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OBSERVATIONS
March 25, 2021 |
 |
 Wingate Lassiter |
Top elected state officials paid less
than Johnston's top administrators
It's a curious situation:
North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper's salary is $154,743 --- less than Johnston County Manager Rick Hester's $196,621 and Superintendent of Schools Eric Bracy's $195,000. (The town manager of Clayton also makes more than the Governor.)
Elected members of the N.C. Council of State are even further behind, all of them currently paid $136,699, including everyone from newly elected Lieutenant Governor Mark Robinson to long-time Secretary of State Elaine Marshall, who has been in office since she was first elected in 1996.
That's not to disparage the salaries paid to Johnston's top administrators. Their pay seems to be in line with similar jobs elsewhere across the state, and both Mr. Hester and Dr. Bracy have proven to be productive leaders in their respective roles.
So why aren't we paying higher salaries to state leaders like Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler, Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey, State Treasurer Dale Folwell, Attorney General Josh Stein, State Auditor Beth Wood, and Superintendent of Public Instruction Catherine Truitt as well as the others I listed?
They haven't received a pay raise since 2019, according to a report on the salaries in The News & Observer this week.
Must be true "public servants" to accept what they're given.
Making it easier to report those nasty litterbugs
Here's an innovative tool from the state's Department of Transportation to help wage war against litterbugs: "a simple, mobile-friendly web application" (an "app" for your phone) that's called "Swat-A-Litterbug."
It will enable citizens to
report trash being thrown from a vehicle, resulting in a
"formal notification" from the N.C. State Highway Patrol
about the offense and the monetary penalties for
littering (which are about to go up) along with a note
"urging them to keep North Carolina clean," reads a news
release from NCDOT.To learn more about it, visit the state's Swat-A Litterbug web page>
This might especially appeal to our youngsters. In place of that old travel game of cow poker, they could compete for litterbug reports submitted with the app.
A lovely scene from a Sunday afternoon walk
Flowering quince (I think)
and a "tulip tree" enhanced this picturesque setting
as one walked along South Smithfield's Vermont Street
last Sunday afternoon.
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