Blogs

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Results: 4327
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Medical Appointments, Consents, and Children in DSS Custody

In North Carolina, a juvenile who is the subject of an abuse, neglect, or dependency petition may be placed in the custody of a Department of Social Services (DSS). When DSS has a court order of custody, it places a child outside of the child’s home, often in a licensed foster home or in the home of a relative or other placement provider. Here...

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Local Funding for Charter Schools (Including New County Funding Authority for Charter School Capital)

2023 marked 27 years since the inception of charter schools in North Carolina. And it brought some big changes to charter school governance, growth, and funding. See S.L. 2023-107; S.L. 2023-110. Among these changes was the grant of authority to counties to fund certain charter school capital outlay. It presents an...

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Property Tax Exemptions for Community & Economic Development

North Carolina property tax law, nicknamed the Machinery Act, contains many dozens of full or partial exemptions for property as diverse as free drug samples, uranium 233, and Loyal Order of the Moose clubhouses.

This blog post attempts to identify which of these property tax breaks that might be relevant to a local government’s...

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The Bank Reconciliation: A Key Internal Control in Financial Management

What if I said there’s a process that, when regularly performed, provides the following benefits: (1) increased accuracy in financial reporting, (2) early fraud detection, and (3) less time spent preparing for the annual financial audit—would you believe me? It probably sounds too good to be true. But, luckily, it’s not. Such a process exists—...

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Occupancy Taxes and “Tourism-Related Expenditures”

Nearly 200 North Carolina counties and municipalities levy occupancy taxes. Almost all of them are required to use some percentage of their occupancy tax revenues for “tourism-related” expenditures.  Last week our state courts issued their first appellate opinion examining exactly what types of expenditures qualify as “tourism related.”

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Closed Session Deep Dive: Personnel Matters

The open meetings law requires all official meetings of public bodies to be open to the public. G.S. 143-318.10(a). However, government bodies can hold closed-door meetings, called closed sessions, under certain limited circumstances. This post focuses on the personnel matters closed session purpose and is Part 1 of a series that will examine...

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American Rescue Plan Act Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund: Important Deadlines and Updates for April 2024 and Beyond

If you have obligated and expended all your American Rescue Plan Act Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery funds (ARP/CSLFRF), congrats, you are done forever with this grant. April Fools! Even if you have obligated and expended all your ARP/CSLFRF funds, there is still more to do. And if you have not yet obligated...

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Local Government Commission Approval of Certain Public Enterprise Agreements

The Local Government Commission (LGC) is a nine-member state body situated in the Department of State Treasurer. G.S. Ch. 159, Art. 2. The commission monitors the fiscal management and financial condition of local governments and public authorities (providing assistance and engaging in more active interventions when...

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When Can a Public Official Face Liability for Blocking Users or Deleting Comments on Social Media? The Supreme Court Sets a New Test in Lindke v. Freed.

For government officials, the line between official and personal social media pages may sometimes be blurry. Imagine a county commissioner or city council member who maintains a Facebook page that combines photos of her family vacations with updates about important policy decisions. Is that public official acting on behalf of the government...

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Recordings by Government Officials

**This post was written by my colleagues Kristina Wilson and Phil Dixon. You can reach Kristina at Wilson@sog.unc.edu and Phil at dixon@sog.unc.edu

When and how can state and local government officials and employees record government meetings or their interactions with citizens? Does it matter if the recording is done openly or secretly...

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Recordings by Government Officials

This post was co-authored with SOG faculty member Phil Dixon Jr. A version of this post is also available on the School of Government’s North Carolina Criminal Law blog.

When and how can state and local government officials and employees record government meetings or their interactions with citizens? Does it matter if the recording is...

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Within the Four Corners: Scouring Indictments for Missing Elements in State v. Jackson and State v. Coffey.

Two recent opinions from the Court of Appeals illustrate the remarkable controversy currently underway over the specificity required of indictments.  In State v. Coffey, No. COA22-883, 2024 WL 675881 (N.C. Ct. App. Feb. 20, 2024), our Court of Appeals ruled an indictment for felony obstruction of justice was facially defective for failure to...