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Council weighs donations fund to pay for extra deputies; will consider at May budget meeting
Summary
Councilman Jonathan proposed setting up a municipal donations fund to pay for additional deputies or public-safety equipment; members praised the idea's flexibility but raised sustainability and quid-pro-quo concerns and agreed to add the sheriff contract and fund framework to the May budget meeting for detailed review.
Councilman Jonathan proposed that Wesley Chapel establish a municipal donations fund to raise money from businesses and residents to support additional sheriff deputies or public-safety equipment.
Jonathan told the council North Carolina law allows municipalities to accept grants and donations without creating a separate nonprofit, and he said donations can be tax-deductible depending on purpose. He described other municipalities’ charitable public-safety funds and suggested asking businesses for tiered donations (he cited about 56 storefront businesses in the village and proposed a sample $5,000 ask to reach pilot funding targets). “If we go out and ask somebody to donate to this fund, they’ll be able to write it off in their taxes,” Jonathan said, adding staff would set up a dedicated fund with donor acknowledgements and transparent accounting.
Council members and staff raised several concerns: sustainability if donations taper off; avoiding any appearance of quid pro quo (the village cannot promise additional enforcement for specific donors); the administrative burden of tracking separate funds; and whether taxes would be a more reliable funding mechanism. Deputy Wicker’s report earlier in the meeting described current patrol levels and response boundaries for incorporated areas, which council members cited while weighing options.
The council did not take a final vote to establish the fund but instructed staff to include the Union County sheriff’s contract and the donation-fund framework as a bulleted discussion item at the May budget meeting so members can review cost calculations and legal considerations before deciding.
What happens next: Staff will provide the budget meeting with cost-per-household estimates, draft language for the fund and accounting/acknowledgment procedures, and counsel will be asked to draft suggested contract language and compliance safeguards.
