McCrory gets new title: State Ass

Once again Pat McCrory has demonstrated his vast ignorance. He has announced he will give up his lawsuit for a recount of the 2016 governors race if just Durham will agree to a recount of votes and if the totals remain the same. He just cannot bring himself to admit defeat and that Roy Cooper has won the election.

Now McCrory will receive another new title to use in his new job as the official public bathroom door police inspector. As he stands guard at bathroom doors demanding to see everyone's birth certificates and checking their genitals for a match, he will take on the title of "state Ass".

McCrory Unable To Face Reality Two Weeks After The Election

Pat McCrory and his campaign crew just cannot let go. Like a dog with a bone, he seems to be incapable of facing reality and acknowledging his clear defeat in the 2016 governor's election.

He either cannot understand how much economic damage he has brought to the state or wants to trick citizens into thinking he has done good things for the state and refuses to go back to where he came from. His personal involvement in legislative efforts to bring discrimination into state government has lost hundreds of millions of dollars in income to the state and taken jobs away from thousands of people that work in jobs directly tied to these losses. Dozens of sports events have cancelled events in the state and have moved out of the region. Multiple big corporations have decided to not bring their businesses to NC and not expand businesses already here.

During the entire campaign he pretended he had done no wrong when he signed into law HB2, the controversial law the NC GOP dominated legislature created that clearly put the state in the position of discriminating against many individuals in NC.

The big lie about NC HB2 purpose

Extreme Religious View

An extreme religious group, Institute for Faith and Family (IFF), has created a video to project a complete lie and fabrication about the alleged need for the highly controversial and unconstitutional NC House Bill 2 (HB2). The fabrication by this extreme group uses a young female student at a Greenville Christian Academy to claim repealing the law would allow men and boys to shower in and use bathrooms with women and girls and would endanger them by allowing predators into the facilities.

The truth is there has NEVER been a case of a man or boy using women's locker or restrooms anywhere and endangering women and girls. The whole fabrication is being pushed onto NC people and TV viewers by Tami Fitzgerald, director of the extreme IFF organization, and similar extremists trying to pivot citizens away from repealing the unjust and unconstitutional law.

The law is a hate bill fabrication of Representatives Tim Moore and Phil Berger, and rushed through the NC Legislature for signature by Governor McCrory in just 12 hours in March. There was no discussion or debate allowed and the HB2 law in fact discriminates against LGBTQ citizens and prevents NC communities from passing laws to provide them with protections afforded to other citizens. Fallout has now cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars and jobs and planned sports have been moved out of state for years to come.

This year, more than ever, it is extremely important to vote and get the extremist politicians out of the Legislature and government and restore sanity to NC governmental processes. It is equally important to speak out and rebuke the extremists pushing distorted views on citizens and the state.

See the video of an extremist group lie...

Taxpayers pay for Mary Easley trip to foreign locations

Concerned about skyrocketing gas, food and other prices taking your hard earned dollars? Then consider recent use of your tax dollars to let Governor Easley's wife, Mary, travel to Europe and Russia to visit museums, restaurants and other tourist locations without you having a choice.

According to a report in the News & Observer Mary and her entourage "attended some of the finest museums in France and St. Petersburg, Russia, during the past 14 months. She and entourages dined at first-class restaurants, slept in top-notch hotels and sat in the fifth row for a Russian ballet. The travels -- a 2007 trip to France and one to Russia and Estonia in May -- cost taxpayers $109,000."

During Easley's administration the state has wasted hundreds of millions of tax dollars through failures in the NC DOT, DMV and other organizations due to inability of Easley appointees to properly manage operations of those organizations. Now his wife adds to that waste by using tax dollars for personal travels out of the country in the name of "public relations". Read more...

July 1, 2008
News & Observer
Benjamin Niolet, Staff Writer

Mary Easley trips cost state $109,000

Groups visited France, Russia, Estonia on cultural exchanges; no results yet

North Carolina's first lady, Mary Easley, visited some of the finest museums in France and St. Petersburg, Russia, during the past 14 months. She and entourages dined at first-class restaurants, slept in top-notch hotels and sat in the fifth row for a Russian ballet. The travels -- a 2007 trip to France and one to Russia and Estonia in May -- cost taxpayers $109,000.

Gov. Mike Easley did not go on either trip, and neither was publicly disclosed at the time. Mary Easley did not respond to requests for an interview, but expense reports and other documents released in response to a public records request indicate the trips were considered cultural exchanges to build links between North Carolina and officials in the countries visited. The trips have so far produced no tangible benefits. Read the article...

NC wastes millions in mental health reform

Once again news about North Carolina highlights that millions are being wasted by the state - this time in mental health reform. Dempsey Benton, the new leader of the state's department of Health and Human Services, is making an effort to reduce costs and waste but the state has already wasted at least $400 million attempting to treat more mentally ill people in their communities and fewer in the state's four psychiatric hospitals.

Once again this has taken place during Governor Easley's watch as recently seen with other political appointees made by Easley committing major and costly blunders while managing DOT, DMV and other state divisions. Changes in mental health treatment during the time of another of Governor Easley's appointees, Hooker Odom, former leader of DHHS, allowed practices to be put in place that has allowed millions to be wasted by questionable providers providing questionable services for mentally ill patients with virtually no specific controls over services provided. Even with much finger pointing between Easley and various state representatives trying to shift blame to each other, poorly planned changes were made during Easley's administration with insufficient controls and procedures to insure funds are spent for needed treatments and valid services and paid to legitimate providers.

Department officials defined too loosely the community support services companies would offer, and they agreed to pay too much for it according to a news report. Responsibility for enacting the changes fell to Health and Human Services, led for six years by Carmen Hooker Odom, Gov. Mike Easley's appointee. They didn't think through all the details of providing adequate services for mentally ill patients and were overwhelmed by the task and still are. Hooker Odom announced her resignation from DHHS last May, two weeks after informing Easley about what she called a "deeply disturbing" audit of mental-health providers.

News and Observer
February 24, 2008
The Associated Press

State wastes millions in mental-health reform

RALEIGH, N.C. - North Carolina has wasted at least $400 million in its efforts to treat more mentally ill people in their own communities and fewer in the state's four psychiatric hospitals, The News & Observer of Raleigh reported Sunday.

An investigation by the newspaper showed that local governments, forced to stop offering treatment, were replaced by providers trying to make money, using mostly high school graduates instead of licensed professionals. In a few months, the cost of the community support program was $50 million a month, more than 10 times what the state had expected.

Providers took some clients to movies or shopping, charging taxpayers $61 an hour, according to the newspaper's investigation. Meanwhile, some seriously ill people went without treatment.

It was almost a year before the state reacted.

Hundreds of providers have abused the system, the state now says. Read more...

Botched paving costly to DOT and NC taxpayers - $21 million

The botched paving job on Interstate in North Carolina cost taxpayers at least $21,000,000 dollars and many months of commuting hardships and misery for drivers.

At the tail end of a multi-year project to implement a major expansion of I-40 between Durham and Chapel Hill, NC, inspectors discovered that miles of new concrete pavement was breaking apart. More studies showed that the top layer of concrete had not been installed correctly and was breaking down even before the project was complete.

The project was already late and had cost taxpayers much more than originally planned and a major part of the work had to be torn up and reworked by contractors. The $21,000,000 repair is yet another demonstration of major mis-management and poor planning within North Carolina's Department of Transportation. The extension added another year of misery for weary commuters traveling the road each day.

Unfortunately for taxpayers, Governor Easley's hand picked director for the DOT, Lindo Tippett, has never admitted any responsibility for the blunder and has remained unscathed while lower level state employees were reprimanded and, in some cases, fired for the mistake. The Governor has not seen fit to replace Mr. Tippett and new reports emerge weekly of additional long postponement or cancellation of many needed major projects and continued severe budget shortfalls as taxpayers foot the bill for gross mismanagement and incompetence in the state's operations.

A new article has appeared in the October issue Asphalt Magazine by the manufacturer of heavy equipment that was used to tear up the broken new concrete and gives an interesting view of the magnitude of work required, done only at night, to undo the botched paving work. The contractor has now completed repairs made under a $21 million project. Interestingly enough the state threatened the contractor with significant fines of $10,000 per hour if workers had not moved out of the way of commuters by morning as the project was carried out.

Read more of this fascinating use of technology to repair one of North Carolina DOT's largest blunders to date....

Asphalt Contractor magazine
October 30th, 2007

Failed concrete overlay milled, replaced with HMA

A failing concrete overlay on I-40 near Raleigh-Durham, NC, was determined by the North Carolina DOT to be in need of replacement. The specifications for the project provided that the concrete overlay be removed by cold-milling and replaced with hot mix asphalt (HMA) each night.

The Lane Construction Corporation was awarded the $21-million project for the North Carolina DOT, and has undertaken the milling, while its Rea Contracting LLC affiliate performed the HMA placement on strict nightly schedules.

"We're grinding anywhere from 3 to 3.5 inches of concrete overlay off the Interstate using a Wirtgen W 2200 cold mill with full lane, 12-foot 6-inch drum," says J. Todd Moore, superintendent of the I-40 project for Lane. "We have approximately 21 lineal miles to do, two lanes eastbound, and two lanes westbound, as well as all off ramps and acceleration lanes."

The existing pavement is three lanes wide each way, with the third (inside) lane made of full-depth concrete, recently reconstructed. The concrete overlay being removed had been placed over existing Portland cement concrete and was experiencing spalling at the joints, and patched "blow-out" potholes where heavy traffic was pulling material from the pavement.

"We have about 290,000 square yards of concrete removal required for this project," says Richard Snow, P.E., construction manager for Lane. "Our average pace of 2,200 lineal feet per night of lane works out to about 2,700 square yards. On weekends we do a lot more with our marathon closures. While we still keep one lane open, we are able to keep the two lanes closed 56 hours straight."

"We're finding both conventional and high early-strength concrete in the overlay, but the W 2200 is chewing right through it all," Moore says. "We've used the W 2200 for scarifying concrete as well, but this 3.5-inch-deep cut is more of a test for the machine during the four hours we work each night."

New open-space tooth pattern

A new open-spaced tooth pattern drum design which applies more horsepower per tooth, but with fewer teeth, was being used on this cold mill.

"We're using Wirtgen teeth with 1.25-inch spacing of teeth on the drum, with some 130 teeth on the drum," Moore says. "We're not using up as many teeth on the drum as before, but it's grinding up the concrete more efficiently, and pulling the material off the existing concrete. It's coming up in a little bit larger chunks, and the milling is more efficient. It's leaving a nice pattern on the pavement, and both the state and the paving contractor are well-pleased."

Nonetheless, Moore and his crews have experimented with the right configuration for the drum and machine.

"At one time we slowed the cutter drum down, but had no success with increasing footage, because teeth were breaking off as the drum was going slower, and not keeping up," he says. "We brought it back to its original speed - about 21 feet per minute, and now things are rolling. Because we're limited at night to what can be repaved before rush hour, I'll open up anywhere from 2,000 to 2,600 feet, depending on how tight the concrete is in our four-hour period."

Thus a given night would see Lane begin milling after 8 p.m. and conclude about midnight, with Rea Contracting paving the next four to five hours, with the last hour striping and removal of the traffic control pattern. "We have to be off the Interstate by 6 a.m., with penalties of $10,000 per hour," Moore says.

Superpave replaces concrete

The concrete overlay was being replaced by two lifts of a Superpave mix, PG 76-24 polymer modified binder, with 9.5 D mm aggregate. The first was a 2-inch lift, followed by a 1.5-inch lift on top to bring to grade. The HMA was provided by Rea Contracting out of its Northern Raleigh plant. North Carolina DOT specified a material transfer vehicle be used between truck and paver.

At midnight, the milling and paving supervisors meet to run numbers as to how far the milling can go that night, so both crews can finish their jobs that morning.

"We see how far we will mill, so we can finish milling and Rea can finish paving, all at a happy medium," Moore says. "We also have to figure in cutter tooth changes, and that will slow us down a little. Right now we do a complete cutter tooth change every 1,000 to 1,100 feet; the more efficiently we can change the 130 milling teeth, and install new ones, the faster we can get back to work."

Lane's complete tooth change using Wirtgen quick-change toolholders will take about 15 minutes.

Hydro-sweeping and infrared drying

Following the W 2200, a standard street sweeper was cleaning the milled surface, followed by a contract hydrovacuum truck which was water-blasting any remaining material off the surface, and vacuuming it into a tank for disposal.

"We're picking up the heavy stuff with the sweeper, and then we have a 36,000 psi-capable hydrovac truck clean the pavement with sprayed water, and vacuum up the water and any fines," Moore says. "This surface has to be totally spotless before we apply our tack coat."

And because the surface has to be bone-dry before the tack coat - and not much time in which to dry - Lane was using an infrared heater truck with generator to dry the milled surface prior to tack and overlay. "The truck has two 195-mph blower fans which blow off any standing water, and heating coils which evaporate any remaining moisture."

Lane's W 2200 with full-lane width drum was giving Lane the power and reliability it needed to keep this project on schedule and in budget.

Moore was finding that the new Eco-Cutter drum from Wirtgen was keeping the job moving along with accrued savings from use of fewer teeth. "This is the first application for which we've used this full-lane drum," Moore says. "This application is nice for the full-lane drum because it's one lane, one way, without having to back up and go. And the drum has a coarser pattern to it. My feeling is, 'the coarser, the better', because the asphalt can hold tighter in the voids than it can in a smoother surface."

Fewer cutting tools on the new Eco-Drum means less resistance to cutting and a higher rate of advance, with lower tool costs per milled cubic yard. These drums, with smaller number of point attack tools, make sure work proceeds more quickly and cost-efficiently.

Despite the fact that the standard-width Eco-Cutter may equipped with only 114 cutting tools, its performance with 1-inch tool spacing is roughly 20 percent higher than that of a standard milling drum with 0.6-inch tool spacing when working in hard asphalt and at a milling depth of 8 inches.

About the Wirtgen W 2200

The W 2200 is designed for big, continuous cold milling projects in which a pavement must be removed mile after mile. The high-horsepower, deep-cutting, high-production

W 2200 lets users mill large projects in a short period of time.

The W 2200 has a standard cutting width of 87 inches, four large D-6 crawler tracks, a milling drum with a high-efficiency mechanical belt drive, and an efficient front-loading system. It has a mechanically driven milling drum and two-part slewing front-end discharge conveyor of variable height. The machine travels on crawler tracks. Robust welded construction with mounts for the individual function modules and superstructures. The tanks for diesel fuel and water are integrated into the chassis. The hydraulic fluid tank forms a separate unit.

Its maximum cutting depth is 14 inches and with the optional Flexible Cutter System, can cut up to 14 feet 1 inch wide. The W 2200 has an operating weight of 96,342 pounds with a 900-hp power plant.

The walk-through operator's platform with access ladder on each side is located in the middle part of the machine. It is equipped with two identical control consoles which can be pivoted and vertically adjusted. Both control consoles and the right-hand driver's seat can be displaced outwards beyond the edge of the machine. The steering and feed control operate with electrical proportional action and are controlled via joysticks.


The Wirtgen information and diagnosis system - called the WIDIS 32 - provides the driver with comprehensive up-to-the-minute information on the current status of the engine and hydraulic system and generates visual and acoustic alarms when necessary. The crawler tracks are suspended from the chassis via round cylinders, the height of which can be adjusted hydraulically. The height of each crawler track can be adjusted individually. The height required for the milling depth is adjusted via the two cylinders at the front, while the rear crawler tracks form a full floating axle. The large lift ensures considerable ground clearance simplifying such difficult maneuvers as reversing or loading and unloading the machine from a low-bed truck.

Report of NC DOT incompetence hidden from public

An alarming new report provides more evidence that NC's DOT organization is poorly suited to meet transportation needs of the state and reveals the organization is withholding a major consultant review of the DOT paid for by taxpayer dollars. The DOT continues to reflect the incompetence of director Lindo Tippett, appointed by Governor Easley, and the inability of DOT staff in managing thousands of state employees responsible for maintaining NC's road infrastructure and planning what is needed to handle the unprecedented growth in state traffic.

It is clear that the time has come to demand that the DOT director step down and a replacement be appointed that has the knowledge and ability to manage the organization and facilitate planning and funding of what is needed to build and maintain an adequate transportation infrastructure that will allow the state to be competitive.

Results from a comprehensive survey of some 13,000 thousand DOT workers and interviews with at least two dozen key legislators, state officials, business executives and local transportation officials, along with information from follow up discussions, strongly suggests a lack of understanding within the organization about the mission of the DOT and tells of poor use of funds and inadequate project plans and schedules. Mark L. Foster, the department's chief financial officer, confirmed that "DOT employees complained that they lack a shared understanding of their mission." He briefly described other criticisms: "Road projects cost too much time and money. It's hard to figure out who is responsible for any DOT project."

Read the report and learn more about the lack of a "unified vision", deception and confusion in the state's DOT organization...

News and Observer
September 29, 2007
Bruce Siceloff, Staff Writer

Consultants review of DOT under wraps
McKinsey & Co. was asked to prepare a sweeping evaluation of the transportation agency, but DOT and the company are keeping a tight rein on the information

State Department of Transportation officials are paying a consultant $2.5 million to help make the agency more responsive, accountable and transparent.

They are keeping much of the work secret.

Attorneys for DOT and McKinsey & Co., an international management consultant hired in April to evaluate DOT, blacked out several pages of contract details and stamped other pages "CONFIDENTIAL" before DOT released them to The News & Observer.

Other contract documents indicate that McKinsey initially was asked for a candid, sweeping assessment of DOT's "strategic direction and organizational structure." It was expected to file reports in May and June.

DOT has declined to release a word of its consultant's findings. The April 11 contract includes an unusual pledge that DOT will seek McKinsey's permission before making public references to McKinsey or releasing any "reports, analyses or other such materials" it receives from McKinsey.

DOT officials now say they did not request or receive any written reports from McKinsey, whose contract ends in mid-October. Read more...

Easley and legislators reach compromise on latest job incentives

Governor Easley and Legislators reach a compromise on an incentive plan to save jobs in NC. The plan replaces one the Governor vetoed recently that legislators had crafted to keep a factory in Cumberland county from closing down.

The goal of the new legislation is to encourage Goodyear Tire & Rubber to upgrade a plant in Fayetteville and Bridgestone Firestone to modernize one in Wilson and save jobs in those communities. Lawmakers worried that without state assistance for factory upgrades, the companies could shut down and move operations overseas as many have done in recent years.

House Speaker Joe Hackney said "What triggered this is the absolute devastation that would occur in Cumberland County if Goodyear was to leave," he said, adding that the same would happen in Wilson if Bridgestone Firestone were to pull out. "We're focused on the community."

News & Observer
September 11, 2007
Ryan Teague Beckwith, Jonathan B. Cox and Lynn Bonner, Staff Writers

Easley signs compromise incentives bill

RALEIGH — Gov. Mike Easley this afternoon signed into law a compromise bill that gives two tire companies incentives to improve their North Carolina plants.

The bill was drafted Monday as an alternative to one vetoed by Gov. Mike Easley. It would give Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. and Bridgestone Firestone cash incentives to stay in North Carolina.

The bill passed the House 61-44 about 2:30 p.m. and the Senate 25-16 an hour later. Easley signed it soon after.

"This tool is a fantastic statement by the General Assembly that North Carolina is focused on the future and determined that our citizens will compete and win in the new world economy," Easley said in a statement. "This legislation will create cutting edge economic competitiveness in North Carolina, unlike any state in America." Read more...

Incentive for jobs in western NC

Another taxpayer funded incentive deal has been made to draw jobs to North Carolina. BAE Systems Tensylon will receive $127,000 to expand it's manufacturing operation near Monroe. North Carolina will contribute $40,000 taxpayer dollars and the county will chip in nearly $87,000 to try to boost the local economy.

Charlotte Observer
September 9, 2007
Mike Torralba

Manufacturer gets incentive package
BAE Systems Tensylon to receive $127,000

A manufacturer of antiballistic vehicle and body armor will expand its plant outside Monroe in exchange for $127,000 in state and local economic-development incentives.

The company, BAE Systems Tensylon High Performance Materials, is expected to create 42 new jobs and invest $8.7 million over three years, including an 18,000-square-foot expansion of its Piedmont Drive building, according to the Partnership for Progress, Union County's economic development arm.

The average weekly pay for the new jobs will be $714, not including benefits -- higher than the county average of $643, according to Gov. Mike Easley's office.

The state will contribute $40,000 from the One North Carolina Fund to the incentive package. The fund is intended to encourage out-of-state businesses to come to North Carolina and existing companies to expand, creating new jobs.

The county will contribute a grant of nearly $87,000. Original article...

NC to verify benefit of programs

North Carolina has established a new organization to review its many programs, determine if benefits are worth the cost and recommend changes where needed.

The Program Evaluation Division will "delve into how the state tackles wide-scale issues such as education and health care, and target smaller operations to find out whether the money spent has a real effect on the people served" according to the article just released.

The new organization should fill a much needed role to help insure state funded programs are producing value for N.C. taxpayers and to help improve or eliminate programs when needed. North Carolina is the 46th state to implement this type of "watchdog" organization.

News & Observer
August 27, 2007
Dan Kane, Staff Writer

N.C. to verify benefit of programs

North Carolina has auditors who make sure taxpayer money is spent as intended. But what if the spending has little public benefit?

Lawmakers have typically left that question up to the agencies and nonprofit groups that receive the money. But this year, lawmakers decided to create their own watchdog to get those answers: the Program Evaluation Division.

The division will delve into how the state tackles wide-scale issues such as education and health care, and target smaller operations to find out whether the money spent has a real effect on the people served.

"It will not be as focused on management processes and financial controls," said state Sen. Dan Clodfelter, a Charlotte Democrat who sponsored the legislation creating the division. "It will focus on more fundamental questions, such as 'Does this program still serve a fundamental purpose?' " Read more...

Goodyear to get millions for not leaving

UPDATE --- Subsequent to passing of the bill to provide incentives to Goodyear in Fayetteville, Governor Easley decided to veto the bill. Click here to read about the veto and why he did it...

The original blog entry follows...

North Carolina gives away big money to entice companies to set up shop in the state and create jobs. Much has been reported in recent news about the relatively new trend and debates continue to rage about whether the huge incentives are worth the cost. The state offered Dell $242 million in cash and tax breaks to bring 2,000 jobs to the Triad and the jobs pay an average of $28,000 per year.

A big ruckus is still being made over the giveaway to entice Google to the western part of the state. In exchange for incentives, the company would build a $600 million data center near Lenoir and create as many as 210 jobs with average salaries of $48,000. Breaks given by the state would save Google up to $90 million over three decades. Local business recruiters also earmarked up to $4.8 million to the company if it meets job-creation goals. Including incentives offered by local leaders, Google could receive more than $260 million over 30 years.

Just before adjourning the 2007 session, the NC General Assembly approved a new incentive to give Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company up to $40 million over 10 years just to stay in Cumberland County. In return the company has to invest at least $200 million in its factory but it would not have to create any jobs and or have to keep all of the 2,750 existing workers.

Wouldn't it be nice if the Legislators would grant tidy sums to all the state residents that have lost their jobs in recent years due to a declining economic climate and businesses leaving the state and region?

What do you think? Leave your comments below after reading the report on the latest incentive...

News and Observer
August 4, 2007
Jonathan B. Cox, Staff Writer

Goodyear could get $40 million
State offers incentives package if the tiremaker stays in Cumberland County

Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. could get as much as $40 million from the state over 10 years if it keeps producing in Fayetteville -- even if it lays off workers.

Before adjourning, the General Assembly approved a new incentive program written to sway one of Cumberland County's largest private employers as it considers factory closings and expansions.

Goodyear would have to invest at least $200 million in its factory to get the assistance. But it would not have to create any jobs or keep all 2,750 existing positions.

"Goodyear has been a wonderful corporate citizen in our part of the state," said Sen. Tony Rand, a Fayetteville Democrat and one of the legislature's most powerful members. "It makes a great deal of sense to keep one of our most important industrial citizens."

The incentive comes as Goodyear trims domestic production of low-end tires in favor of more profitable models.

Last year, the company said that it would stop making about 10 brands of tires -- some made in Fayetteville -- sold under the names of wholesale customers. Since that time, the company has also announced plans to end tire production at a factory in Canada and close a Texas plant.

Goodyear's decisions angered unionized workers, who went on strike last year. Its actions have also sparked fears in several U.S. communities, where leaders worry that they could lose a major employer.

Officials in Alabama and Tennessee have cobbled together incentives packages to entice Goodyear to upgrade plants instead of shutting them down.

"Everybody spends a lot of money to bring these kinds of plants in," said Jim Cooper, executive director of the Obion County Joint Economic Development Council in Tennessee. Goodyear employs about 2,500 at a plant there in Union City.

"Not a whole lot of emphasis is put on keeping them," he said. Read more...

Favoritism in NC Politics

Another example of favoritism in NC political circles was reported in the July 8, 2007, News and Observer about the leader of NC's DMV organization helping a friend get a recently built "kit car" titled as an authentic antique car.

According to a DMV staff member, a friend of DMV Commissioner George Tatum was allowed to get a vehicle title issued that says the owner's kit built car is an old 1937 Ford truck when it is not after the commissioner became aware the car owner's first attempt at getting a title failed. Titling the vehicle in this way "reduced what the vehicle's owner must pay in taxes and could inflate the value of the vehicle on the open market".

This blatant abuse of registration requirements allows the owner to pay far less in taxes than with a properly registered vehicle. According to the report the vehicle owner "paid $15 in highway use taxes on the truck because the DMV values a 1937 Ford truck at $500". In reality this tax amounts to 3 percent of the book value for the vehicle and the state and taxpayers lose out on lost taxes. "Tax on a newly built custom car is based on the cost of labor and materials, which is typically in the $10,000 to $30,000 range" ($300 to $900 in taxes).

It seems recently like many of Governor Easley's team members are being tied back to political favoritism, helping friends and friends family members get jobs, denial of responsibility for failures and blunders in state organizations and other involvements unbecoming to the Governor and his circle of friends.

Read the report and you decide...

News and Observer
July 8, 2007
Dan Kane, Staff Writer

Staffer says DMV chief favored friend
Commissioner calls charge a lie; staffer briefly suspended

DMV Commissioner George Tatum oversees the documentation of millions of North Carolina motor vehicles, but he has come under fire for a document attached to just one -- a kit car that looks like a vintage 1937 Ford truck.

Although the car isn't a real '37 Ford, it has a title from the Division of Motor Vehicles that says it is. The title might have reduced what the vehicle's owner must pay in taxes and could inflate the value of the vehicle on the open market.

How the fake '37 Ford came to be titled as a real '37 Ford has provoked a charge that Tatum wanted DMV inspectors to approve the title as a favor for a family friend. Read more...

Death of the NC Progress Board

The latest NC budget does not include funding for the NC Progress Board. This, for now, sounds the death toll for the North Carolina Progress Board, an organization created by the state to monitor key policy areas and publish reports and charts indicating how the state has done in those areas compared to the region and the nation.

The Progress Board was founded in 1995 by a statute approved by the NC Legislature to track and report on indicators about the state's progress (or lack thereof). It has struggled in recent years to continue operations as the state reduced funding for the small organization and Governor Easley, the official chair of the Board, has avoided participating in Board activities and actually distanced himself from the group. The Governor, and one of his political advisors, Mac McCorkle, have criticized reports issued by the Board over the last couple of years because reports that accurately reflect how the state has been faring in many areas has not always cast a positive light on the Governor's time in office. In fact many of the reports show neutral or declining trends indicating the state has not kept up with the region or the nation and is not competitive in many key areas. A number of Scorecards are available on the internet comparing North Carolina to the southeast region and the nation.

When Mac McCorkle was appointed by the Governor a year ago to be the new Chair of the Progress Board he took it upon himself to aggressively dismantle the Board by refusing to hold additional board meeting, refusing to approve release of any new reports or continuing research efforts, and in late 2006 terminated all ongoing work to continue efforts to monitor trends and issue reports to state citizens and the Legislature. The last full report that was in process was a 2006 update on the state of Education in North Carolina and is available in it's final draft form.

A May 20, 2007, report in the Charlotte Observer reveals that the meager budget has not been included in new funds and the Progress Board has in effect been killed by the Governor and Mr. McCorkle...

Charlotte Observer
May 20, 2007
Jack Betts, Staff Writer

A good idea whose time is up -- for now

RALEIGH --One of the best government ideas of the 1990s has withered on the vine of neglect, politics and indecision.

The N.C. Progress Board -- created in 1995 during Jim Hunt's third term to take regular soundings of where the state stands in key policy areas -- has lost its staff and funding and closed its doors. Its Web site has a hopeful note: "The office is closed in conjunction with a study to move the Board into a proposed new organization in the UNC University system."

Maybe. But chances are it won't look anything like the Progress Board that Hunt set up as North Carolina's answer to the benchmarking movement sweeping the country.

The idea was compelling. The organization would be an independent agency that would focus on the latest research in education, health care, environment, the economy and other policy areas. It would make assessments about how North Carolina is faring in those areas and recommendations for improvement. Read more...

Meg Scott Phipps out, doesn't regret choices

You would think after being convicted for extortion, mail fraud and conspiracy that Meg Scott Phipps would leave prison with a more humble attitude than she appears to have. In a News and Observer commentary on her release, her remarks hint that she doesn't feel that her conviction was right and she stated "The only other regret I have is that I haven't been able to make the same speech that the Duke lacrosse young men got to make."

She "stopped short of saying she was unfairly targeted. But her words Monday differed greatly from a remark she made in 2003 after a jury found her guilty on state charges of perjury and obstruction of justice."

If this demonstrates the effect of prison on government employees and politicians convicted of criminal activities in state government then it probably won't make much difference as a deterrent in getting corruption out of government.

Serve on, Meg, while under house arrest... here's hoping your attitude won't get you sent back for the rest of the term.

News and Observer
April 24, 2007
Sarah Ovaska, Staff Writer

Phipps has few regrets after prison
Ex-ag commissioner to serve out sentence under house arrest

HAW RIVER - Meg Scott Phipps, the former North Carolina agriculture commissioner and fallen heir of a political dynasty, left prison Monday with no apologies for the scandal that put her away for more than three years.

Phipps, 51, walked out of a federal prison camp in Alderson, W.Va., Monday morning and drove to Greensboro, where she visited her parole officer to pick up an ankle bracelet for the four months she'll spend under electronic house arrest. From Greensboro, she headed to her home in the Alamance County town of Haw River, where a barbecue dinner was planned with her husband, Robert, their two teenage children, her mother and her father, former North Carolina Gov. Bob Scott.

Phipps said she has no regrets other than missing out on her children's teenage years. She referred to the three Duke University lacrosse players who were exonerated earlier this month when N.C. Attorney General Roy Cooper declared they were falsely accused of raping a woman at an off-campus party.

"The only other regret I have is that I haven't been able to make the same speech that the Duke lacrosse young men got to make," she said. Read more...

Golden Leaf out, N.C. Rural Economic Development Center in

The Golden LEAF Foundation was created in 1999 as a non-profit foundation to receive one-half of the funds coming to North Carolina from the master settlement agreement with cigarette manufacturers and distribute the funds to help areas that were heavily tobacco income dependent. The Foundation is supposed to help North Carolinians make the transition from a tobacco-dependent economy through grants and investments that would positively affect the long-term economic advancement of the state.

Recent complaints that Golden LEAF was not doing enough to help counties hurt by the loss of tobacco production has prompted introduction of legislation to abolish the Foundation and direct money now disbursed by Golden LEAF into a trust fund to benefit "tobacco-dependent communities." That money would be distributed by the N.C. Rural Economic Development Center. Sen. Clark Jenkins, D-Edgecombe, said many projects were approved in areas, including western counties, that did not rely on tobacco.

News and Observer
March 30, 2007
Jerry Allegood, Staff Writer

Control of tobacco millions may shift
Bill would kill LEAF Foundation

More than half the state Senate has endorsed legislation that would abolish the Golden LEAF Foundation, which distributes millions of dollars from the state's settlement with tobacco companies.

The legislation, introduced Monday by Sen. Clark Jenkins, D-Edgecombe, would direct money now disbursed by Golden LEAF into a trust fund to benefit "tobacco-dependent communities." That money -- now about $600 million -- would be distributed by the N.C. Rural Economic Development Center, a private not-for-profit organization that works with rural areas.

Jenkins said the legislation was prompted by complaints that Golden LEAF was not doing enough to help counties hurt by the loss of tobacco production. He said many projects were approved in areas, including western counties, that did not rely on tobacco. Read more...

NC using flawed formulas to calculate benefits from give-aways?

According to a study by the N.C. Budget & Tax Center in a March 21, 2007, article by Jonathan Cox at the N&O, the method NC uses to estimate benefits to be gained from large give-aways to lure business to NC is flawed. This means lawmakers making key decisions to give away future income and tax benefits to companies in exchange for building in NC are based on misleading information that does not accurately predict the benefits of the deals.

"Instead of pumping millions of dollars into state coffers, some economic development deals might actually be costing revenue and hurting taxpayers, according to the study by the N.C. Budget & Tax Center, a non-profit group that advocates for the poor."

Read the complete article...

News and Observer
March 2q1, 2007
Jonathan B. Cox, Staff Writer

Report challenges N.C.'s incentives formula

State officials overestimate the benefits gained from companies that get rich incentives to expand in North Carolina, a report says.

Instead of pumping millions of dollars into state coffers, some economic development deals might actually be costing revenue and hurting taxpayers, according to the study by the N.C. Budget & Tax Center, a non-profit group that advocates for the poor.

At issue is a computer spreadsheet that Department of Commerce officials use to assess economic development deals. They plug in variables -- from the number of jobs expected to the amount of sales an operation will generate -- to determine whether future benefits will outweigh the costs.

The report says that the model is flawed and that officials too often use inflated assumptions that make projects look better than they are... Read more...

NC Issued 27,000 licenses on invalid social security numbers

More alarming news from the office of Les Merritt, our state auditor working on the state payroll and in his own personal business.

North Carolina has issued some 27,000 drivers licenses on invalid social security numbers. Why is this a big problem? This means that thousands of drivers licenses accepted for identification in all sorts of situations can't be traced back to known US citizens and could be used for virtually any purpose and could allow holders to gain access to places they should not be allowed into, cash checks or withdraw funds illegally, etc.

In a state audit report released March 20th it has been stated that "auditors don’t know if the invalid Social Security numbers were intentionally used to obtain licenses" according to Chris Mears, a spokesman for the auditor’s office. “We’re assuming that some of those simply will be keypunch errors [by DMV clerks], but we thought that 27,000 was a big number,” Mears said.

Yeah, right. This is a pretty large blunder to simply write off to possible data entry errors. This means we could have hundreds or thousands of unscrupulous people loose in the state that have accepted means of identification that could now gain access to many places where they can do harm or proceed to arrange further means to obtain funds or illegal accounts or whatever might serve their purposes without anyone knowing it.

Read the report out today..

News and Observer
March 20, 2007
Dane Kane

27,000 licenses on invalid Social Security numbers

A state audit released today has found that North Carolina has issued roughly 27,000 drivers licenses to motorists based on invalid Social Security numbers.

State Auditor Les Merritt said the problem lies with licenses issued under an older system that the state Division of Motor Vehicles now uses. The new system, which the division began using in August, checks Social Security numbers automatically before issuing licenses. The old system did not.

“The hole we discovered was that DMV did not review previously issued licenses," Merritt said in a news release. “That hole presents a potential threat to homeland security and exacerbates the problem of identity theft.” Read more...

So... get rid of NC's Surplus Property Commission

Commission wasting taxpayer dollars? The solution here is pretty straight forward. Just get rid of the Surplus Property Commission. Seems like a no-brainer...

In the photo at left by John Rottet... James Lamm, an Alamance County farmer, has offered $400,000 for 112 acres that the state owns next to his farm, but his proposal was rejected. The N.C. National Guard says it plans to use that land, although it has not done so in 15 years.

If this commission was created in the Jim Black era and hasn't produced any results then it should not exist. This is yet another example of waste in North Carolina's government and needs to be eliminated as soon as possible. According to Jim Troxler, a Republican who has worked with the commission on several properties "Members of the public shouldn't have any confidence in a commission that deals the way this one does."

News and Observer
March 18, 2007
J. Andrew Curliss, Staff Writer

Surplus property panel raises doubts

Three years ago, in tight budget times, legislators came up with an idea few argued over: A new commission would seek help from real estate interests to sell land and buildings the state doesn't need.

The sales would add millions to the state's treasury. Properties would return to local tax rolls. Brokers and agents who spotted the surplus properties would get a cut of the action.

But so far, the N.C. Commission on State Property has not produced a single sale.

The commission's work has been stymied by ethics questions, poor choices, political maneuvering and resistance from state agencies that owned land the commission targeted, according to interviews and a review of documents by The News & Observer. Read more...