2013 Ferry Tax Issue | Eastern North Carolina Now

For Immediate Release:

    NC DOT has added a third Public Hearing about proposed toll changes on its ferry routes. These changes include rate increases on the Southport/Fort Fisher, Swan Quarter/Ocracoke and Cedar Island/Ocracoke routes and the addition of new tolls on the Bayview/Aurora and Cherry Branch/Minnesott Beach routes.

    PUBLIC HEARINGS are scheduled for:

    Monday, March 11, 2013 at 7:00 p.m.
    Wake Commons - Room 100B
    4011 Carya Drive
    Raleigh, NC

    Wednesday, March 13, 2013 at 7:30 pm
    Ocracoke School Gymnasium
    120 Schoolhouse Road
    Ocracoke, NC

    Monday, March 18, 2013 at 7:00 p.m.
    Pamlico Community College
    Ned Everett Delamar Center Auditorium
    5049 Highway 306 South
    Grantsboro, NC

    Concerned citizens should plan to attend these important hearings. The 3/13/2013 ferry toll hearing in Ocracoke will be held the same day as a public meeting in Ocracoke to discuss the long-term solution for the section of N.C. 12 on Pea Island breached by Hurricane Irene in 2011. That meeting is scheduled for 4 to 7 p.m. at the Ocracoke Community Center, at 1009 Irvin Garrish Highway.
Beaufort County Ferry landing crossing the Pamlico River at Gaylords Bay: Above.     photo by Stan Deatherage
    Following the presentation, the Hearing will be open for statements, questions and comments. Anyone wishing to speak should register to do so at the sign-in table prior to the presentation. Please arrive about 30 minutes early to allow time to sign-in. The proposed ferry toll rates as well as a link to submit a comment are posted to NCDOT 's webpage.

    HISTORY OF THE DISPUTE:

    In 2011, the NC General Assembly mandated that NCDOT increase annual ferry revenue to $5 million. To accomplish this, the Ferry Division was asked to increase toll rates on the three routes that currently have tolls, and begin tolling two additional routes by April 1, 2012. On Feb. 29, 2012, former Governor Perdue issued an Executive Order placing a one-year moratorium on the collection of the tolls. SL 2012-142 House Bill 950 directed DOT to disregard the executive order and clarified ferry tolling in Section 24.18(a) G.S. 136-82, directing DOT to collect ferry tolls, as established by the NC Board of Transportation. The Legislature and the Governor reached a stalemate over the ferry toll issue, and the one-year moratorium expires at the end of February 2013.

    2013 ACTIONS:

    During its January 2013 meeting, the NC Board of Transportation adopted a resolution authorizing the Secretary of Transportation to adopt rules establishing ferry tolls pursuant to existing law. The upcoming public hearings are the next step in the process to change the administrative code and implement the changes required to the tolls.

    In the 2013 legislative session, Sen. Norman Sanderson, Sen. Bill Cook, Rep. Michael Speciale, Rep. Paul Tine, and other coastal legislators are working on legislation to roll back the ferry tolls which threaten coastal citizens.

    Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have questions.

    Joe McClees & Henri McClees
      McClees Consulting, Inc.

      Post Office Box 430
      Oriental, NC 28571

      Office (252) 249-1097
      Fax (252) 249-3275
      www.mccleesconsulting.com
      Joe McClees's mobile (252) 671-1585
      Henri's mobile (252) 671-1559