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Gates County commissioners push back on proposed tax increase, discuss staff pay and appoint acting county attorney
Summary
Commissioners debated a proposed 3-cent tax increase, discussed staff pay and a potential one-time bonus, and unanimously accepted County Attorney Pete Godwin's resignation while appointing Thomas Wood as acting county attorney effective July 1.
Gates County commissioners on Monday signaled resistance to a proposed 3-cent tax increase, discussed employee pay adjustments and a possible one-time staff bonus, and unanimously approved a personnel transition in the county attorney's office.
Chair Emily Truman said she was "struggling with the 3'cent tax increase" and questioned asking residents for new taxes after asking the Board of Education to make cuts. "I don't feel that we can in turn ask for a tax increase to make our budget suit," she said, urging the board to consider comparable internal cuts.
Several commissioners agreed that the county should consider modest cost-of-living adjustments for employees rather than broad tax increases. One commissioner said they were "wholeheartedly against" raising the tax rate but supported a modest COLA and asked for stronger data underlying revenue projections, including sales-tax forecasts. Another commissioner argued the county's workforce is its most important asset and suggested a 5% pay increase to aid retention.
Chair Truman floated a one-time staff appreciation bonus from the general fund as a gesture to employees, suggesting an example figure of $507.50; commissioners asked staff to produce the numbers for feasibility ahead of the June 3 work session.
On personnel, the board accepted County Attorney Pete Godwin's resignation and appointed Thomas Wood as acting county attorney effective July 1. Chair Truman moved "to accept the resignation of Mr. Godwin for him to retire" and to appoint Mr. Wood; the motion was seconded and passed unanimously.
Commissioners also announced that all five board members and the full Board of Education will attend county advocacy days in Raleigh next week to present funding requests to state legislators; they said a report on those visits will follow at the next meeting.
What happens next: Staff will prepare alternative budget scenarios and cost projections for the June 3 work session, and the board will receive updates from the upcoming Raleigh advocacy visits at a future meeting.
