Commissioner Thompson said she was thankful she could attend the National Day of Prayer at the Word of Pentecost Church.
Commissioner Priola complimented County Manager York and her team. He indicated they had done an outstanding job answering questions in a timely manner, and he appreciated that. Commissioner Priola stated he had two motions. The first motion was to prohibit county employees from training on county time with county resources. He said county employees should not take training unrelated to their job function or job description. Commissioner Priola said that as part of his motion, he asked the county manager to provide language, particularly in the employee handbook moving forward, that any training must be related to that employee's job description, particularly during county time and with county taxpayer dollars. Commissioner Priola continued that he was shocked to discover that 40 government employees had participated in training by the Alamance County Racial Equity Committee. The training was on how to be a "social justice warrior" and how to fight and combat systemic racism and other things like white supremacy. He noted that these trainings occurred during the workday for almost 40 hours and that 17 of the 40 government employees were county employees. He estimated this to be about $22,000 in training on the county's and taxpayers' time. Commissioner Priola reiterated that the type of training was not consistent with the job descriptions of employees.
Chairman Paisley explained that it would not be a proper motion at that time, because it was not an agenda item. He suggested making a joint directive to the county manager and staff to consider these things when planning future budgets for June. Chairman Paisley requested that it not be a motion, but a simple directive for county management. Commissioner Allen agreed with Chairman Paisley.
Vice-Chair Carter asked County Attorney Stevens if that action required a resolution in order to be voted upon. County Attorney Stevens explained in order for there to be a vote, there had to be official board action. He clarified that the rules of procedure discouraged the making of motions during Commissioners' Comments, but did not outright prohibit it. He told the Board that if they wanted to see a resolution drafted to that effect, he could prepare one for the next meeting.
Commissioner Thompson inquired about this and the type of training. Commissioner Priola said it was DEI and part of social justice training that county employees should not participate in during their taxpayer work time.
Chairman Paisley reiterated that he did not think a motion was needed and directed the county manager to consider this while planning the budget. Commissioner Priola conveyed that he wanted to make a motion to establish that policy so it would not be forgotten later on. County Attorney Stevens suggested allowing staff time to investigate what training would fall into that category. He said he was unaware of that training and needed to educate himself to capture this as a resolution.
Commissioner Priola asked the county manager to consider the separation from the county library system. He said the county pays $3.5 million to four libraries and two mobile units that employ 62 individuals. Commissioner Priola suggested a phased-out separation by returning the libraries back to the municipalities. He mentioned he had a problem with not having a consolidated 911 call system in this county. Commissioner Priola continued that municipalities were considering financing pickleball courts, aquatic entertainment centers, and theater reconstruction at the expense of 911 safety. He said that, with options from the county manager, the county could consider what could be done to recoup the $3.5 million for priorities. Commissioner Priola said he was making a motion to consider several options to phase out the relationship with the county library system.
Chairman Paisley advised that it would again need to be studied before a motion was made. He was unsure of what the motion would be and suggested directing the county manager to look into it. He acknowledged that $3.5 million was a lot of money and that libraries were extremely important. Chairman Paisley emphasized that kids and adults needed libraries, but they do need a priority system for allocating dollars. He agreed county employees should not be participating in the equity training on tax dollars. Commissioner Priola said he was not looking for a motion, but a consensus that the county manager be directed to consider some options to present to the Board.
Commissioner Thompson cautioned against trying to take over. She opined that she did not like paying for everything going on in Burlington, but that was the municipality that she lived in and voted. She said you could not get upset about pickleball courts and want to take books out of children's hands. Commissioner Thompson continued that libraries were massively important for people who do not have access to technology, books, or might need a place to hide. She commented that she would not force her opinions on other people just because she did not like something. She expressed that before they started trying to govern this county like a kingdom, remember it was a county. Commissioner Thompson said labels on the books disclosed inappropriate content and high violence. She said it needed to be the parents' decision, and they could not tell parents what to do. She mentioned that if they could tell people what to do, there would not be a person in jail, a child would not be harmed, and everyone would be in a good place. Commissioner Thompson stated that it was not how life was.
Commissioner Allen agreed this would need to be researched. She stated this would take away every bit of the county's control over the libraries.
Chairman Paisley said he agreed with most of what Commissioner Thompson said.
Vice-Chair Carter spoke that he and Commissioner Priola had this conversation. He offered that he had the same idea at times, and he agreed with Commissioner Allen's notion that it would take away any county control. He mentioned that half of the residents who lived in the rural parts of the county used the libraries. Vice-Chair Carter said he did not know the right answer, but their job was to do what was best for all residents. He continued that the library system was an important service for education and that homeschoolers relied heavily on public libraries.
Chairman Paisley commented that the county had no say about what the municipalities do with their taxes. He said he was not advocating for doing away with the library system. He said he used the library, and they were important. Chairman Paisley continued that the question was when they had to pay solely for everything, and whether they were spending too much on the library system. He cautioned that cuts would need to be made with the upcoming budget. Chairman Paisley said they trust the county administration to provide information to help them make good choices.