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Four Seasons Politics

McCrory not ruling out rematch in 2020

Henderson County Four Seasons Politics

Conservative stars to join rally supporting Meadows

A rally in support of U.S. Rep. Mark Meadows will feature Wall Street Journal columnist and Trump adviser Stephen Moore and FreedomWorks President Adam Brandon, the Asheville Tea Party announced. The two conservative policy stars will join Meadows supporters for the rally at 12:30 p.m. Thursday, June 15, at the Golden Corral at 2535 Chimney Rock Road. At 2:30 the supporters plan to rally outside Meadows' 11th District office at the Grove Street Courthouse. Moore, who served as senior economic adviser to Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign, is a Distinguished Visiting Fellow, Project for Economic Growth for the Heritage Foundation, a former president of the Club for Growth and a member of the Wall Street Journal editorial board. In addition to authoring many New York Times best-selling books, Moore served as a Fox News analyst, is a present senior economics analyst for CNN and serves as senior economic contributor for Freedomworks. Brandon previously served as the executive vice president of FreedomWorks and vice president of communications for the organization. Before joining FreedomWorks, Brandon served as a program director at the Junior Statesmen Foundation in Washington, DC, and was campaign manager for Ohio State Rep. Bryan Williams’ bid to become mayor of Akron, Ohio. Adam was a press assistant on Sen. John McCain’s 2000 presidential campaign. He also taught American History, Government and International Relations at Emerson Preparatory School in Washington, DC. For information and to RSVP contact Asheville Tea Party Chair Jane Bilello at 828-692-3117 or Jane@AshevilleTeaParty.org.   Read Story »

Henderson County Four Seasons Politics

Legislature flips off Cooper's call for special session

RALEIGH — Legislative Republicans wasted little time Thursday dispatching Gov. Roy Cooper’s call for an extra session to draw new legislative districts. As the clerk was reading Cooper’s proclamation calling for the 14-day session, House Rules Committee Chairman David Lewis, R-Harnett, raised a constitutional objection to the governor's order. Lewis cited Article III, Section 5, Part 7: “The Governor may, on extraordinary occasions, by and with the advice of the Council of State, convene the General Assembly in extra session by his proclamation, stating therein the purpose or purposes for which they are thus convened.” Lewis argued no extraordinary occasion existed, a federal court order required new districts to be drawn during a regular General Assembly session, and the governor did not meaningfully consult with the Council of State. House Minority Leader Darren Jackson, D-Wake, objected to Lewis’s objection. The House voted down his objection, 44-71. House Speaker Tim Moore, R-Cleveland, then removed the extra session from the legislative calendar. The Senate convened at noon and went through a similar process, this time led by Sen. Ralph Hise, R-Mitchell. This time, Sens. Floyd McKissick, D-Durham, and Wanda Bryant, D-Halifax, repeatedly objected to the methods used by Republicans. Rules Committee Chairman Bill Rabon, R-Brunswick, approved Hise’s objection, and the Senate likewise canceled the special session. “Despite all his talk about separation of powers, it’s clear Roy Cooper wants to be North Carolina’s governor, legislature, and with this latest stunt, its judiciary too,” said Hise in a statement after the Senate canceled the extra session. Ford Porter, Cooper’s spokesman, issued a statement slamming the General Assembly. “Now the Republican legislature is thumbing its nose at the North Carolina Constitution as well as the U.S. Supreme Court,” Porter said. “It’s troubling that they prefer to fight about the process rather than draw the new map that North Carolina voters deserve to level the playing field of our democracy. The U.S. Supreme Court was unanimous in its decision and there is no reason to delay the drawing of new maps.”   Read Story »

Henderson County Four Seasons Politics

2015 HHS graduate announces candidacy for City Council

The first candidate to publicly announce plans to run for the Hendersonville City Council this year would bring diversity and youth to the elected body.   Read Story »

Henderson County Four Seasons Politics

County budget: No new taxes (and no tax rollback)

The Henderson County Board of Commissioners on Monday adopted a $136.5 million budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1, keeping the tax rate at the current rate of 56.5 cents per $100 valuation.   Read Story »

Henderson County Four Seasons Politics

Democrat Coffay rips Meadows on climate accord position

U.S. Rep. Mark Meadows and a Democrat who is planning to challenge him in next year's election differ sharply over President Trump's decision to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Climate Agreement. “I applaud President Trump for following through on this campaign promise he made to millions of voters across the country," Meadows said. "The Paris Accord is a bad deal for the American people—it hampers economic growth, burdens job creators, and stifles innovation to preserve an agreement where the benefits are miniscule at best. We all agree that we must be good stewards of the earth, but it doesn’t require a treaty never ratified by Congress to accomplish that. Time and time again we’ve seen that businesses will adapt to consumer demand to use more environmentally friendly practices–there is no need to cripple entire industries with sweeping regulations. "Today’s decision by President Trump is another step toward accomplishing the long-term goal that the President emphasized so successfully during his campaign: putting the interests of the American worker first.” Matt Coffay, 30, announced his run for the 11th Congressional District seat in April. He leads a local chapter of Our Revolution, an organization aligned with the Bernie Sanders wing of the Democratic Party. He grew up outside Blue Ridge, Ga., and graduated from UNCA. He was a farmer in Alexander until last year, when he took a job with the nonprofit National Young Farmers Coalition, the Asheville Citizen-Times reported. "Mark Meadows’ praise of the decision to back out is shortsighted, irresponsible, and just plain wrong," Coffay said in a news release. "If he cared about the people of his district, he’d be encouraging us to invest and create jobs in renewable energy." "Western North Carolina needs leadership that values the lives and welfare of regular people, not big corporations," Coffay said. "Meadows has shown his true colors by applauding this terrible decision. When I’m in Congress, I won’t make the same mistake. I’ll ensure that America leads the way in renewable energy investment and job creation. Let’s create a future to be proud of." China now produces more CO2 than the United States annually, but high historic output from the U.S. makes it the biggest overall contributor to climate change in the world. And as a country which makes up just 4 percent of the world’s population, but which is responsible for about a third of the carbon dioxide contributing to climate change, Matt Coffay believes this country has a moral imperative to be a global leader and set an example for clean energy: "Renewables are the future," Coffay continued. "The only question is whether or not the United States will reap the benefits of the jobs and industries that will spring up around renewable energy or if we’ll sit back while China, India, and Europe lead the way. Mark Meadows is more concerned with campaign contributions from Big Oil and the fossil fuel industry than he is in representing the interests of working families in Western North Carolina. He’d rather hand jobs over to China and India than keep them here in the United States."   Read Story »

Hendersonville Four Seasons Politics

City tax rate going up by 1 cent

City residents will see a property tax increase of 1 cent per $100 valuation under a $38.7 million budget the Hendersonville City Council adopted Thursday night. Water customers will see a small increase in their bills, too, ranging from 42 cents for a light user to $1.14 a month for a heavy user of water.City Manager John Connet attributed the overall increase in the budget to a 25 percent premium increase in the city’s employee health insurance plan, a $3 million to $5 million capital investment in a new police headquarters, the hiring of three new firefighters and the addition of two police officers, who will take up animal control service after the sheriff’s office quit covering those calls in the city. The animal control officers will be regular sworn officers, Connet said, and will be able to respond to all calls and work backup whenever they're needed.The budget is made up of a general fund of $15.4 million covering most city services, a water and sewer fund at $21 million, environmental services (garbage and recycling) at $1.5 million and other funds totaling $782,000. The tax rate goes up from 46 to 47 cents per $100 valuation. The tax rate for special taxing district downtown and in the Historic Seventh Avenue District remain unchanged. The water rate increase of 1½ percent outside and 2 percent inside continues the City Council’s efforts, under pressure from the county Board of Commissioners, to move outside water customers closer to the rate paid by Hendersonville residents.A hearing on the budget drew just one local resident, frequent commenter Ken Fitch, and no discussion from the City Council, which had looked in detail at capital spending priorities, water and sewer line expansion and operating budgets during two workshops.Personnel and benefits are up 12 percent, Connet said, because of salary adjustments the city made after  a pay and classification study.Debt service goes up 13½ percent because the city bought a new fire truck. The budget also allocates money for street paving and park improvements and sets aside money for new gateway signs that will be installed in the city as part of a new countywide signage program in the upcoming fiscal year.Because of the continued high cost of insurance, the council directed Connet and the staff to study ways the city could lower its health care cost. The city pays employees’ health insurance premiums now and will continue to do so provided employees participate in a series of wellness mandates, including checkups, health screenings and wellness classes.“In year 1, as long as they do those they will continue to have their health care premiums paid 100 percent,” Connet said. In 2017, the city will begin an effort to be a 100 percent smoke-free workplace. Employees will have a year, starting Jan. 1, to complete a smoking cessation class and quit smoking.“If they’re unable to go through the smoking cessation program and they cannot quit smoking and then beginning in July 2019 they will be required to pay a portion of their health insurance.”The new health insurance requirement drew no comments from council members. They will must be formalized and approved by the City Council.   Read Story »

Henderson County Four Seasons Politics

Only Hope declares support for Absher

The Board of Directors of Only Hope WNC, the organization that Michael Absher founded to serve homeless youth, issued a statement Thursday night expressing confidence that Absher "will be cleared of the charge against him and that these allegations are false." Absher, who is also on the Henderson County School Board,  was arrested on Wednesday and charged with permitting a 15-year-old male resident of the Only Hope group home off Upward Road to drink alcohol, the Henderson County sheriff's office said. Absher, 27, turned himself in on Wednesday afternoon on the misdemeanor charge. He also submitted a letter at the school administration central office requesting a leave of absence from the School Board, Chair Amy Lynn Holt said in a message to the Hendersonville Lightning on Thursday morning. Schools Superintendent Bo Caldwell made her aware of the letter Wednesday afternoon, she said. Absher faces a court appearance in District Court next month. He has hired Doug Pearson, a former assistant district attorney who is now in private practice. “North Carolina State Bar rules of professional conduct prohibit me from any further discussion of the case details at this time," Pearson said Wednesday night. "We are confident once a court discovers all the evidence Mr. Absher will be cleared of any wrongful conduct.” The offense of allowing the 15-year-old to consume alcohol "whereby he could become adjudicated delinquent and undisciplined," was alleged to have occurred between Nov. 1, 2016, and Jan. 1 of this year, according to the arrest warrant. "We had some allegations made and we investigated it and after our investigation and consultation with the district attorney these were the charges against Michael," said Sheriff's Office Maj. Frank Stout. "The investigation showed that he had knowedge of them consuming alcohol at his home for homeless children." In its statement, the board of Only Hope WNC stressed that it has strict policies against drug and alcohol use in the home. "The main priority of the Board of Directors of Only Hope WNC Inc. has always been and will continue to be the safety and protection of the youth within our care," the statement said. "This commitment includes obeying the law in regard to drugs and alcohol. We at Only Hope have a strict policy against drug and alcohol use at our youth home. Violation of this policy may cause students to be dismissed permanently from our program. "Because of the commitment, we have made to work with homeless youth, we often encounter young people working to overcome challenging backgrounds. Some students refuse to adhere to our policies and regulations and as a result become ineligible to continue participating in the program. The youth who has brought these allegations was terminated from our program on 4/1/17. These events occurred a few days before the allegations were reported. In our internal investigation, we have found no evidence to support the claim made by this student. "As a Board, we want to reassure our many supporters and the Henderson County Community that we do everything in our power to provide a safe environment for the youth in our care. We are confident Michael Absher, our President and CEO, will be cleared of the charge against him, and that these allegations are false." A graduate of East Henderson High School who was homeless himself in high school, Absher won a School Board seat on his third try last November. He has won wide acclaim for his work on behalf of homeless teenagers, forming the Only Hope organization and opening a home for homeless teenagers in April 2016. When he was a parttime teller at Wells Fargo bank, Absher received a "Heroes of the 500" honor from Fortune magazine that recognized Fortune 500 employees who had helped their community.       Read Story »

Henderson County Four Seasons Politics

County budget cruises in a less turbulent climate

One year removed from budget deliberations dominated by rancorous debates over school construction and a 5-cent tax increase, the Henderson County Board of Commissioners took up a steady-as-she-goes budget recommendation and mostly endorsed the spending outline. The budget is underpinned by County Manager Steve Wyatt’s ability to enforce spending discipline and preserve a large fund balance even while guiding the board through one of the most ambitious capital building programs in county history. Unlike last year, most of the big decisions — including what to do with Hendersonville High School — have been made. The county’s total debt service climbs to $168 million in fiscal year 2019, when the county will be paying off debt for completed projects like the Health Sciences Center and new projects like Edneyville Elementary School, Hendersonville High School and the emergency services headquarters. Yet the county’s fund balance — at $45 million — remains so hefty that commissioners Bill Lapsley and Grady Hawkins have consistently argued for a property tax rollback.“I didn’t see anything out of the ordinary,” Commissioner Grady Hawkins said of the budget. “It looks like pretty much a continuation of some of the major projects we’ve been undertaking. One of the things I’d like to do is take a closer look at a year or two past this budget. There’s going to be a big peak for about three years where we have a significant increase in debt service and then it starts dropping off as some of the other projects we have are getting paid off.”Specifically, total debt principal and debt service (the amount the county allocates to pay back loans) peak in FY 2019, at $168.3 million and $9.7 million, and then start to taper down — to $153.5 million and $12.7 million in 2020, $140 million and $10,7 million in 2021 — until it reaches a low in 2026 of $80 million and $8.3 million, not counting any new debt the county takes on.Hawkins said on Tuesday the county is more than likely at the high-water mark of capital debt for the foreseeable future because it’s just about completed major school and emergency services construction.“I really don’t think at this point there are any other large capital projects coming on line,” Hawkins said.Besides new schools, the county has added ambulance stations in Crab Creek and Fletcher and authorized the new $13 million emergency services headquarters. A $20 million law enforcement training center has been postponed while Sheriff Charlie McDonald responds to commissioners’ order to come up with cost cuts.“We’ve not pulled the plug on it,” Hawkins said. “We directed the staff and the sheriff to at least look around and see if we could satisfy those training requirements at a little bit lower cost. I quite frankly don’t know where they’re at.”Although Hawkins said it’s possible the location and magnitude of the project could change, he pointed out that moving off the BRCC campus would mean buying property.“It’s on hold pending our request to the sheriff to find a way to cut the cost,” Lapsley said. “He begged us for more time and we told him take what time you need. It’s not a crisis situation. If it takes another six months then we want him to do that.” Asked whether McDonald had gone back to his initial idea for an outdoor range, Lapsley said, “I think he’s looking at all options.” Property tax rollback? Hawkins said he’d be willing to consider a property tax rollback, as he and Lapsley tried for last year. But another way to use extra revenue would be to sock it away for 2019 and 2020 when the debt service reaches $19.7 million.“Remember also that the $45 million fund balance is a little bit of a misleading number,” Hawkins said. “You really don’t have $45 when you take out some of the restricted money. There’s about $9 million in the bank that’s already called for and then there was $7 million that we used to balance the budget this year. … We’re looking at $10 million to balance it this year. I think that’s kind of a misunderstood factor in the fund balance.”Asked whether he plans again to push for a rollback of county property tax rate of 56½ cents per $100 valuation, Lapsley said “I’m not going to answer that question.” But, as he did in the fall of 2015 and again last spring, he made the case for sending money back to taxpayers instead of keeping it in the bank.“I don’t think we should make a decision for this coming year based on what may or may not happen 2-3 years from now,” he said. “We just need to look at it year to year. I think we need to adjust the tax rate each year. It should go up and down. I don’t think we should leave the tax rate at a specific level just because we expect to need it down the road. So the question is, as I said last year, how much should we have in the rainy day? How much is enough?” Budget highlights Among the highlights of Wyatt’s recommended budget:• The $134.9 million budget is $3.5 million bigger than the current budget, or 2.7 percent more.• The budget funds this year’s debt service at $16.6 million. Outstanding debt is from the Innovative High School, now under instruction at BRCC; refinanced bond issues from 2010, 2012 and 2013, the 2010 Apple Valley-NHHS renovations, 2008 Hillandale and Mills River elementary school construction projects, the jail, ambulances and the health sciences center.• Keeps the tax rate at 56½ cent, fifth lowest rate among 27 medium- to large-sized counties in North Carolina.• Fully funds requests made by BRCC and public schools administrators. The county allocation for public schools is $26.9 million for operating costs, plus $1 million for repairing and preserving the Stillwell building plus school construction debt service of $36 million — overall a 6.3 percent increase. The BRCC allocation of $5.7 million is up 5.5 percent from the current year.• The tax base of $13.23 billion is the highest it’s been in any year since 2009.• Among the new expenses are $50,000 for spay and neuter programs.• All rural fire departments have requested the same tax rate as the current year. The Fire and Rescue Advisory Committee was scheduled to meet Tuesday to finalize the recommendation.   Read Story »

Henderson County Four Seasons Politics

Candidates, physician to speak at 'Missing Meadows' town hall

Two political candidates, a physician and an environmental activist are scheduled to speak when Hendersonville Indivisible holds its "Missing Mark Meadows" town hall at 10 a.m. Saturday at Jackson Park. Meadows has declined to hold a town hall meeting to hear constituents' concerns about health care and other topics. His office says that he is maintaining his usual practice of holding town hall meetings during the August recess of Congress. Speakers at Saturday's event include Dr. Brian P.Mitchell and local writer Leslie Boyd, who will speak about health care;Henderson County Young Dems Chair Amber White and environmentalist and educator Tate MacQueen, who will address environmental concerns; Matt Coffay, a Democratic candidate for the 11th Congressional District seat; and Norm Bossert, a candidate for state Senate District 48.For more information, contact coalition activist Gayle Kemp at 828-551-6169 or gaylekemp@gmail.com.   Read Story »

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