Student Corner: CCP assists Yanceyville with Tax Rate Analysis and Community Development Block Grant Process

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Student Corner: CCP assists Yanceyville with Tax Rate Analysis and Community Development Block Grant Process

By CED Program Interns & Students

Published June 10, 2010

Melvin McDermott III is a graduate student in UNC’s  Master of Public Administration program and a CCP intern working in Caswell County.

CCP created a benchmark report for the Town of Yanceyville comparing the tax rates of similar municipalities across North Carolina.  The town used this information in their budget process.  Additionally, Yanceyville is set to receive over $1 million through two separate Community Development Block Grants (CDBG).  CCP helped navigate one of the  grants, saving town staff time and money. 

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The Tax Rate Benchmark

Yanceyville Town Manager David Parrish had been working one-on-one with each councilperson to discuss his budget recommendations for some time.  With the additional capacity CCP created, David agreed that Council could use a tax rate benchmark when making decisions regarding the budget.  The budget contained no tax increases and still invested in key areas of the town.  Yanceyville Town Council unanimously (5-0) approved the 2010/2011 FY Budget on June 1, 2010.

While researching for the report, CCP examined over two dozen small towns for municipalities similar to Yanceyville.  Ten municipalities were selected using data from North Carolina Department of Revenue and the Office of State Budget & Management.  The final product included tables, charts, an analysis, and a single recommendation.

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Two CDBG’s Totaling Over $1 million

The year 2009 came with ups and downs, especially in the economy.    Yanceyville, like most places, was impacted by the downturn.  Town leadership sought several grants during this time including CDBGs.  One CDBG application was submitted late in 2008, but was unexpectedly approved late in 2009.  The grant totals $850,000 and will be supplemented with $59,500 from the town.  The funds will be used for the rehabilitation of nine of the homes, demolition and relocation of families for two homes, and demolition of four vacant homes designated as fire hazards.

The second grant came from American Recovery & Reinvestment Act (ARRA).  The ARRA grant, called CDBG-R, brings in an additional $850,000 and will be used to fix and expand infrastructure like streets and water lines.  CDBG-R requires registration to enable the town to post solicitation documents electronically; CCP located the necessary information and submitted it to the State.  This could potentially bring down the cost of certain aspects of the grant budget and allow the project to expand to cover additional needs.