DO YOU CONSENT?
Remarks voiced at the June 1st, 2026 Chowan County
Public Hearing on the FY26-27 Proposed Budget
“The People’s right to
Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness is secured by Government that derives
their just powers from CONSENT of the
governed.”
I DO
NOT CONSENT TO:
-
The
proposed budget being twice as large as it was 5 years ago, …spending going
up from $15 million to $30 million.
-
I do
not CONSENT to you taxing the people 20% more than we paid last year, which
was 44% larger than two years earlier. …the SECOND REVALUATION IN A ROW
with a HIGHER than the “neutral revenue” rate…9
% higher.
-
I
DID NOT CONSENT to you going into debt $35 million— 70% higher than the
initial cost to build the high school. You should have had a BOND
REFERENDUM and let the people vote on that debt that is Biting us now.
-
I
DID not CONSENT to you GIVING BACK to Timber Mill 3 out of every 4 dollars
they PAY in taxes.
-
COUNTY BUDGETS/REVENUES are NOT more important than the BUDGETS of LOW
INCOME FOLKS. (More on this Later.)
MY
“REPRESENTATIVES”
-
I
have 3, Taylor, Lawrence and Evans. During May I emailed 5 times my concerns
about county spending. I have received NO RESPONSE from any of them.
-
Taylor, according to TAX RECORDS owns no property in the county. He has no
incentive to keep taxes low.
-
Lawrence has NO CONTACT INFORMATION on the county website. I MUST ASK
Susanne to forward emails to him, and his listed phone number is the county
office . His listed address is a PO Box. He has been on the commission for
16 years and It appears HE CAN REMAIN in office for as long as he wants as
no one is running against him in November. I DO NOT CONSENT to UNELECTED
CAREER POLITICIANS.
-
Evans is the “At Large” Commissioner…he is supposed to represent over 14,000
people? That’s ridiculous. I propose changing his JOB DESCRIPTION to
“Taxpayer Advocate” who whose only DUTY would be to scrutinize every
expenditure proposed by the county and report directly to the tax payers.
-
Lisa
Perry is on the ballot for November in northern Chowan. LIKE LAWRENCE she
will AUTOMATICALLY become a commissioner as no one is running against her.
I DO NOT CONSENT to a system that allows a FREE PASS to public office
without any competition.
-
We
do have ONE CONTESTED race, McLaughlin vs Miglorie District 2. It’s time
for Larry to depart.
5. I DO
NOT CONSENT to a tax system that results in UNREASONABLE OUTCOMES AND people
BEING TAXED ON INCOME they have not received.
Example: Laurie Buckhout lives in a $3 million dollar house that increased in
valuation by $625.000. The revenue neutral tax rate will increase her tax bill
by $8. Up .05%
Example:
Chair Kirby lives in a $1 million dollar house that increased in valuation by
$265,000. The revenue neutral rate will increase his tax bill by $162. Up 2.5%
Example:
Habitat homes cost around $150,000; the family income cannot exceed 50% of
county average. I picked at random three homeowners. Each will experience
REVENUE NEUTRAL TAX INCREASES of 30%—58% ($287 to $476) Affordable housing is
SLIPPING OUT OF THEIR REACH.
To be
clear I am not saying Buckhout or Kirby did anything illegal, but the COUNTY
needs to HONESTLY ask: “IS ‘THE
SYSTEM’
working FAIRLY?” Obviously no.
I
suspect that TIMBER MILL, our largest taxpayer, MAKING UP 13% of the tax base,
is somehow skewing the tax rate calculations.
SO, MY
EXPERIENCE IS THAT THE COUNTY MAKES THE RULES AND HOLDS ALL THE CARDS, AND
COMMISSIONERS DON’T NEED TO GET THE CONSENT
OF THE “LITTLE PEOPLE”
BUT
THEY COULD….I
DO CONSENT to the commissioners placing a QUESTION on the November
ballot…
“Has
Chowan County spending over the last 5 years been too little, too much, or just
right?”
PLEASE DO THAT AND
DEMONSTRATE THAT YOU HAVE THE CONSENT OF THE GOVERNED.
John and Robin Sams