Madison County
Library
Marshall, N.C. 28753
VOL. 70 NUMBER 58
MARSHALL, N. C. THURSDAY, JANUARY 28, 1971
10c PER copy
Sales Tax Ruling Stuns Legislators
Organization of the House in
the General Assembly was
completed this week, one
highlighted by the State
Supreme Court's ruling that the
local option sales tax adopted in
1969 is null and void for the 25
counties which' adopted it.
The legislators begin sear
ching for ways to resume
collection of the tax as the
counties affected faced budget
crisis of major proportions.
Warnings were sounded,
however, that it probably would
be up to six months before any
authorization could be adopted
that would stand up under the
court's objections.
Rep. Ernest Messer of
Canton, earlier named chair
man of the Appropriations
Subcommittee on Health,
Welfare and Correctional
Institutions, was named vice
chairman of Manufacturing and
I.abor and a member of com
mittees on Congressional
Fvstriets, Higher Education,
Special Service and Em
ployment Security, and Con
servation and Development.
Rep. Liston Ramsey of
Marshall was named chairman
of the State legislative District
Committee, vice chairman of
Finance and Election 1-aws, and
is a member of committees on
Education, Banks and Banking,
Local C.overnment and
University Trustees.
Ramsey and Messer filed a
bill last week asking a $200,000
appropriation for the establish
ment of a Mitchell, Avery, empower the boards of county decision. Scott said he would
Yancey County Technical In- commissioners to ( 1 ) levy the opposed any move to enact the
stitute. one-cent sales tax on their own tax statewide as asked by the
Gov. Bob Scott proposed motion or (2) submit the Buncombe delegation.
Friday that the assembly question to the voters for a in a test case filed by the
Hajoca Corporation of
Asheville, the court ruled that
the tax was null and void in that
it taxed in Buncombe goods
purchased for delivery in a non-
Credit Risk List Alerts Businessmen
Check and Blance of Western
North Carolina is publishing a
monthly book about local residents
who have long overdue bills. The
firm uses a computer so all in
formation provided by participating
local business and professional
people is current.
Although not a credit rating
concern nor a collection agency, the
Check and Balance organization
has proven in less than four years a
definite "curb" to bad credit
decisions and an aid in recovering
"delinquencies" without additional
charges for service.
"Any merchant or firm can save
money by using the system," states
Mrs. Mary Fonder. Account
Kxecutive.
"We guarantee in writing that
over the course of a year; if the
subscriber utilizes our program,
monies will be recovered that are
normally thought uncollectible or
our company will reimburse any
expenditures on the part of the
subscriber," Mrs. Ponder said.
Of a confidential nature, hand
from many sources that never
before had reported their delinquent
accounts.
Recoveries are based on the
premise (hat most people will take
care of outstanding obligations
rather than risk publication.
Mrs. Ponder of Marshall is the
wife of Lawrence Ponder and a
former teacher in the Walnut School.
She accepted the position with Check
& Balance several weeks ago and
has several clients in Madison and
Bunrnil counties.
tax county; also that the
election was held statewide but
the outcome was not put into
effect statewide
Scott formally put forward his
budget proposals last Thursday
and ran into stiff objections
from educators, more than 1,000
of whom assembled in a N C
Association of Educators rally
'Hie NCAE wants an ap
propriation of $201! million to
provide a 1(0 per cent pay hike
(luring the biennium to bring
teachers salaries up to the
national average Scott asked
for a 10 per cent increase
costing $(3 million.
One sign at the rally
proclaimed: "I suffer from low
pay. three-month lay-off, no
hospitalization and no paid
holidays."
Scott said other state em
ployes are below national
norms and that the state's per
capita income and ability to
support higher salaries are
below the national average
New Members To Be
Stilted By OEO Tonight
New Tax Listing Deadline
list taxpayers
The Opportunity Corp. of
Madison-Buncombe counties
announced last Thursday that
three new members from
Madison County will be seated
on the 24-member board at its
meeting tonight (Thursday).
Lawrence M. Kelly,
execuive director of the
President Nixon Lauds Farm
Productivity Record
Resident Nixon recently
praised American farmers for
providing this country's
people the best food in the
world at a lower percentage of
family income than is
provided for any other country
in the world. For this, he said,
the nation owes American
agriculture a very great debt.
He cited the fact that the
area of the American
economy that has had the
greatest growth in produc
tivity is American
agriculture, and said this has
not been adequately reflected
in agricultural income.
This report on the President
singling out American
agriculture for high praise
was supplied by Mallie Brown,
chairman of the North
Carolina Agricultural
Stabilization and Con
servation (ASC) Committee.
Brown said, "I believe not
only farmers but others as
well will be particularly in
terested in these comments by
the President. We who help
administer farm programs for
the U. S. Department of
Agriculture have often
reminded our urban friends
that Americans are the best
fed people in the world at the
lowest real cost because of the
efficiency of American
agriculture. It is heartening to
have the President state this
and other basic facts about
agriculture."
In his remarks. President
Nixon referred to the new
Commission on Productivity,
with a membership of top
leaders representing
American industry, labor,
the academic community, and
agriculture, saying that, "a
very significant point was
made, not only in the first
meeting, but in the second and
third. On every occasion, it
was this: That area of the
American economy that has
had the greatest growth in
productivity and that has the
highest productivity per man
hour, any way you want to
rate it, is American
agriculture."
Upon hearing this fact, the
President said he checked
further and found that "we
are the best fed people, but at
the lowest cost, the lowest
percentage of our income, of
Turn to page 8
OKO agency, said Zeno
Ponder. Kobert Kdwards and
Harold Anderson, who were
appointed by the Madison
County Board of Com
missioners, will replace
former State Sen William
Powell, board chairman,
William .ink and Walter
Harrell.
Kelly said the question, on
which he got a ruling last
Thursday from the legal
division of OKO in Atlanta,
was whether "public ap
pointees" were to serve a
certain term or at the
discretion of the appointing
body-the commissioners.
The Atlanta office ruling, he
said, was that the appointed
members were to serve at the
commissioners' discretion.
Appeal Upheld
The North Carolina
Supreme Court has notified
the Clerk of Superior Court of
Madison County that the
verdict of manslaughter
against Donald Ledford in the
death of Wade Shook, of Mars
Hill Route 3, has been
reversed.
Ledford, a resident of
Tennessee who was employed
at Bald Mountain, was tried in
a special term of superior
court here last June with
Judge W. K. McLean
presiding. A jury found him
guilty of negligence as his car
struck Shook, an 80-year-old
resident of the Smith Creek
area. Ledford was sentenced
to a 5-7 year term. An appeal
was taken and the Supreme
Court upheld the appeal.
Fmery Metcalf, county tax which to list your taxes
supervisor, announced tnis ine extension oi tune is uue
week that time has been ex- to a late start in listing and the Metcalf stated that the same
tended from the end of heavy schedule of listers who ''sters will continue as
January until February 15 in have not had sufficient tune to previously named
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Wedding Ceremony for Cats
Groom Blackie and bride Miml glance at each-other as they go through a mar
riage ceremony conducted by Anthony Manning, in Ilford, England. He reads a
passage from Genesis about the creation of animals while Richard Green sits
at the piano, waiting to play the wedding march. It's all part of the free service
offered by the newlyformed Cats' Association for Rights of Life. Said founder
Manning: "We simply want to help people to understand their cats better. They
are not getting the respect they deserve." After the wedding, the pets' owner, a
spinster wbo requested anonymity, said: "I'm sure that Miml will soon have
kittens by Blackie and I think it's more fitting if they are married."