Dear County Commissioners,

You have an impossible job. You’re required to find a middle ground between funding county services that are already faced with dire cuts and inflation, while keeping taxes low for many homeowners in this county who are faced with property value increases, inflation, and who are  barely able to afford their mortgages in the first place.

As an official, you’re inclined to support the county services that rely on your leadership. You know what it takes to run this county and the thousands of people who serve in government every day to provide these critical services. But as someone who is elected, you hear the cries of your constituents, on both sides of the aisle, who can no longer afford to live in our County. This leaves you with the task of, as we say in the south, trying to squeeze blood from a turnip.

We have to shrink our government. From the municipal to the Federal government, we’re tightening the belt across the country to the extent that entire departments are being dissolved and services are being steeply curtailed. Government cuts not only bring about streamlined efficiency, but also combats inflation and takes less money out of an economy that is still reeling from post pandemic woes.

New Hanover County is not exempt. On the efficiency side, there is still plenty that can be trimmed from the budget, including support for non-profits and government services that duplicate what the private sector does. Even department line-items that are $10,000 a year should be reconsidered. $10,000 across departments easily adds up to millions of dollars in extra spending.

As some of you have acknowledged, property values have gone up by over 60%. Even keeping the same tax rate, homeowners will still pay more in taxes. People tend to forget that this affects every homeowner, even the middle class. I’ve spoken with middle-class homeowners who don’t know how they will afford the extra property taxes.

A revenue-neutral budget isn’t ideal. No one wants to cut essential services like senior programs, schools, fire, and law enforcement. But in order to keep New Hanover an affordable place to live, we must trim the fat, and there are still plenty more cuts to make than what the staff recommends. We simply can’t ask homeowners to squeeze even more to pay their taxes.

I know that Commissioners Scalise, Pierce, and Zapple have acknowledged the need to get close to a revenue-neutral budget, with Mr. Scalise wanting even more cuts to “trim the fat”, as many other governments are doing. Commissioners Rivenbark and Walker have so far dissented and expressed that cutting county services and lowering taxes would be bad governance. I hope you both will reconsider.

Every county department head is going to advocate for more funding. The county manager is going to advocate for more funding. It’s their job and responsibility to do so. While your job is to provide leadership and advocate for the county government, your first duty is to the taxpayers. It’s not ideal, and of course, you’re going to get pushback. But right now, what New Hanover County needs is a little less pork spending and a lot more government efficiency. You’ll get some criticism now, but next year, taxpayers will thank you.

Onward and Upward,

-John Q. Public