School District and the Chapel HiIltCarrboro School District. I do realize that there are issues that are beyond the control of local government, but as we repeat this process year after year, I believe there is one factor that is undeniable and that is the citizens and officials of this county have a social responsibility to provide funding for each generation of those in need of services...including quality educational services. It is true that our local student population continues to grow, new schools are opening, new teachers must be hired, and the cost of simply existing and getting the bills paid is increasing each year. However, the County Manager's recommended budget does not allow the school districts to meet those obligatory casts. The Manager's recommendation could do harm to our students by reducing funds and causing the school boards to cut staff, programs, and services that are critical to the success and personal growth of students. I understand that there are complexities with your task; politics; fairness; a list of "have- to's"that must be prioritized. But this is a matter of putting the value of education first; of putting our children first. Please make a statement that education is your first priority in our County. It is the responsibility of this generation of leaders to provide for the next generation of citizens and leaders. Funding our school districts is something that we should not have to fight far each year. It should be that important to citizens and elected officials to make it the number one budget priority. So, I ask that you reconsider the County Manager's recommendation for school funding and that you fully fund the school superintendent's requested budget for our children. Thank you." Carole Andrews said that she has a daughter finishing up her first year at Stanford Middle School and she spent the year in a small, cramped room with poor air circulation and where everyone was basically on top of one another. She said that this school should have been upgraded a long time ago. She said that the students are denied hands-on science labs because of na water and the science resources are limited. She is tired of the double standard that exists between the two school systems. She appreciates the committee, but it goes on year after year. She asked the County Commissioners to please give the OCS what has been asked for. She said that if the County Commissioners have concerns about money allotments, then they should come and visit the schools and see far themselves the problems that exist. She said that there was an article in the Chapel Hill Herald this past week about redoing tracks at a middle school in Chapel Hill. She said that Stanford is the only middle school in the County that does not even have a track or a regulation playing field. Students have to use the car rider circle or bus parking lot to walk around. She said that the Board of County Commissioners is the gatekeeper of funding and is a significant part of the future of the children. Bill Kaiser is a member of the Commission for the Environment and said that on May 3, 2005 the Board of County Commissioners approved the water resources initiative in principle without funding it. He said that the Commission for the Environment urges the County Commissioners to fund the initiative by hiring aHydro-geologist to work in the Environment Resources and Conservation Department. He said that ERCD is the lead department for developing the natural and cultural systems element of the comprehensive plan, which includes the water resources component. He said that the proposed Hydro-geologist position is critical to implementing the initiative. This person could advise the County on drought, flooding, groundwater, surface water interaction, water supply, water quality, etc. He said that this person would complement ERCD by helping it fulfill the water resources responsibilities assigned to it in 1998 by the Commissioners. He said that ERCD and the Commission should carry out the initiative far the Environment, which conceptualized and proposed it. Steve Darden presented written comments as follows. "Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Steve Darden. With me tonight is Ms. Mary Zimmerman. We are the parent and faculty ca-chairs of the CHHS School Governance Committee. Let me start by commending the Commissioners far their service. I have watched the budget process since my 1St child entered the system 19 years ago. It is never easy. There are many requests for scarce resources. Still, Mary and I come before you tonight to request that you find the will and the dollars to fully fund both systems' requests. The CHCCS are requesting a 10°~ increase over last year -roughly $4.8 million. What is the makeup of this increase? There is very little of this, which is elective. Salary increases mandated by Raleigh -the exact cost still unclear; growth in student enrollment; inflation in operating casts (from postage to utilities to worker's compensation insurance; everything costs more!); $400k to open Carrboro H.S. These are casts that must be met - if additional funding cannot be had -the monies will be spent nonetheless -coming from existing programs. So let me again thank you for your service and we greatly appreciate your consideration. Thank you." Robert Dowling, Executive Director of Orange Community Housing and Land Trust, thanked the County Commissioners for funding them each year. He presented a prepared statement. "I would like to thank the Board of County Commissioners for the support you have provided to Orange Community Housing and Land Trust since we converted from Orange Community Housing Corporation in 2001. I would also like to thank the Manager far his support of our programs and budget requests. For fiscal year 2006-07, we have requested $124,000 in operating funding from bath the County and the Town of Chapel Hill. The County Manager has recommended funding of $114,000, which is a $4,000 increase from 2005-06. I realize that this is a particularly difficult budget year, but I would like to ask the Board to allocate $124,000 for operating the Land Trust in 2006-07. The increases in operating funding we are requesting are driven by our desire to create a truly viable organization that is responsible for implementing inclusionary housing policies throughout the County. Inclusionary housing has led to the creation of mare than 100 housing units in the past five years. There are 116 homes today and by the end of this week, there will be 118 homes. The two new homebuyers are both teachers. An additional 100 units are in the pipeline. The Land Trust was formed to keep affordable housing affordable for 99 years. Managing this growth has strained the organization, as we've struggled to keep up with the volume, even during times of staff turnover. Although we have worked hard to create and implement this new model of home ownership, we have learned a great deal about the challenges paced by the model. We are now dealing with some of those challenges that have manifested themselves several years after homes are built. It is clear that we will need to increase our level of engagement with our homeowners and with our homeowner associations to ensure that Land Trust homes are well maintained over time. Again, we are still learning how to best manage this organization to ensure that we not only provide affordable homes, but that we also create successful homeowners and successful communities. To do so will require ahard-working, dedicated staff that can anticipate challenges, and propose solutions that will enable this organization and this model to successfully provide affordable housing into the next century. Thank you again for your support. It is much appreciated." Commissioner Carey asked how splitting off with Wake County has affected them and Robert Dowling said that the income limits are established by HUD, and the old Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) was Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill. After the 2QQQ census data came in 2QQ2, they split off Wake County from Durham and Orange Counties. They are now in the Durham MSA. The median income of Durham and Orange Counties is 15-18°~ lower than Wake County. So HUD has reduced the incomes by 15-18%. For four years now, the median income they have worked with has remained the same, but the price of housing is going up. Carol Orringer said that she has been teaching in the CHCCS for the past 27 years and she appreciates the time to be able to speak on the budget. She knows that the Board does not determine how the district spends its money. She spoke about the elementary world language program and said that this may be cut if the CHCCS is not fully funded. She said that even small cuts change what the program is, and if you cut back, it changes the academic aspects of the program. She asked the County Commissioners to fully fund the CHCCS budget request. Lisa Stuckey is Chair of the CHCCS Board of Education. She said that she believes that this is a year of both unique opportunity and unique challenge for education in CHCCS. The opportunity arises that State government is working to raise teacher salaries. Educators in North Carolina have been among the lowest paid in the nation for decades. This year's proposed state budget provides a major step forward for education by raising teacher salaries 8°~, administrator salaries 7°~, and staff salaries by 5%. These increases will allow them to better recruit and retain excellent public school personnel. They must match the state pay raises far those persons paid through local money. For CHCCS, this amounts to $2.4 million, which is nearly one half of their requested 11 °~ budget increase. This is the challenge - to match the pay raises without undermining the educational programming. If the County Commissioners accept the Manager's recommendation, the CHCCS will have a bit less than $7QQ,000 to meet their budget needs above and beyond matching pay raises. She said that these budget needs include costs that cannot be avoided such as $85Q,QQQ for continuation costs and inflation; $35Q,000 for projected growth and student population; $4QQ,QQQ in salary costs associated with opening Carrboro High School; and $565,QQQ in additional teacher and textbook costs related to high school reform. She said that if these needs are not met, it would be necessary to cut existing programs and personnel. She made reference to high school reform and said that without this, their students will have difficulty meeting new state graduation requirements. Based on last year's tests, some would not graduate. She said that she is heartened by the ongoing support each County Commissioner has shown to education over the years and further heartened by the efforts of the Manager to take some health and safety expenses out of the per pupil allocations. She looks forward to the recommendations of the fair funding work group. She urged the County Commissioners to fully fund the CHCCS budget request. Melissa Radcliff is Executive Directive of Family Violence Prevention Center of Orange County. She thanked the County Commissioners for their ongoing support. She has learned that many agencies she has contact with do not have financial support of local municipalities. She said that as a community they were reminded in April that domestic violence does exist in Orange County because there was an incident of domestic homicide in Chapel Hill. She said that starting last July they have served almost 6QQ clients. She said that they have a large volunteer pool. They will be celebrating their 5t" anniversary in July and they are fortunate to have so many community partners to offer help. She asked the County Commissioners to support the recommendations of the County Manager for funding. Mark Peters spoke on behalf of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro PTA Council. The PTAs in the district recently passed a position in favor of fully funding the budget request of the CHCCS Board of Education. He asked the County Commissioners to honor this PTA Council position and the school board's budget. He said that the County Manager's proposed funding for next year does not cover the ongoing expenses of the current programming and high school reform changes required to address the minority achievement gap. The district is expected to grow 338 students, health care and fuel costs are increasing, the district is opening a new high school, and they need to change the high school curriculum to address the minority achievement gap and make the zero period adequately accessible to all students. He said that all of these items are important and need to be properly funded. He said that while the Board of County Commissioners is not responsible far line item spending, the school board lacks the authority to levy taxes, thus it is ultimately up to the County Commissioners as to whether cuts will or will not occur. He is concerned that the anticipated $2.4 million in lottery proceeds are being used to supplant current spending and being used to cut two cents from the tax rate rather than increase education spending above just the required teacher pay increases. He said that the lottery was intended for new spending. Don Willhoit, Chair of Joint Orange-Chatham Community Action Agency, said that this is the 40t" anniversary of JOCCA and also the 33rd year of continuous support from the Orange County Board of Commissioners. He said that they are willing to accept the Manager's recommendation. He encouraged the County Commissioners to attend an open house this Friday for Building Futures Youth Organization from 3:00-5:00 p.m. at the Inter-Faith Council offices in Carrboro. Ann Gerhardt, Executive Director of the Women's Center in Chapel Hill, said that they served 6,000 women last year from Orange, Durham, Chatham, and Wake Counties. She thanked the County Commissioners for their ongoing support. She said that she thinks this is one of the well-kept secrets in Chapel Hill. She is a new Executive Director and she said that she inherited some financial challenges and she is operating with 113 staff that she started with. They have free legal information services, career-planning programs, and financial information services. She said that they also served 30 teens in their award-winning Teens Climb High program and this will continue next year. They are also involved in the IDA program, providing new homes for 20 low to moderate-income families. They are trying to recruit from the University, the school system, and people that work in those organizations. She said that these programs serve both men and women. She looks at this as support to prevent women and families from falling into the homeless shelter, losing custody of their children, and empowering them to become and remain self-sufficient. She thanked the County Commissioners for their support. Jane Kerwin-Frederick said that she has four children in the CHCCS, and they just moved here from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida this year. Ft. Lauderdale is the sixth largest school district in the country. The #1 reason they moved to Chapel Hill was because of the schools. She said that when you put money into education, you are bringing other things into your community. She said that they couldn't complain about haw far they are behind the rest of the world when they do not make education their number one priority. She said that it should not matter which school system you live in, they should be fully funded. She said that being $2 million short in CHCCS and $4 million short in OCS is unacceptable and it should be the number one budget driver. Ted Triebel said that he decided to speak tonight because of the lack of comment on the needs of Orange County such as mental health and local Medicare funding. He said that these people are the weakest of us all and they deserve our support and interest. AI Hartkopf is the Vice-Chair of OCS Board of Education and he advocated for full funding of the CHCCS budget request out of the general fund and not out of the district tax. He said that if the CHCCS is fully funded, OCS might get within striking distance of what it needs to do. He said that when they look at funding for education in North Carolina, he is reminded that the vast majority of low socioeconomic status individuals believe that the only way to make it is to get the lottery. They do not believe in working hard and investing little by little. He does not want to gamble on getting lottery funds, but he would rather invest and work a little harder with the County Commissioners. He said that the investment that the citizens have made in the County Commissioners has came back to them many times over. Jack Haggerty presented a written statement as follows: "Commissioners: Rather than speak, I'd like to put forward a written request for the full funding of the budget request by the Chapel Hill-Carrboro school system for the academic year 2006-2007. Thank you, Jack Haggerty; Orange County resident 18 years; parent of 2 children @ Chapel Hill High Schoal; Member School Governance Commission @ Chapel Hill High School." 4. Adjournment A motion was made by Commissioner Halkiotis, seconded by Commissioner Carey to adjourn the meeting at 8:47 p.m. Barry Jacobs, Chair Donna S. Baker Clerk to the Board