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Currituck County adopts FY2026–27 budgets, cuts tax rate by 2 cents amid occupancy‑tax dispute
Summary
The Currituck County Board of Commissioners adopted the FY2026–27 operating, tourism and Ocean Sands district budgets and approved a two-cent reduction in the property tax rate, while urging residents to contact state legislators about a bill that could restrict the county’s use of occupancy tax funding.
The Currituck County Board of Commissioners on June 15 adopted the county’s FY2026–27 operating, Tourism Development Authority and Ocean Sands Water and Sewer District budgets and approved a two-cent reduction in the property tax rate, from $0.62 to $0.60 per $100 of assessed value.
County Manager presented the adopted ordinance and highlighted changes from the manager’s proposed budget. The board also adopted a third phase of a county pay study, with pay adjustments taking effect July 1. Commissioners discussed implementation details for compensation and the master fee schedule included with the budget.
The board framed the tax‑rate cut against a longer legal dispute over occupancy‑tax spending. The chair summarized an eight‑year fight with the Corolla Civic Association and said the North Carolina Supreme Court ruled unanimously in Currituck’s favor on the county’s use of occupancy tax for law‑enforcement and tourism‑related costs. The chair and other commissioners, however, warned that a recently passed House measure and pending Senate deliberations (identified in the meeting as Senate Bill 484) could remove Currituck’s authority to use occupancy tax for those purposes. The chair urged residents to contact state senators and representatives to seek a carve‑out for Currituck.
Because Commissioner McCord works for the sheriff’s office, the board followed a previously discussed recusal protocol and held a mock vote on the sheriff’s budget while he was excused from the chamber; the full budgets were then adopted by voice vote. The clerk recorded the motions as carried; the meeting transcript does not contain a roll‑call tally broken down by named votes.
The budget packet before the board included the operating budget ordinance and a schedule of adjustments made after the May presentation and June 1 work session. County staff highlighted an inclusion of funding for a mobile health clinic and other transfers that adjusted the operating total. The board thanked county staff for completing the budget work and answering questions through the review process.
Next steps: the budgets are in effect as adopted; county staff will proceed with implementation and follow‑up items noted during the meeting.
