I’ve read several articles recently (including this one) that talk about the “straitjacket” of municipal finance – how the requirements of the bond market reduce the ability of local governments to provide enhanced public goods, such as better schools, more housing,...

This is the next installment of our series spotlighting the different ways communities across North Carolina are tackling their housing needs. Here, we are highlighting the use of General Obligation Bonds for affordable housing projects. In North Carolina, local...

Some high percentage of businesses looking to locate new business operations, or relocate existing operations, say they are looking to move into an existing building for their operations. Although a much lower percentage of those businesses ends up using an existing...

It’s the start of a New Year, and in some localities, thoughts turn to the idea of a bond referendum. Here are the answers to some frequent questions we get about that process: What is a bond referendum? When can I have a bond referendum? Is it too late to plan for a...

In times gone by, I worked for many years as outside counsel to a bank that made dozens of loans each year to local governments across North Carolina. Big loans, small loans, real estate loans, equipment loans, you name it. The wide majority of those loans were done...

As we get to the end of 2025 and the start of 2026, we offer this list of items to keep in mind as you plan for new capital projects and manage your existing projects and financings. Here are a few things to think about at least once a year: Put your unused financing...

There was quite the fanfare back in 2004, when we amended the State constitution to authorize our version of tax increment financing (called “project development financing” in our statutes, but we’ll call it TIF). Money was raised to support the ballot question,...

We have been interested in how cities and towns use incentives to spur downtown housing development. It’s not often you see a single tool that both addresses the housing issue and also helps with downtown invigoration. We understand some folks are hesitant to spend...

This is the next installment in our series spotlighting the different ways communities across North Carolina are tackling their housing needs. Here, we are highlighting an idea being implemented by our friends in the Town of Chapel Hill that expedites the review...

A recent article in The Assembly newsletter asked, “Why do politicians love the sales tax?” The article discusses Mecklenburg County’s upcoming referendum on an additional 1-cent sales tax for transportation uses. The whole piece is worth your time. There are a couple...