The Guilford County Board of Commissioners wants you.
Specifically, the board wants you to tell it what you think of the 2019-2020 budget proposed by Guilford County Manager Marty Lawing. To get that input, the board has scheduled not one but two public hearings for Thursday, June 6.
The hearings on the proposed 2019-2020 Guilford County budget will be part of a commissioners meeting with a start time of 5:30 p.m. in the Commissioners’ Meeting Room on the second floor of the Old Guilford County Court House at 301 W. Market St. in downtown Greensboro.
The hearings, which are held every year in late May or early June, are for the expressed purpose of giving “all interested citizens the opportunity to make written and oral comments on the budget.”
Anyone wanting to check out the proposed new county budget can examine it online at guilfordcountync.gov or in person on weekdays between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. in the Clerk to the Board’s office, which is next to the commissioners meeting room.
In recent years, public hearings on the budget have been dominated by discussions about funding for the Guilford County Schools – however, any item in the massive $627-million budget proposal can be addressed at the hearing.
At the June 6 hearing, citizens can also tell the commissioners their views on what the county’s tax rate should be. The manager’s proposed budget calls for keeping that tax rate flat at 73.05 cents per $100 of assessed property value.
Speakers may also address the proposed tax rates in the county’s fire districts.
Due to a change in state law in recent years, a separate public hearing must be held for the economic incentives spending in the proposed budget. In Guilford County’s proposed budget, that includes money for groups such as the Guilford County Economic Development Alliance and the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce. It also includes a variety of arts and cultural initiatives such as museums and music festivals.
Senior citizens are encouraged by the county to attend the hearings. Handicapped persons who are planning to attend and need assistance should contact the Guilford County Manager’s Office at 336-641-3383 before the meeting.
