The 10 a.m. meeting will be held in Room 107 Van Dusen Hall on the campus of Sandhills Community College. Meetings are open to the public free of charge.
DSS TARGET — Oct. 24 and 25 are target dates for the Moore County Department of Social Services to occupy renovated facilities in the former Carriage Oaks Shopping Center in Carthage.
Nov. 4 is the date for a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
County Manager David McNeill Jr. shared this information with the county commissioners Monday. The dates are listed in a letter to a contractor by Kanoy Architecture of Southern Pines, which holds the design contract for the renovation project.
All DSS units will be moving into the Carriage Oaks building from three locations, two in Carthage and a rented facility in Pinehurst.
COBLE — North Carolina Farm Bureau officials have presented U.S. Rep. Howard Coble with the Friend of Farm Bureau award.
Coble supported 82 percent of the 16 issues identified by the Farm Bureau as crucial to North Carolina farmers and agriculture during the 107th Congress. The issues are identified by American Farm Bureau, of which North Carolina Farm Bureau is the second largest member,
“Congressman Coble deserves the Friend of Farm Bureau Award for not only his hard work and dedication to the farmers and rural people of our state, but because he is a strong supporter of agriculture as shown by his voting record,” said Larry Wooten, N.C. Farm Bureau president.
Wooten noted that Coble voted for elimination of the “death” tax, against the energy bill fuel efficiency standards amendment, and in favor of the farm bill, the tax relief package, ergonomic rules and income tax reduction.
The Greensboro Republican represents Moore County in the 6th District.
JUDGESHIPS — The U.S. Senate has approved and sent to President Bush legislation to create two additional judgeships to relieve the overloaded caseload in the Western District of North Carolina.
Sen. John Edwards, who introduced the bill, called the West District caseload “one of the most clogged caseloads in the country.”
The new judgeships for western North Carolina, one permanent and one temporary, were among 15 new judgeships authorized by the legislation.
Edwards also renewed his commitment to work through a merit selection process outlined by the North Carolina Bar Association to help the president find qualified nominees to fill lifetime federal judgeships.
DRUG TEST —State Attorney General Roy Cooper is pleased with the General Assembly’s approval of a law making it a crime to defraud a drug or alcohol-screening test.
“Cheating on a drug test can allow pilots, truck drivers or even nuclear plan operators to work while impaired, putting people’s lives at risk,” said Cooper, who pushed for the law. “This new law will help us protect the safety of all North Carolinians.”
Cooper cited examples of companies that have developed products designed to enable drug users to trick tests, including a South Carolina firm that sells “urine test substitution kits.”
“This tough new law sends a message to those who deal in drug test fraud,” Cooper said. “If you’re selling products to beat a drug test, you’re breaking the law in North Carolina, and we’ll hold you accountable for your crime.”
