Orange County commissioners say they prefer to wait and determine how much revenue is generated and what programs and facilities show the most need. "We are not going to take action based on a projection," said Commissioner Barry Jacobs. "We'll have a better idea in February."
The sales tax will go into effect Dec. 1. It was authorized by Orange County after the N.C. General Assembly approved a state budget that withheld reimbursements from local governments and cut funding to some state departments.
"Direct cuts to Orange County are somewhere between 1.4 (million) to 1.5 million dollars," said Orange County Budget Director Donna Dean.
The county also will be affected by indirect cuts made to agencies such as schools for which the county is responsible, she said.
Commissioner Margaret Brown said state budget cuts have passed the tax burden on to the local level.
"(They are) forcing the county to raise taxes or forcing the quality of life to deteriorate," she said.
Revenues of $1.2 million from the half-cent sales tax have been projected for this fiscal year. Receipt of an additional $600,000 in revenues is projected for August.
Allocations will depend on the actual amount of money resulting from the tax. "If the revenues fall short, then probably we'll be more conservative," Jacobs said.
According to reports from Dean, items that might be considered for receipt of the tax revenues include the N.C. Public School Building Funds, funding for employee pay and benefits and some portion of the county's fund balances.
