​Dr. James West Joins Inaugural Meeting Of NCACC’s 2020-2021 Board Of Directors, Discusses Food Insecurity

Press release from the Wake County Government:

by Stephen R. Walston on 12/8/2020 3:00 PM
Category: WakeGOV Home Page

On Oct. 7, Dr. James West, Wake County
Commissioner, and member of the North Carolina Association of County
Commissioners Board of Directors joined a virtual meeting to swear in members
of the 2020-2021 NCACC Board of Directors and conduct other business. The Board
of Directors and its Executive Committee make policy decisions to guide the
NCACC and its staff throughout the year. The full list of 2020-2021 NCACC Board
members is available here.

“As a member of this organization, I am able to
work with fellow commissioners across the state to provide important, basic
services that impact residents’ daily lives,” said West. “While every community
is different, we all face common challenges and it is critical that North
Carolina’s counties speak with a strong voice on these issues. I am excited to
have the opportunity to represent Wake County on the state level.”

During the meeting, NCACC President Ronnie
Smith discussed his presidential initiative – a one-year effort to promote food
system resiliency in all 100 counties – and announced Task Force Co-Chairs he
appointed to help identify ways to strengthen North Carolina’s food system and
increase access to affordable, healthy food options. Task Force Co-Chairs,
James West, Wake County Commissioner and Sue Hinman, Granville County
Commissioner will help lead this initiative and develop recommendations for
counties.

In Wake County, Meal sites for children are
open across the county to serve meals to students daily. Other food resources
such as mobile food markets, food pantries and emergency food boxes are
available to serve families through curbside delivery. Food safety measures are
being followed, and ID is not required to access any of these services. A listing of all sites can be found on the Wake County COVID-19 website

The coronavirus pandemic is exacerbating food
insecurity. According to Feeding America’s latest data, North Carolina’s food
insecurity rate is projected to rise from 14 to 19.3 percent because of the
pandemic. And for children, food insecurity is expected to be even more dire,
with a projected increase from 19.3 percent to 28.6 percent. Counties are
involved in many aspects of the food ecosystem, including administering food
and nutrition assistance programs, and supporting public school systems in
distributing meals to students. In addition, Cooperative Extensions work in
every county to offer programs and partnerships focused on agriculture and
food, health and nutrition, and 4-H youth development.

The Board also received an update on the North
Carolina Property Tax Solution (NCPTS), a program to help counties manage
property tax records and billing. NCPTS is provided by the NCACC, governed by
member counties, and supported by software provider, Farragut. The strength of
NCPTS is its collaborative approach, which helps counties implement best
practices and allows counties to direct pooled investments toward technology
upgrades to keep the system on the cutting edge.

NCACC staff provided a legislative review of
the North Carolina General Assembly short session of 2020, summarizing major
legislation enacted this year. S.L. 2020-3 made regulatory changes allowing
local boards and councils to meet remotely. S.L. 2020-4 established the North
Carolina Pandemic Recovery Office and appropriated $1.57 billion of nearly $3.6
billion the state received from the federal government through the CARES Act,
including $150 million in funding to the 97 counties that did not receive
direct CARES Act funds.

The Board was also briefed on the latest
edition of NCACC’s County Map Book, which highlights key demographic, economic,
health, and educational information from North Carolina's 100 counties. The
NCACC 2020 County Map Book is available here.

The North Carolina
Association of County Commissioners (NCACC) is the official voice of all 100
counties on issues considered by the General Assembly, Congress and federal and
state agencies. The Association provides expertise to counties in the areas of
advocacy, research, risk management and education and leadership training.

This press release was produced by the Wake County Government. The views expressed here are the author’s own.