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201 West Eighth Street
Nags Head, NC 27959
obar@outerbanksrealtors.com
Legislative Briefing June 19
Early Voting Has Begun in Dare & Currituck Counties for Congressional Primary Runoff
The N.C. State Board of Elections has established a special election to select the replacement of Walter Jones as the District 3 U.S. House Representative. Jones passed away on February 10th of this year.
One-stop absentee voting (commonly known as ("early voting") allows any registered voter to cast an absentee ballot in person on select days prior to Election Day. Unlike on Election Day, when registered voters can only vote at their specific precinct, one-stop voting allows registered voters to vote at any one-stop absentee voting site in the county. One-stop sites will have all the ballot styles for a given election at each site.
During One-Stop Early Voting, voters may update their address and change vital information in an existing registration record, but are not allowed to change their party affiliation.
All registered Republicans may vote in this election. Registered Unaffiliated voters who did not vote in the first Primary may vote a Republican Party ballot in this second Primary. Registered Unaffiliated voters who voted a Republican ballot in the first Primary may vote a Republican Party ballot in this second Primary.
One-Stop Early Voting Begins at 7:00am, June 19th and ends at 7:00pm, July 5th at the following locations (please note that the office will be CLOSED on July 4th):
* Dare County Administration Building located at 954 Marshall C. Collins Drive, Manteo, NC 27954
* Thomas A. Baum Senior Center located at 300 Mustian Street, Kill Devil Hills, NC 27948
* Fessenden Center Annex on Hatteras Island located at 47017 Buxton Back Road, Buxton, NC 27920
Absentee Voting began May 24th and ends at 7:00pm on July 5th.
Request a State Absentee Ballot Request Form.
On July 9, 2019, polls will be open 6:30am-7:30pm.
Dare County residents who are not already registered can register to vote and vote in the same day at One-Stop Early Voting, as long as they will be:
* 18 years old by Election Day
* have lived in Dare County for at least 30 days
* and can provide proof of identity and residence.
View the Sample Ballot Republican Party Second Primary Dare County
One-Stop Early Voting begins at 8:00am, June 19th and ends July 5th at 5:00pm at the following location (please note that the office will be CLOSED on July 4th):
Currituck Board of Elections 2811 Caratoke Highway, Currituck, NC 27929
Request a State Absentee Ballot Request Form
View the Sample Ballot for the Republican Party Second Primary Currituck County.
Currituck County residents who are not already registered can register to vote and vote in the same day at One-Stop Early Voting, as long as they will be:
* have lived in Currituck County for at least 30 days
For more information or to find out if you are included in District 3 click HERE.
NC General Assembly
The North Carolina Senate voted June 12 to repeal the Map Act, which allows the North Carolina Department of Transportation to prohibit development or subdivision of privately owned land within planned roadway corridors and withhold compensation pending finalization of construction. The Map Act was originally intended to contain the value of property NCDOT planned to buy for roadways, but essentially permits the state to hold private property in perpetuity regardless of the status of related projects and void owners' basic rights to use it. In 2016 the North Carolina Supreme Court ruled Map Act takings compensable, but most property owners still await payment for property taken over ten years ago. Repeal of the Map Act has been a longtime NCAR propriety, and is anticipated to proceed with Governor Cooper's signature.
North Carolina Supreme Court
One June 14 the state Supreme Court affirmed a Court of Appeals ruling overturning a trial court's conclusion that municipalities' "public trust rights" to replenish beaches remit property owners' entitlement to indemnification for land taken and altered for replenishment purposes via eminent domain. The decision respects a suit filed by two Nags Head property owners for compensation both for an about 8,000 square foot lot portion the Town included within an "Easement Area" reserved nourishment activity, and resulting devaluation of their remaining property. Though reported as a ruling on the compensability of land takings, the legal question decided was actually on an incidental procedural matter. The Supreme Court offered nothing dispositive of the public trust doctrine, and examined instead whether the trial court erred in entering judgement on grounds not argued at trial, months after it had taken place. The Supreme Court affirmed that municipalities may assert public trust rights in challenging the compensability of regulatory exercises, but determined that in the present case the Town had "expressly disavowed reliance on public trust doctrine" in arguing at trial that its initial condemnation of the contested property was necessary because public trust rights did not exist, and found that the trial judge's unprompted advancement of the public trust argument was statutorily untimely.
'What the Flood!' NAIC Quiz Helps Americans Understand Flood Insurance
From NAIC – The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) released a new online quiz, "What the Flood!," as part of its #YourRiskIsReal campaign, an ongoing effort to educate consumers about flood risks and the need to consider purchasing flood insurance. The #YourRiskIsReal campaign educates consumers about flood risks and dispels dangerous misconceptions about flood insurance.
The short, interactive quiz presents complicated insurance concepts in easy-to-understand terms. Sample questions include: "Is damage from a busted bathroom pipe and a burst levee covered by the same policy?" and "If a hurricane floods your car, do you file a claim with auto or home?"
"There"s a lot of confusion out there about insurance coverage for water-related damage. Insurance Commissioners want consumers to understand which insurance covers the various flood perils, " said Eric Cioppa, NAIC President and Superintendent of the Maine Bureau of Insurance.
According to a recent national survey sponsored by NAIC, 41% of Americans agree or strongly agree that flood insurance is a "good idea," yet only 17% say they have purchased flood insurance. (Federal Emergency Management Association (FEMA) estimates that only about 3% have flood protection.)
Flood insurance policies are available through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and on the private market.
Some erroneous beliefs about flood insurance commonly held by consumers include:
Myth: My homeowners insurance covers me against floods.
Reality: Most homeowners and business insurance policies do not cover damage caused by flooding.
Myth: FEMA assistance is just as good as an insurance policy.
Reality: Not everyone will qualify for FEMA assistance after a disaster, and grants (averaging less than $8,000) are not enough to cover all costs after a flood.
Myth: My home will be fine once it dries out.
Reality: Flooding can damage the foundation of a house, as well as the walls and subfloors, causing mold and other problems. Fixing the damage is expensive.
The survey was conducted online by Engine among a demographically representative U.S. sample of 1,004 adults, including 502 men and 502 women age 18 and older. This survey was live May 20-22, 2019. Raw data was weighted by age, sex, geographic region, race and education to ensure reliable and accurate representation of the total U.S. population 18 and older.
Survey document links:
Click here for survey methods and summary (docx)
Click here for survey results (xlsx)
Town/County Updates
Forums for Hurricane Preparedness
The National Weather Service (NWS) in Newport/Morehead City, NC will conduct two community forums in Dare County in July to discuss hurricanes and preparedness. The forums are free and open to the public. The first forum will be held at First Flight High School (100 Veterans Drive) in Kill Devil Hills on Monday, July 8, from 7:00-8:30 p.m. The second will take place at Cape Hatteras Secondary School (48576 Hwy 12) in Buxton on Tuesday, July 9 from 7:00-8:30 p.m.
Town of Southern Shores
Town Moving Forward on Restricting "Events" in homes to 3 Per Year
On June 17 the Southern Shores Planning Board heard additional public comment from the Outer Banks Associations of REALTORS® and Home Builders on a proposed ordinance imposing various permitting requirements for gatherings of more than twenty-five people in residential properties, and limiting such events to three annually. Association representatives supported as a preferable alternative Southern Shores' adoption of an event registration process similar to that undertaken by the Town of Duck. Board member Andy Ward felt Duck's measure too permissive, and was insistent on the proposed ordinance's inclusion of an annual event cap. Mr. Ward acknowledged that his principal concern was events four times larger than those predominantly regulated by the existing ordinance, but spoke repeatedly to his frustration with nuisances associated with houses intended to function primarily as event venues. Mr. Ward very clearly communicated his unconcern with any harmful effect that ordinance overbreadth might pose for property managers and other event-dependent professionals, and said he preferred to focus on people who "actually live here." He appeared similarly tolerant of any effect the ordinance might have on homeowners' rental income, and remarked that "nobody's starving because they can't rent their house in Southern Shores." Planning Board staff will present a revised but substantially similar ordinance to the Town Council on July 7.
Town of Nags Head
Beach Nourishment Update
On Tuesday, June 18, 2019, sand pumping operations were temporarily haulted as the Dredge Liberty Island sails to Norfolk for re-fueling. Construction is expected to be idle for the next 2-3 days until the dredge returns to the area.
Construction has been steadily progressing south in the vicinity of the 4700 block of South Virginia Dare Trail, near Mile Post 13.5. Work should continue to progress south another two days or so, before the dredge moves to a new submerged pipeline (subline) installed in the 5700 block of South Virginia Dare Trail, near Mile Post 14.5 (by the Epstein public beach access).
The project is expected to be complete in late August or early September.
Please take note that parking at the Forrest Street beach access will be closed for the duration of the project. The parking lot at the Juncos Street public beach access is expected to be re-opened in mid to late June. Pedestrian access at both sites is still permitted. Lifeguard stands are in place but may be moved a few feet to accommodate construction traffic.
Nags Head Budget includes 1-Cent Tax Increase
Did Original Deeds Give Public Access?
New Rules Could Ban Oceanfront Pools – Va Pilot
New Rules Could Ban Oceanfront Pools – OBX Voice
Southern Shores Town Council Update
12:00 p.m. – Duck Planning Board Workshop
4:00 p.m. – Manteo Planning Board Workshop
6:00 p.m. – Nags Head Board of Commissioners
3:00 p.m. – OBAR Legislative Committee Meeting
Thursday June 27
National Ethics Day with Leigh Brown
Please Note: This weekly Legislative Briefing is distributed to OBAR members as a benefit of membership. OBAR provides no warranty as to its accuracy. The Legislative Briefing may be copied and redistributed, in whole or in part, by including the following citation ABOVE the text:
"The following is reprinted with permission from the Outer Banks Association of REALTORS®"
Members may not editorialize or comment within the copied text, and must clearly delineate and differentiate their own comments from the text copied from OBAR. If a member is found in violation of this policy, that member will receive one warning for the 1st offense, be automatically fined $250 for the 2nd offense, and $500 for subsequent offenses.
Send comments to pgraham@ncrealtors.org
Please Note: This weekly Legislative Briefing is distributed to OBAR members as a benefit of membership. OBAR provides no warranty as to its accuracy.
The Legislative Briefing may be copied and redistributed, in whole or in part, by including the following citation ABOVE the text:
Send comments to willo@outerbanksrealtors.com
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