All in Politics
Sadly for the second year in a row, the Kinston City Council has sought these personal increases, yet this year's discussion is distracting from the fact that they are also raising property taxes. The cost to the taxpayers if approved would be $670,000. Despite the fact the Kinston City Council has already voted on their increases, they could amend the budget tonight, by stripping the salaries and allowances back to the FY20 funding and passing a revised budget.
The Kinston City Council met for a Budget Worksession on May 24, 2021, wherein a four-to-one vote they approved their own salary increase of $18,000 total per year and the mayor’s $3,600 per year raise ahead of the June 15th City Council meeting. The City of Kinston is expected to increase property taxes by $0.04 per $100 valuation at that meeting.
As this was a budget work session, there is no video of the off-site meeting, but an audio recording is attached. This vote was the only one taken during the four-hour budget meeting. During the same session, the previously reported dry-cleaning allowance line item was removed by the consensus of the mayor and board.
RALEIGH: As part of North Carolina’s effort to encourage more North Carolinians to receive COVID-19 vaccines, Governor Roy Cooper announced $4 Million Summer Cash and College Tuition drawings to motivate those who have not yet been vaccinated — and thank those who have. Four vaccinated North Carolinians 18 and older will win $1 million each and four North Carolinians ages 12 to 17 will win tuition for post-secondary education. Executive Order 219, which has concurrence from the North Carolina Council of State, authorizes the drawings.
Kinston City manager Tony Sears released his budget recommendations to Council at the meeting on June 1, 2021. A proposed increase in Property Tax from $0.73 to $0.77 per $100 valuation is included in the 2021-2022 City Budget. The budget also includes a $3,600 increase to the Mayor’s salary and the total line item increase in City Council members’ salaries is $18,000 total per year, also $3,600 each for the year. This is more than a 40% increase over previous years. In addition to the salary increases, the Board Member Allowance increased 44.98% to $19,422.
“The City Council and myself worked tirelessly throughout the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Mayor Hardy. “When you start talking about advocating resources for vaccinations and food drives, COVID-19 testing, and organizing boots on the ground trying to get people vaccinated.”
Governor Roy Cooper has proclaimed June as Pride Month in North Carolina to honor the state’s LGBTQ+ community, their fight for equality and the goal of creating a welcoming community for all North Carolinians.
The guest speaker Tuesday at the Lenoir County Republican Party meeting was Pastor Brian E. Hawkins, a San Jacinto City Council member who is running for California’s District 36 Congressional seat held by Democrat Raul Ruiz since 2013. Born in California, Hawkins spent his childhood in Kinston and attended Rochelle Middle School in Kinston, and his father graduated from Grainger High School.
North Carolina House Majority Leader John Bell led a letter with sixty of his Republican colleagues in calling on Governor Roy Cooper to reinstate unemployment work search requirements.
Following yesterday’s guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that fully vaccinated individuals can safely do most activities without wearing a mask or the need to social distance from others, the state will remove its indoor mask mandate for most settings. Additionally, the state will lift all mass gathering limits and social distancing requirements. These changes are now in effect as of 1:30 PM today.
Tonight, Governor Roy Cooper delivered his third State of the State address. The speech highlighted North Carolinians’ resilience throughout the pandemic and reinforced the need for legislators to work together to help the state rebuild from the pandemic even stronger by expanding Medicaid, raising teacher pay, investing in workforce training and solidifying the state’s infrastructure.
Today, Governor Roy Cooper and North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Mandy K. Cohen, M.D. gave an update on the state’s current data, trends and vaccination progress. As the state’s metrics and key indicators remain stable, Governor Cooper also signed an Executive Order outlining safety measures for the month of May.
More than 3 million North Carolinians are now fully vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus. This is a remarkable step forward in our fight against the pandemic, and soon we can begin safely returning to our lives. But scammers have used the pandemic as an excuse to take advantage of people for the past year, and they’re still at it. The next fight against COVID-19 vaccine scams is stopping the spread and use of false vaccine cards.
North Carolina remains one of three states that does not allow business owners to deduct expenses covered by the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). NC House representatives hope to change that with a bill passed by the house and discussed in a press conference on Thursday.
The General Assembly will consider a measure to enshrine North Carolina’s right-to-work policies in the state constitution.
Two bills sitting on Gov. Roy Cooper’s desk are designed to remediate learning losses for K-12 students left behind by classroom closures caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Today Governor Roy Cooper joined bipartisan legislative leaders to release a PSA urging North Carolinians to get COVID vaccines now that all adults are eligible for vaccinations. The Governor joined House Speaker Tim Moore, Rep. Robert Reives, Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger and Senator Dan Blue in advocating for vaccinations.
