About two months away from the next state legislative session, lobbying has begun.
Last week, Wilmington City Council endorsed an aggressive wish list for the 2011 General Assembly which includes protecting the city’s annexation powers, enhancing the state’s film industry incentives and funding the Cape Fear Skyway project.
All three topics are expected to receive attention when the next General Assembly session begins Jan. 26.The city council also wants the state to give it the authority to prohibit car registration renewals for owners who don’t pay parking or red-light-camera fines. And it requests the ability to charge additional fees to businesses that serve alcohol to offset the costs of policing nearby areas, among other requests.
The city council unanimously signed off on the state legislative agenda at its meeting last week. State legislators will decide what legislation to pursue and what to put on the back burner when they go back to work in late January.
Annexation
This summer, the city council approved a bold plan to annex small areas in New Hanover County every couple of years for the next couple of decades. To pursue the plan, the council is asking legislators to protect its existing annexation powers, which have helped increase the city’s population – and tax base – significantly during the past 15 years.
But involuntary annexation opponents across the state are optimistic that 2011 might be the year for changes to the state’s longstanding annexation laws, especially because Republicans took control of both the House and Senate.
Cathy Heath, director and chairwoman of the nonprofit StopNCAnnexation, said GOP candidates from the mountains to the coast campaigned against forced annexation in the recent election. She said the outgoing Senate Democratic leaders were among the group’s biggest obstacles to reforming annexation laws in the past.
While she said a repeal of annexation statutes is unlikely, some changes that help residents targeted for annexation are possible.
“We’re going to be busy, and we’re going to work very hard to make sure something significant is actually done this year,” Heath said.With Republicans in charge, she said, “The landscape has definitely changed for the better.”
In the last legislative session, lawmakers considered changes to annexation laws – including one proposal that would require a vote of residents to be annexed – but no changes were approved by both chambers.
Heath also said Wilmington-area residents – because of the city’s annexation plans – could play a key role in the process.
“The people from that area, if they continue to speak up and continue to make themselves heard to the legislature, yes, they will be part of the legislation,” she said.
In contrast with the city, the New Hanover County Commissioners plan to ask legislators to change annexation policies in favor of property owners in proposed annexation areas, Chairman Jason Thompson said. “Anything that’s different from what we have now,” said Thompson, who opposes involuntary annexation.
Cape Fear Skyway
The city council also wants the General Assembly to provide the Skyway “gap” funding – the difference between the cost of constructing and operating the proposed highway and the amount of money generated by tolls. Currently, the funding gap is estimated at about $49 million a year for 40 years, a tall order considering the state’s present financial condition. The $1 billion-plus Skyway would connect New Hanover and Brunswick counties with a toll road and high-rise bridge across the Cape Fear River south of the Port of Wilmington.
Last year, gap funding bills were introduced in the House and Senate, but neither made it far.
State Rep. Danny McComas, R-New Hanover, said he expects the Skyway to be a topic of discussion among lawmakers in 2011. But, he said, while a new bridge is needed, the hefty cost of the current proposal might necessitate changes to the plan.
“I do think there’s room for improvement,” McComas said. “I’d like to see the cost go down, and I’d like to see a whole region that’s happy with what’s being proposed.”
Leland town officials have vowed to fight the current Skyway proposal, and Mayor Walter Futch has said the town planned to “put a stake through this project’s heart.”
The Skyway’s proposed route goes through Leland.
Film incentives
Last year, the General Assembly sweetened the pot for film production companies that do business in North Carolina.McComas, who has fought for improved film industry perks, said conversations have already begun about what further incentives should be pursued in the 2011-12 session. One possibility is raising the cap on the amount of a highly-paid actor’s salary that is eligible for tax credits from the state. Currently, the cap on a high-priced actor’s salary eligible for credits is $1 million.
Raising the cap was considered but ultimately dropped during the last legislative session
Bill Vassar, executive vice president of EUE Screen Gems Studios, said the state’s existing incentives are great for television series and lower-budget films. But raising the cap on the amount of an actor’s salary eligible for incentives could increase the state’s chances of landing the bigger films, he said.
“The present incentive is very attractive for television because no one makes over $1 million,” Vassar said.
Increasing the cap to $10 million would be ideal, he added. Larger films would employ more North Carolinians in “highly skilled, well-paying, blue-collar jobs,” he said.
It’s unclear what position the new GOP-controlled legislature will take on film incentives. Last year, during extensive floor debates on the topic, many Republican lawmakers spoke against the new film incentives package, particularly provisions related to high-paid actors.
But the film industry has an advocate in McComas, whose influence is expected to increase with Republicans in the majority.
Patrick Gannon: (919) 836-0889
By Patrick Gannon
Patrick.Gannon@StarNewsOnline.com
Published: Monday, November 22, 2010 at 3:57 p.m.
