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Severe flooding is destroying NC towns, ruining lives. These bills would change that.

Welcome to NC Voices, where leaders, readers and experts from across North Carolina can speak on issues affecting our communities. Send submissions of 300 words or fewer to opinion@charlotteobserver.com..

NC must work on flood prevention

North Carolina is in urgent need of flood prevention legislation. Increasingly, rural communities are bearing the brunt of severe flooding events but lack the resources, funding or capacity to recover from past floods or plan for future ones.

From hurricanes and tropical storms to powerful thunderstorms, extreme weather is becoming more prevalent in the state and subsequently, so is severe flooding.

State legislators need to take action now and consider policy solutions such as the Disaster Relief and Mitigation Act of 2021 and the Flood Resiliency and Prevention Act.

North Carolina needs a flood resilience blueprint that details a proactive approach to mitigation. Flooding demands state investment in effective solutions that leverage federal dollars and support local implementation. Thankfully, North Carolina can build on best practices in other states, such as Louisiana and Iowa.

Residents, businesses, farmers and other landowners have first-hand knowledge of local flooding issues and insights into solutions. Engaging and equipping them is essential, yet too often these communities don’t have access to the funding or technical expertise needed to develop resilience projects. A robust NC Resilient Communities Program will provide support to develop shovel-ready projects and allow N.C. to compete more effectively for federal dollars.

North Carolina must reinvigorate state-level programs and resources designed to fund competitive, private sector mitigation and restoration projects.

The new Natural Infrastructure Flood Mitigation program within the Division of Mitigation Services will use watershed studies to identify local flooding threats and then contract with private restoration companies to more quickly and effectively construct flood reduction projects. It’s a program that can, if funded, put boots on the ground in short order and create much needed jobs.

With another hurricane season upon us, the time to act is now. We urge N.C. legislators to protect our most vulnerable communities by supporting and passing the Disaster Mitigation and Relief Act and the Flood Resiliency and Prevention Act.

Shawn Harding, NC Farm Bureau

Gary Salamido, NC Chamber

William McDow, Environmental Defense Fund

Shawn Harding
Shawn Harding
Gary Salamido
Gary Salamido
William McDow
William McDow

NC surcharge on EVs is unfair

Drivers of electric vehicles may have felt a bit smug recently as owners of traditional cars scrambled to find fuel during the gas shortage related to the Colonial Pipeline cyberattack.

But sadly, North Carolina is one of the few states that punishes EV ownership rather than incentivize it. All of us who own EVs are undoubtedly surprised when we register our vehicle in North Carolina and have to pay a surcharge of $130 — assessed annually.

Some might argue that EVs don’t contribute to state infrastructure improvements through fuel taxes, which raises the issue of how EV drivers can pay their fair share. But a little math shows a huge discrepancy. My 2013 Nissan Leaf has a range of 80 miles, and no EV owner wants to consistently end trips with less than 15 miles left in the battery. (It’s called “range anxiety.”) So, many EVs are just used for short trips.

From 2016-2020, we drove our EV an average of 5,160 miles annually. Dividing the $130 registration surcharge by those miles equals 2.5 cents per mile. The gas tax on a gallon of fuel is 36.1 cents. Simple division shows that we are paying the same “fuel taxes” as a vehicle that gets 14 miles per gallon. We drive an EV, not an RV!

Some EVs have longer ranges, and driving habits vary. But a one-size-fits-all EV registration surcharge is clearly unfair and unwise.

Other options include taxing electricity that is used to charge EVs, and some states are exploring self-reporting of annual mileage. In North Carolina, where we require annual inspections, reporting the mileage to a centralized system to determine an EV mileage tax would be trivial.

Experimenting with these options would be much better policy to position ourselves for a time when, hopefully, we won’t be so dependent on the Colonial Pipeline.

Jason Delborne, Raleigh

Jason Delborne
Jason Delborne