Board of County Commissioners - Regular Meeting

Everyone, thank you so much for joining us for our Durham County Board of Commissioners August 10th regular session. I am not Chair Lee, but I will be overseeing this meeting with the start of the public charge. The Board of Commissioners asks its members and residents to conduct themselves in a respectful, courteous manner, both with the board and fellow residents. At any time, should any member of the board or any resident fail to observe this public charge, the chair will ask the offending person to leave the meeting until that individual regains personal control. Should decorum fail to be restored, the chair will recess the meeting until such time that a genuine commitment to the public charge is observed. Commissioner Burton, would you like to read the land acknowledgment?

Yes, more than honored to. Thank you. As we convene for the Durham County Commissioners' Meeting, it's crucial to recognize the painful truth of history. We stand on the stolen ancestral lands of the Catawba, Eno, Oconeeche, Chicory, and Tuscarora peoples whose deep connection to this land predates our arrival. We acknowledge with humility the unjust displacement and violence that occurred, leading to the dispossession of indigenous peoples from their homelands. Their resilience in the face of such adversity is a testament to their strength and spirit. May we humbly honor the ancestors and elders of these nations. both past and present, by committing ourselves to fostering understanding, healing, and justice for all who inhabit this land. Let us walk forward together with open hearts, acknowledging the past and embracing a future guided by compassion, respect, and unity.

Thank you, Commissioner Burton. Commissioner Valentine, would you like to lead us in the pledge? Thank you, Commissioner Valentine. Now I will entertain any adjustments to the agenda. Hearing none, I'll entertain a motion to approve the agenda. So moved.

Second.

Okay, moved by Commissioner Burton, seconded by Commissioner Valentine. All in favor say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed? The agenda is approved. Before I pass it to our clerk for announcements, also I'll entertain a motion for an excused absence for Chair Lee. So moved. second moved by commissioner jacobs second by commissioner valentine all in favor say aye aye any opposed passes unanimously clerk wallace good evening everyone i will read the announcements published in tonight's agenda

Durham County residents will soon receive their 2026 tax bills in the mail. The Durham County Tax Administration mailed annual property tax bills on August 10th, 2026. Current year taxes are due September 1st, 2026 and can be paid without penalty through January 5th, 2027. Information on tax payment options, the countywide tax rate, how to calculate your tax bill and property tax relief programs for homeowners, can be found online, and there is a link. Taxpayers may also access and view their 2026 tax bill online as well, and there is a link. The Durham County Board of Elections is seeking precinct officials for the upcoming election cycles. Precinct officials play a vital role in maintaining order at polling locations, verifying voter eligibility, assisting voters with ballots, and helping ensure the integrity of the voting process. To learn more or apply to serve as a precinct official, there is a link to apply. In the coming months, the Durham City Council and Board of County Commissioners will vote on Durham's cultural roadmap, a long-term plan shaped by years of community input to guide arts and cultural investment over the next decade. Before the vote, you're invited to learn what's included in the draft plan. Join a community presentation covering the vision, four pillars, and 10 recommendations developed through extension resident engagement. Seats are limited and registration is recommended. There is a link for both. Individuals who need help completing the paperwork and steps required to apply for Social Security Disability or SSI can stop by the main library on Thursday, August 20th for the SSI slash SSDI outreach access and recovery SOAR disability clinic. More information can be found at the Durham County Library site. Four months of community listening, data analysis, and a three-day summit, the Violence Reduction Working Group has officially released its recommendations. The City of Durham and Durham County have established a joint mission reducing homicides, non-fatal shootings, and hospitalizations due to shootings by 10% each year. Grounded in local data and direct input from over 400 residents, these recommendations outline five core strategies focused on high-risk support and accountability, street outreach safeguards, neighborhood partnerships, trauma-informed practices, and a dedicated youth summit. Read the full report on the working group recommendations. There is a link. And for more information on next steps following the summit on saving lives, you can visit the city's webpage at www.durhamnc.gov. That concludes the announcements published in tonight's agenda.

Thank you, Clerk Wallace. Are there any additional announcements? Commissioner Burton?

Thank you so much. I just wanted to talk about, on last Friday, I attended the Greater Durham Attendance Summit. It was put on by Durham Public Schools, and it brought about community members throughout the community, things like that, to talk about the issue with chronic absenteeism within DPS communities. particularly after COVID, and so I wasn't able to stay a whole long time, but I did learn that for the 2025-2026 school year, 33.7% of DPS students were chronically absent, and that could be an excused or unexcused absence, and so What is chronic absenteeism? That's if you miss 10% or more of school days in a year. So there are 180 days in a school year, 185, so that means a student in DPS missed 18.5 days of school for that year. And so what an issue it is. And so community members came together to figure out, okay, how can we solve some of these solve this issue because we want to make sure our kids are in school that they're getting their education and We know that it's a multifaceted problem So I just wanted to uplift that that this is something that we as a wider Durham Community have to work on to make sure our kids are in school getting the education that they need.

So thank you so much Thank You Commissioner Burton And thank you for representing the county and the meeting Commissioner Jacobs

Yes, thank you, Commissioner Burton. And that's the average, and so it ranges for actual schools. And I know, for example, that Jordan High School, it's like 49%. So I'm really glad that people are working on it, that there was this convening. I was at the RTA, Regional Transportation Alliance brunch. I couldn't attend, but... It's really, really critical issue and I'm glad that people are starting to work together on this. Thank you for being there. I wanted to highlight, I attended the 14th cohort graduation last week of the Bulls Academy. That's our building up local life science academy that we do in partnership with Durham Tech. now Southern High School, and also the Biotech Center and Durham Tech. And there were 10 graduates, and it was, it is, I can't explain it, but I was saying to Commissioner Valentine, we should have a graduation here so that the larger community can see what it's like to see up front the transformational impact that this program has. on people's lives and on young people and their families. This is a pipeline for young people ages 18 to 24 to get into the good paying jobs that we have in life sciences, in RTP. That is such a big part of the system that we're trying to create in Durham. The speaker was a graduate from last year who already has a job now at United Therapeutics, and one of the graduates already has two job offers in RTP. So, again, it's a good reminder that this is what it's all about, investing in people in our community. So I just wanted to share that. And also, we were all at the NACO conference a few weeks ago. I know you'll hear more about that. And I mentioned before that I was going to be having lunch. This is also workforce-related at a restaurant called Cafe Reconcile. in New Orleans, and it was incredible. The food was amazing. Also, another program that really tries to transform the lives of disconnected youth and justice-involved youth. But one of the things that it reminded me of is that even with our Bulls program, that this program, even if the graduates don't end up in the hospitality industry, which of course is huge in New Orleans, that they still benefit from all of the type of training about being in the workforce that results. And so that was one of my takeaways was that what we're doing with the Bulls is also important. So I just wanted to share that. Thank you.

Thank you, Commissioner Jacobs. I had two announcements. Commissioner Valentine, did you have any? Okay. The first one I wanted to bring up also related to NACO. I know I've mentioned this to each of my colleagues and I forgot to bring the box with me, but I'll bring it to our next meeting to show while we were at NACO and I was touring the different vendors and seeing what programs and services other counties are implementing, there was a really amazing company that's creating these things called One Box, which is essentially like a first aid kit of Narcan that not only do they have multiple doses of Narcan in it, when you open it, it has a small screen that automatically starts playing an instructional video for any individual who see someone having an emergency, it walks them through how to confirm that somebody is experiencing an overdose, how to administer the Narcan and what the next steps are supposed to take, as well as having a button to be able to click it in Spanish and watch the video in Spanish and also a button that turns it into a like a tutorial class so that you can even have staff trainings all with this one box um and i know i've shared this information with uh you know our county staff as well but i think i'll bring it to our next meeting and i'd really like our board to you know have future conversations because i know we've had a really amazing success with you know our public health department having um vending machines installed within outside the within the entrance of the Durham County Jail, but also looking at, you know, we can get vending machines maybe everywhere, but these types of boxes would be really helpful for us to have at other places Durham County spaces like our public libraries, like public health, social services for our residents. And it's also much, much, much cheaper than having a full vending machine placed in and to be able to provide this emergency response for residents, God forbid, if they need it. And so I'll bring that box to show everyone at our next meeting. The other item that I had was also two more items. I had the privilege of going on this Saturday on a tour of our Durham Farmer's Market with the Triangle Double Bucks program. And I think I've made an announcement about them in the past about their There are Wednesday afternoon programs that they have for kids that if you bring your kids to the farmer's market on Wednesday from 3 to 6 p.m., they can get, I think it's double bucks, to be able to spend. And it teaches financial responsibility to children, but also allows them to get some healthy, fresh fruits and vegetables. But the Triangle Double Bucks program is a program that's for anyone who is currently recipients of SNAP, WIC, Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program, Sun Bucks, or a resident of public housing, DHA. And as we see cuts coming from the federal level and state level to our SNAP and WIC benefits, I really urge folks to tell their neighbors that they should apply for this program and I'd also like us as a county to look into what ways we can make sure that residents who are eligible that we maybe service in other programs that we help them enroll in it so to remove any barriers of folks who may not know that exist if they already come to public health and they could benefit from this let's help them enroll if they come to social services let's help them enroll because unfortunately we're going to see a greater and greater need of folks not being able to have the basic necessity of groceries. The last item I had was I wanted to recognize that Last week, not sorry, not last week, two weeks ago, on July 24th, a young man, Prisciliano Trejo Recano, a 29-year-old Mexican man from Durham, died while in ICE detention at the Stewart Detention Center from leukemia after being held for three weeks and not receiving proper care while he was in detention. And even though we're not seeing these massive raids occurring as we saw months ago, ICE continues to traumatize our immigrant communities, come in and terrorize folks, kidnapping our neighbors. Brasiliano has been a resident of Durham since he was three years old. He hasn't known any other place. This was his home. And he was pulled over and taken by ICE after a traffic stop arrest. He's a graduate from Northern High School. He graduated in 2015, just four years younger than me. And I think it's important for all of us as a community to realize that our immigrant community is still being targeted and that we need to use every voice and platform that we have to call out this injustice because Prisciliano is gone and his family has lost him and they're never going to get him back. And there are individuals just like him who continue to be picked up by ICE, who are in ICE detention facilities not receiving basic care. treatment and also just no human should be kidnapped and no human is illegal on stolen land and so I hope that we continue to make sure that we're raising awareness about the actions of this federal government and how they're destroying our communities move to our ceremonial items first one starting i'll bring up coco which is very fitting to minutes oh yes thank you clerk wallace we have our meeting minutes from our july 13th meeting regular session um are there any adjustments to the minutes i'll move for approval second moved by commissioner jacob seconded by commissioner burton all in favor say aye aye any opposed minutes are approved Now I will pass it to Koku, our Immigrant and Refugee Affairs Coordinator, to celebrate Jerome's welcoming week.

Thank you. Thank you, everyone. I'm glad to be here and very happy to represent the immigrants and refugee community. I also want to say a huge thanks to the elected officials, the administration folks, for your vision and your support to the immigrants and refugee community. Thank you.

And Nayo, I hear that the county has received a special certification. Would you like to share more about that?

Yes, I will say just a little bit and Donna will add more. We apply for the county and the city to be certified work army. I want to make sure that I clear up this point. Certified work army is not sanctuary city. It's completely different. It's a process that the local government will have to go through and make sure that we have policies and programs in place to help immigrants and refugees integrate our community. So we qualify for star one. It's actually to five stars, but we are in progress to come up to get there. I also wanted to mention that there's only 49 cities and counties in the whole US to be certified were coming. So a huge applaud to Durham for the work that we are doing and the step that we're putting forward.

i would just like to add um i i want to thank nio as well as our departments both in the county and in the city because in order to obtain a certification like this you have to bring a lot of data and information together and you really have to show where the rubber meets the road and the work that we're doing every day and i think that can be hard to navigate we're all busy people and i think i just really want to applaud nio for really sticking with both of our local governments to get this information together to work through this process i think we can bring you back some more complete information about this. We do have a nice framed version of the certification, so we can come back and give the report in a longer form. I think it's also helpful to know that the report and the work also provides some vision and direction for how we can continue to improve. because there's more than one star that you can have. We have our first one, and we're very proud of that. But I'm also just proud of the team. I'm proud of the work and the collaboration across our local governments. And so I'm really excited about that. And I also want to give Nayo his flowers, too. So thank you.

Thank you so, so much for providing, you know, information about that. And also thank you, NIO, because this is something I know you set out to do and work on when this position was first created. And you have stayed steadfast to get this certification for us, for Durham County. as well as for the city, I will say, because I have a competitive nature. The city did get two stars and got one. So for us as a board to look at, you know, how can we catch up to our city counterparts or even pass them to get three stars. And I would love for you to share more about, you know, what are those areas that would have, could make the difference to get us to the two-star, three-star, four-star, five.

Very briefly, I think we can get to three stars the next time we go for it. We have learned a lot from this process. There are a bit of shortcomings, but they're not difficult to get over. know that we are working on getting everyone the accessibility to all the programs, go to all the resources, going with, let's say, the language aspect part of it, for instance, was a huge detriment for us not to go to two stars. But we know that accessibility is not only a language issue. It's also on ADA and all of that. So working together and getting folks the opportunity to access services through those means will get her to three stars next time, which means that I'm setting the bar high. That's good. I like it.

Thank you, Naya, and I did not know about this, so congratulations. This is really important. I would love to hear any recommendations that you do have for us in terms of how we can get to two and then three stars, especially if it's things that we can help address. So I look forward to hearing that from you. I also wanted to share, I am a member of the National Association of County Officials Immigration Advisory Council, and I was just reappointed as a vice chair of that body. And during our meeting in New Orleans, and I know we need to connect on this, but we had a report from the director of the federal office of refugee resettlement came to our meeting and there's going to be a big shift in the way the federal government runs refugee resettlement. Um, they are going to be shifting more to the state and local level. And I'm hoping that what you just shared will put us in a better position. with the change in the policies. I think it's also important to recognize how important this is that we are better at helping the refugees that we do have in our community because it is really concerning that the number of refugees coming into our country is trickling to a very small number. And so we need to really step up our game because of that, I think, even more. And also, this past week, we had a chamber report submitted mid Atlantic mid year economic report. And it was really, really interesting. They shared the data showing that a lot of our population growth in Durham over the last few years has been in migration of people from outside the country. And so it'll be interesting to see what happens, the impact of all these federal policies around refugees, the impact it has on our workforce in Durham, because that's where a lot of the growth has actually been. And so, again, the work that you're leading is even more important because, again, we want to make sure the refugees we have here stay here and they can be in the workforce and really flourish, and their families as well. So thank you so much.

Thank you.

Commissioner Roundtine?

Madam Chair, would it be appropriate for us to read this into the record? I think that would be fitting.

Yes, I do not have a copy of it, though. I can have that, yes. Commissioner Roundtine, since you requested, would you like to read it yourself? Yes. You need to unmute.

Proclamation. Welcoming Week 2026. Whereas Welcoming Week is a national initiative that highlights the efforts of local communities working to foster greater understanding, connection, and civic engagement among all residents, longtime residents, and newcomers alike in celebration of the diverse experiences that enrich our shared community. And whereas the US Census data reflects that 15.4% of Durham County's population is foreign born compared to 13.8% nationally. This highlights the vibrant and diverse community that calls Durham home and reminds us of the value of inclusive community efforts and Durham County is committed to being a community where all residents, no matter their background or journey, feel a sense of belonging and are encouraged to participate fully in public life. And whereas, by supporting new Americans in building connections and opportunities and in fully participating in community life, Durham County seeks to strengthen trust, and promote shared values. These efforts help build a more cohesive and resilient community rooted in a shared sense of belonging. Now therefore, I, That would be you, Vice Chair. Night alarm. Vice Chair and on behalf of the Durham Board of County Commissioners do hereby proclaim September 10th through the 19th, 2026 as Welcoming Week in Durham County, North Carolina. We encourage all residents to take part in activities celebrating connection and community spirit, activities that promote mutual respect, civic participation and the shared goal of making dorm a place where every member of our community including new Americans has the opportunity to thrive and contribute we continue to nurture a community where everyone and I repeat everyone feels at home signed this 10th day of August 2026 night alum vice chair Durham Board of County Commissioners

Thank you, Commissioner Valentine. Thank you so much, Niall and Donna. Again, I did have one last question. I know since last year, we saw, unfortunately, that with Welcome Week, with everything that was happening out in the community, a lot of community members, out of fear, were not attending, and we've had to take considerations into what does Welcome Week look like in this new sphere of ice and cvp wondering how the county may be you know implementing different programs services to try to help reach our community members or try to like send community members information about how to take advantage of county programs and services

Thank you for that question. We all know that it's been very difficult for everyone. However, we are exhorting every single person in the county to give a hand to any new american that you know let them know you are here for them it is very important for us for folks to know that they have the support not only of the commissioners but also the durham community and to celebrate this year's welcoming week we planning to have a get together for service providers that help us get this designation. I think it is important to show them our appreciation. And we also are planning to invite staff at the city and the county to come together and kick a football, I mean, Thank you. Yeah, to kick soccer around. And very simply, everyone had seen how soccer had gathered a lot of folks from around the world. So we want to do something like that. inviting folks you over here don't worry if you don't know how to kick the ball it's fine come and join join in and run around and have a conversation with some folks and that's what we are trying to do just Make sure that the new American community in Durham know that we're here to support. We're here to provide the most support that we can to make them feel at home. And yeah.

I know I said last thing, but one last thing. Some trivia, because I know you like to trust us when we visit the Cooperative Extension. Can you share so folks know just how truly diverse our community is? I think you had a presentation you shared with us of how many languages or countries are represented within the Durham community.

The data has changed a little bit, but I will say that the highest number of countries that are here, we have folks from South America at the top, folks from India, folks from China, folks from the central region of Africa. Folks from, yeah, the data is a little bit, what I'm giving you is just an overview of it. It's not the accurate one. I can dig the accurate one and provide you that by ranking of those languages that we have in Durham.

Thank you. Thank you so much.

Thank you.

Our next item I'll pass to Manager Hager to read off some exciting achievements of the county.

Okay, this is quite exciting. We get to recognize that Durham County earned six NACO Achievement Awards and one Digital County Survey Award for 2026. That's fantastic. The board is requested to recognize six awards, and this NACO recognition has been in place since 1970. Durham County's award-winning programs are celebrated by NACO for 2026. And I know, Ms. Deborah, I didn't know if you want to pick up from here to recognize everyone, because I know you played a role with NACO. some of the coordination of information or I can continue. Okay.

Certainly we are very proud of our continuing innovative staff and all the great work they do. And it's really an honor each year for us to recognize these leaders. And I'm very happy to note that several of our departments are here this evening and we're gonna work to get a photo with the board and with those leaders before we end this item. So certainly the first item is 2025 inauguration of Durham County Women Veterans Recognition Day celebration with Durham County Veterans Services. Come up. We want to see who's doing all this great work. Thank you. The next Durham County UOCAVA, it's probably UOCAVA, ballot distribution tool that was coordinated with Durham County Elections and Durham County Information Services and Technology. Come up. We want to see our winners. Vaccine anti-misinformation campaign, Durham County Department of Public Health. Dr. Jenkins. Combating food insecurity in Durham with Durham's Food Security Network, Durham County Department of Public Health, and Durham County Cooperative Extension. I love it when our teams collaborate. Next, Stanford and Warren Branch Libraries, Native Pollinator Demonstration Garden, Durham County Library, and again, Durham County Cooperative Extension. and Durham County Exemplary Contingency Planning and Emergency Response Efforts, Durham County Board of Elections, and Durham County Office of Emergency Services. Anybody here from OES come up? Great. And those are the NACO awards, and certainly we also want to note that our Durham County Information Services and Technology team has been named a 2026 Durham County Survey Award winner by the Center for Digital Government and NACO. We are placing fourth this year among counties with populations between 250,000 and 499,000. And we keep moving up on the list. Greg, that's outstanding. Certainly congratulations to all, and let's get you all up front with the board to get pictures. Great work, great work, great work.

Congratulations, congratulations.

Commissioner Jacobs.

I just want to say thank you to all the staff who are here tonight to be recognized, but all of the departments, everyone who has been involved in this recognition. It's really amazing when you look at these awards. There are seven different departments, some being recognized multiple times. But the other thing that really jumped out at me is how many of these awards involve collaboration between departments. I think that is really remarkable. A number of these are different departments working together. So I really want to recognize the innovation, the creativity, the collaboration, the excellence. And at the end of the day, these are all initiatives that improve the lives of people in our community the services that we deliver and the functioning of Durham County government so again thank you so much and I want to add I think there was one other I know Deborah you had mentioned a lot the AI award that at IS&T also got from the Center for Public Sector AI. That's a new one, right? Because we know this is a new area. So again, it's really inspiring to see even in a new area that we are excelling. So thank you so much.

Commissioner Jacobs, and thank you so much to our amazing, amazing award-winning team here at Durham County. I feel like every year that I've been on the board, we have been receiving national awards, which I don't think every county, maybe even any county in North Carolina could say that we're consistently winning awards. So thank you all for being the best team in North Carolina and in the country to deliver services and resources to our residents.

Commissioner Burton yeah I just want to echo what you just said Vice Chair Alam because to go this is my second year going to NACO and to be recognized there are they always remind us there are 3,069 counties and for Durham County to be recognized for just stellar work that we're doing I mean, the thousands and thousands of people who are there who attend NACO, it's really, really an honor to know that our people are doing great work to serve the folks of Durham County. So thank you so much for your work. And I just want to give a shout out to Director Lindsey Atkins. He helped me with the situation, and I was able to get it solved. And shout out to Veterans Services. I'm so glad that they are here to help the veterans of Durham County. So thank you to you all.

Thank you so much. And that concludes our ceremonial items. And we will now move to consent agenda, which are mostly items that we reviewed at our work session. Are there any items that commissioners would like to pull? Commissioner Burton?

I don't have an item that I want to pull. I just want to highlight it. It's the letter that we are, it's item number 260424. BOCC letter to congressional delegation regarding delaying implementation of new SNAP rules. I just wanted to highlight that because July 1st came and that was the new law, H.R. House Resolution 1, or what most people know it by, the big, beautiful bill, which is now putting restrictions on SNAP. particularly with regard to the error rate. And we're sending that letter to our congressional delegation to delay the implementation of those rules or the start of those regulations until I believe 2030. And the reason is because we found out not too long ago that the state, the legislature, Instead of taking on the cost, they're going to pass the cost down to the counties, particularly with regards to the error rate. I believe they're going to take Durham County. We will have to use our sales tax revenue to help with the cost. So this is really urgent. I encourage people, because it is on our website online, you can read the letter. to really educate yourselves because this is going to have a really huge impact on our people. So I just wanted to highlight that.

Thank you, Commissioner Burton. Commissioner Jacobs?

I just wanted to echo Commissioner Burton's comments. The impact to Durham County would be actually $2.8 million for the additional administrative costs for SNAP. And then also an additional 1.7 million annually in the benefit cost penalties tied to the state's error rate, not Durham County's error rate, but the state's error rate, all 100 counties, which would have a total combined impact of over $4.6 million that the state will take out of our sales tax revenue And it's estimated that we would need to raise our property tax rate over half a cent just to make up for that loss in revenue. So this is really a very urgent situation. And the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners asked all of the county commissioners to to adopt letters like this. So this is a statewide effort and it's part of a national effort as well. So I just want to highlight and amplify Commissioner Burton's comments. And I just also wanted to request that when we send the letter, that we actually address it individually to each of our senators, Senator Tillis, Senator Budd, And then also to Congresswoman Fushi, and that we make sure to include all the commissioner signatures on the letter as well. Thank you so much.

Thank you. Commissioner Alton? Yes. You guys got to pull these items if you want to talk about it.

Yeah, I know. I mean, I don't want to belabor what's already been said, but we do have the Director of Social Services here with us today. And because of the nature, or the serious nature that we may find ourselves in, I was wondering if she could speak to this matter and give some further context. Director Clapp.

Hi, good evening. Thank you. I would like to also state that North Carolina is currently the only state of a county administered system that is passing this cost down to the other counties. So we found that out last week at our institute. I'm on the economics committee as part of the Association of 100 Counties. And so far, North Carolina is the only state that has put this into law that will push the cost down to the counties. So that's very, very critical because we have counties that cannot absorb that cost. And what we will be looking at, especially in Durham, since we are one of the larger counties, is we will be possibly taking that cost on us, Mecklenburg, Cumberland, and Buncombe, and others, Guilford. foresight for the remaining counties and that's unsustainable and that's not fair. So I do really appreciate that you have sent this letter. My team met with Representative Hawkins team last week to also get them involved and they were shocked apparently to hear north carolina is the only state that is county administered that has pushed the cost of this down to the county so that is that is critical and my staff are doing everything that we can to keep the error rate down but it is um i'm going to be honest with you when you walk into my building right now my staff are taking this really really hard um the work We have not gotten additional funding, of course, for staff. We have not gotten additional staff. The work has increased, the stress of the error rate. You can feel it when you walk into that. Staff got into this to help people and to make sure people have food, and they live in constant stress with this error rate. And as you said, Commissioner Jacobs, it is not the error rate of Durham, it will be the error rate of the entire state. And we are bearing that cost and we are bearing that stress alone in the counties. And so I truly appreciate you sending this letter and doing everything that you can to continue to get this. We've already agreed at the county level with the directors that the ship is passed on the administrative rate that we have to pay this year, that we're not going to be able to pull that back. But to delay it is going to be very helpful just for us to get our staff trained and to put process in place to keep that error rate under 6%, otherwise the cost will become exponentially more. So thank you. Any questions for me?

I just wanted to thank you, Maggie, and also just for the public to understand that most states directly administer the SNAP program. I believe it's only seven or eight in the United States that,

administer it at the county level um so and i didn't know that we were the only one that is not getting help from the state and that's just not fair yeah it's really not fair i don't know if the other states have decided yet and it just hasn't gone let me be clear i don't know what the other states are going to do no other state has put it into law and as of right now no other state has has said they're going to push it down to the counties North Carolina actually put it into law. So, yes, we are the only county that has it into law that the cost will be put on the counties. Okay, thank you very much. And I just want to say, Commissioner Lum, thank you for recognizing the gentleman who passed last week in the detention facility because Medicaid is also now, we cannot provide Medicaid benefits to refugees, to many of them. So it's... Yeah, there's a lot going on in our community, and so thank you for recognizing that and how we're going to have to help people who are refugees to get health and care because they will no longer be qualified. So I just wanted to state that as well. Thank you.

I'll entertain a motion to approve our consent agenda. So moved.

Second. Second.

Moved by Commissioner Byrne, seconded by Commissioner Valentine. All in favor say aye. Aye. Any opposed? Consent is approved unanimously. Thank you so much. Next is our public hearing for a comprehensive plan amendment, evaluation and assessment report, policy changes. I'll bring you first to our senior planner, Peyton Burgess.

Vice Chair and Commissioners, good evening. I am Peyton Burgess with the Planning and Development Department, and I am happy to be here with you tonight. Staff has prepared the first evaluation and assessment report, or EAR, of the comprehensive plan. This phase of the EAR contains staff recommendations for amendments to some of the policies of the comprehensive plan and includes policy commentary for reference. The proposed amendments are largely technical in nature and aim to provide clarity, reduce inconsistencies, and reflect the incorporation of community input. Thank you. Staff is available for any questions.

Are there any questions from the board before I open the public hearing?

You can just open it, right? Oh, I'm sorry. Questions. Okay, questions.

Okay. I'll open the public hearing.

Clerk Wallace, do you have anyone signed up? We do not have anyone signed up. We did have a citizen reach out after the deadline for online comments. I did share that she could share those via email, and we did not receive any.

Okay.

Thank you, Clerk Wallace.

I will close the public hearing and bring it back to the board again for any comments or questions once again. All right, Commissioner Jacobs.

I will just say we did discuss this at our work session, and I'll just reiterate what I said during the work session, which is that I really appreciate all the input that we did receive from community groups from boards and commissions on this item and their input really did help the staff and many changes were made um and because of their input also we had a subcommittee of the joint city county planning committee of City council members and elected officials which Commissioner Valentine and I served on that really went through item by item to talk through the changes and I feel good about where we're at with this current version and that it will really help to strengthen the rezoning process so that it's clear that Um, what, uh, is being proffered is not always, is sometimes it's something you have to do anyway, that will no longer happen. Um, and also it'll, it'll be, um, that'll be taken out of the process. And that a lot of the policies, um, were, um, I think were strengthened by some of the language changes as well as the more detailed, um, description from staff about what the policy is meant to do. So I think we're in a good place, and I will be supporting this, and I'm happy to make a motion when the time's appropriate.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Commissioner Jacobs, yes, in fact, I did participate in this process quite extensively, and it's because I had some concerns that I participated. at that particular level one thing that is helpful for me in this process and it's very difficult one for me is that the Planning Commission weighed in and a majority of that board voted favorably on this action although there were several of the members who were against it a majority of them moved on this action I am still concerned about whether or not some of these changes or the changes overall will have an impact on the public's ability to weigh in on these projects down the road. I hadn't filtered through in my mind exactly what that looks like. And engagement with the public around these projects in our community are important. and any efforts that we would potentially make down the road. I know that we're talking about the comprehensive plan, but really what we're talking about is the new UDO. And any sort of changes that would impact on the public's ability to speak candidly about these projects would be detrimental, I believe, to our community. And so as we think about that, um and what that means for our community i mean that should weigh heavily on us also there are people in the um in the public who are concerned about the changes that are being proposed here um to be more favorable to to industry particularly as we move to the UDL and so I'll ask that my colleagues also can consider that as well I will probably be joining my colleague Wendy Jacobs here this evening in approving this but I'll be watching very closely as we as we move forward I do not and I'm gonna say this again to make sure that everyone in the public understands my position on this i do not want to see engagement with the community decrease as a result of these changes and the implications for changes that may impact on the udl thank you

Thank you. Any other questions or comments? Okay, then we have a motion here. I'll entertain to adopt a resolution amending the Durham Comprehensive Plan by incorporating revisions to section 2.4 policies and actions.

So moved.

Second. Okay, moved by Commissioner Jacobs, seconded by Commissioner Burton. All in favor say aye. Aye. Any opposed? The amendment passes. Thank you so much to our planning staff. That now concludes our agenda. I will entertain a motion to adjourn. So moved. Second. Moved by Commissioner Jacobs, seconded by Commissioner Burton. All in favor say aye. Aye. Any opposed? We are adjourned.