Newspapers / The Perquimans Weekly (Hertford, … / Nov. 9, 1989, edition 1 / Page 1
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THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY _Vo)ume 58, Mo.45 USPS 42S 0M Hertford, Perquimam County^N C. Thursday, November 9, 1989 30CEMTS Voters g!ve go-ahead to tand transfer tax Briefs Recycting day set Saturday * The Albemarle Environmental Association is organizing a mini-re cyciing center on Nov. 11 at Ward's Shopping Center, Hwy. 17 opposite Hardee's in Hertford. Cash will be paid to anyone who brings items to be recycled be tween the hours of 10 a m. and 4 p.m. Materials that will be ac cepted for payment inciude glass, all colors; hard plastic, such as !? milk jugs, soda bottles and deter gent or oil containers; metals, in cluding aluminum cans or foil, brass and copper; car batteries and radiators. Tin, cardborad, and all kinds of paper will be accepted without payment. Best payment is received if articles are sorted gen erally by type (plastic, glass, metal, paper). Area residents are urged to par ? ticipate in this recycling event. Re cent statistics show that if individuals support a recycling movement, more than 50 per cent of materials currently being depos ited in the landfill can be recycled. This savings of landfill space trans lates directly into savings in tax dollars. For more information, call 426-9563. Schoo! system to observe Nationa! Week The Perquimans County school system will be celebrating Ameri can Education Week November 12 18,1989. American Education Week will be 68 years old this year. The goal of American Education Week is to increase public understanding and appreciation of the nation's schools, to encourage parents and interested persons to visit schools and to build civic and community support for education. "Learning and Liberty: Our ; Roots, Our Future" is the theme for this year's celebration. There is no question that learning is the keystone of our liberty, and that our roots of democracy are inter wined with education from the one room schoolhouse in the wilderness to Harvard and Stanford and Cal Tech and MIT and all the other great colleges and universities across our land. American educa tion-leaming and liberty-has its roots in the founding of America. The leaders of the American Revo lution saw education as a key to preserving liberty, securing unity, promoting good citizenship and de veloping its resources. They be lieved education would help maintain the union of states, an un tied people and a foundation of de mocracy. They were right! But, what about our future? What about our nation's /future and that of its schools? As we approach the 21st Century in a rapidly changing, technological, computerized, somewhat uncertain and at times rootless world; this is a perplexing question. Please support our schools as we continue to strive to meet the chal lenges of today and prepare our students for the future. TBs is also a time to think back to those special teachers or school personnel who have made a difference in our lives Mf M7H/MWH Hertford voters re e)ect Beers and Haste - Race is won by very sma!! margin Hertford voters re-elected encumbents John Beers and Erie Haste to their town council in a very close race Tuesday. Beers came out on top, taking 27.26 percent of the votes cast. The 26-year council veteran garnered 259 votes, the most tallied for any candidate. Two-time council member Erie Haste narrowly edged by contender Bill Glover. Haste received 187 votes to Glover 's 181. The Rev. John London placed fourth in the race with 179 votes, only two less than third vote-getter Glover. Vance Hoover took 13.47 percent of the votes with 128. Jordan Bonner received 16 votes. Most of the small crowd gathered at the courthouse door when the votes were posted expressed surprise at how close the numbers were for each candidate. Beers commented on his victory, T certainly want to express my appreciation and thanks to all those who supported me in this." He also stated that he was very pleased to see two young people concerned enough about the town to seek office. "I'm very pleased to have come out with one of the seats," Haste said ofhis close race. Political newcomer Glover said, "Good race. It was very close." He was pleased with the support shown him for his first try at town government. Til see them (the voters) in two years," Hoover commented. He expressed his thanks to the voters who came out to support the candidates of their choice. John London said, "We'll come back," seemingiy indicating his intention to seek office in the next elec tion. Bonner was not present at the poll. Because each voter was askea to vote for two candi dates, it is difficult to analyze exactly what the voters said in this race. Although both incumbents were re-seated, the votes they received together totaled 446. The challengers collected 504 votes. Does this mean that the voters are satisfied with the status quo, or that they want a change that was not reflected in the election? No exit polls were set up, so it is impossible to answer the question. Winfall In an election with no race, Winfall voters put Mayor C.W. "Bill" Bartlett, William Ray Miller and Shirley Yates back in office. Bartlett and Mrs. Yates both re ceived 85 votes, while 66 votes were cast for Miller. Bartlett will begin serving his second term as mayor in January. Mrs. Yates was appointed to fill a vacancy on the board, and was elected for the first time by vot ers. Miller is a veteran of the council. Candidates posted signs outside Hertford's poiiing piaces asking for voter support, incumbents John Beers and Erie Haste were re seated in a ctose race. 6!v!ng a p!nt of Mfo The Perquimans High Beta Ciub sponsored a very successfui American Red Cross bioodmobiie tast Thursday in the high schooi gymnasium. Over 90 students and teachers attempted to donate biood. The drive surpassed its goat of 50 pints by 20 units, coiiecting 70 pints of biood. For more detaits, see the PCHS Datetine coiumn on page 9. Tax amnesty !egis!ation working in state Legisiation passed by the 1989 General Assembly aimed at col lecting thousands of dollars in de linquent taxes has already begun paying off. North Carolinians are paying. Prompted by findings of the Se lect Legislative Committee on Tax Fairness, legislators voted for a pe riod of amnesty for individuals and corporations from Sept. 1 to Dec. 1. Taxes that were either unpaid or unreported in years past can be cleared up in this three-month pe riod, with no criminal penalties or consequences. The 1989 report from the Commit tee on Tax Fairness indicated that $25 million in back taxes could be collected through the amnesty pro gram. To date, approximately $3 million in delinquent taxes have been reported to revenue officials. The Amnesty Program is not lim ited to income taxes. Other taxes included in this program are sales and use, inheritance, gift, intan gible, license, franchise, motor fu els and inspection taxes. The amnesty period provides a chance for individuals and busi nesses to settle the score with the state in back taxes without penalty. However, after the amnesty period ends, the penalties for tax evasion will increase significantly, ranging from a (1,000 fine and six months imprisonment to a (25,000 fine and five years imprisonment for willful evaders. One reason for stiffer penalties is that more than (300 million in state and local taxes go uncollected each year, according to some estimates. The burden this places on the state budget, and consequently on honest taxpayers, is both unfair and over whelming. At present, 31 states have insti tuted amnesty programs, with good resuits. Not only does the Amnesty Pro gram promise North Carolina up to $25 million this year. The stiffer pe nalties will encourage former non taxpayers to pay, generating an es timated $69 million in recurring revenue in subsequent years. Early results indicate that the Amnesty Program is an effective approach to the problem of regain ing lost tax revenues. The General Assembly believes that giving peo ple a chance to make a fresh start will lead to more accurate and thor ough tax reporting and payment in the years ahead. CdorhgcMtMtwhMM The winners of THE PERQUiMANS WEEKLY'S "Coior Me Spooky " Haiioween coioring contest were (ieft to right) Renee Jordan. 8 to 10-year-oids; Erin Daie, 5 to 7-year-otds; and Crysta) Kirby, 11 to 13 year-otds. The winners received prizes from Woodard's Pharmacy, Apricot, inc. and Peoptes Bank and Trust Company, respectiveiy. Receiving honorabie mention were Eionda Copeiand, 5 to 7-year-oids; Aahiey Hurdie, 8 to 10-year-oids; and Kristie Roberson, 11 to 13-year-o)ds. - Land transfer tax referendum passes The much-touted land transfer tax referendum was given the sup port of Perquimans voters Tuesday by a 669 to 580 margin. The county commissioners and school board members endorsed the measure that the county com missioners promise wii! be used to fund capita! outlay projects for the school system. According to the wording in the referendum, the county commis sioners now have the authority to ievy up to a 1 percent tax on land transfers. The monies must be used for capital outlay projects. The facilities needs in the school system have reached critical pro portions. Waste water treatment systems must be installed at Cen tral and Perquimans Middle schools over the next two to three years. Failure to construct the sys tems could result in heavy fines le vied against the county. The middle school has inade quate space for the present enroll ment, and state projections show an increase in pupils over the next few years. Construction and/or ma jor renovations are needed at that site. Central School is over flowing. The schools maintenance depart ment has built a mobile umt to house students at that facility, and still space is limited. Dr. Mary Jo Martin has re quested the services of a structural engineer to determine what the fu ture holds for the vocational build ing at the high school. If the cost of renovating is too great, other alter natives must be found to deal with the resulting loss of space. In Hertford Grammar School, two storage ciosets now house classrooms, and just this week a wall between the former teacher's lounge and a storage area was re moved to make room for a com puter lab. County Manager Paul Gregory reviewed iand transfers over the past few years. Basing his projec tions on those transfers, Gregory estimates that approximately $125,000 per year can be collected through the implementation of the land transfer tax. Although these monies alone will not be sufficient to fund all the capi ta! needs in the school system, they can be added to state matching grant funds to help ease the ad val orem tax burden on county taxpay ers. At a matching grant rate of $3 of state money for every $1 of local funds, the $125,000 could feasibly turn into $600,000 per year in avail able capital outlay monies. In order to generate $600,000 in ad valorem taxes, the county would have to add approximately 24 cents per $100 valuation to the present tax rate. That would add about $120 in taxes to the owners of property va lued at $50,000 on the county's tax books. Gregory and Dr. Martin visited several civic groups explaining the land transfer tax and soliciting sup port for the measure. Gregory was confident that the voters would stand behind the levy. The tax will be implemented 30 days after the county commission ers approve it. They are expected to move immediately. Board adjusts water bitts The county commissioners ad justed three water bills and heard a water department report at their Monday morning meeting. Harry Lee Winslow told the com missioners that muskrats had caused a cave-in and subsequent water line break on a three-quarter inch pipe which ran to his farm op eration. The leak was undetected until Winslow read the meter which indicated that 353,000 gallons of wa ter had been used during the billing period. The usage resulted in a wa ter bill of $782.90. The commission ers cut the bill to $400. Jimmy Winslow had called and reported that his water consump tion had jumped dramatically be ginning early in 1989. The usage went back to earlier levels after a new meter was installed recently. The board voted to credit Winslow for his overcharges during the months the meter's accuracy is in question. Mrs. Jake White received a credit equal to one-half of her bill of $133.90. Although Mrs. White was not at home most of the month the bill was charged, the water usage climbed from 2,000 gallons to 80,000 mMrs. White's homeaccounted for the increased consumption Water supervisor Russ Chappell told the commissioners that his staff is ready to begin renovations at the Bethel water plant. Only one well will be shut down at the time to prevent water shortages during the renovation period. County manager Paul Gregory stated that complaints about water quality have been minimal over the past few months. Commission chairman Lester Simpson said he had been ap proached about marking fire hy drants along the county 's roads to make them more visibie at night. Commissioner Wayne Winsiow, aiso fire chief in Winfaii, suggested imbedding biue reflectors on the roadsides in fire of fire hydrants. County extension chairman Stan Winsiow invited the commissioners to the Farm-City Week observance on Friday, Nov. 17. He aiso re viewed with the board severai ex tension programs including livestock waste management, the Festival of Skills, the upcoming soybean festival and the state's 4-H capital campaign. Winslow reported that some farmers are using livestock and poultry wastes as fertilizer. Com missioner Thomas Nixon said that he had heard complaints about the odor resulting from the practice of spraying the waste on farmland. Winslow replied that odor and run off into creeks and swamps are problems associated with th fertili zation. He suggested that a drilling method might help. Gregory told the commissioners that (13,269 has been made avail able by the state to help fund the transit system. Under Che program, transportation is provided to medi cal facilities, the nutrition site, vo cational rehabilitation, social security and social services. The board voted to use AT&T) long distance services at pay tele-} phones throughout the county
The Perquimans Weekly (Hertford, N.C.)
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Nov. 9, 1989, edition 1
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