County Service Districts/Research & URSD.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2025
H 1
HOUSE BILL 823

Short Title: County Service Districts/Research & URSD. (Public)
Sponsors: Representatives Hawkins, Longest, Alston, and Ball (Primary Sponsors).
For a complete list of sponsors, refer to the North Carolina General Assembly web site.
Referred to: Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House
April 9, 2025
*H823-v-1*
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
AN ACT MAKING CHANGE S TO THE LAWS RELATE D TO RESEARCH AND 2
PRODUCTION SERVICE D ISTRICTS AND URBAN R ESEARCH SERVICE 3
DISTRICTS. 4
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 5
6
PART I. RESEARCH AND PRODUCTION SERVICE DISTRICT 7
SECTION 1.1. G.S. 153A-311 reads as rewritten: 8
"§ 153A-311. Purposes for which districts may be established. 9
The board of commissioners of any county may define a county research and production 10
service district in order to finance, provide, and maintain for the district any service, facility, or 11
function that a county or a city is authorized by general law to provide, finance, or maintain. 12
maintain in its territorial jurisdiction. Such a service, facility, or function shall be financed, 13
provided, or maintained in the district either in addition to or to a greater extent than services, 14
facilities, or functions are financed, provided, or maintained for the entire county." 15
SECTION 1.2. G.S. 153A-313 reads as rewritten: 16
"§ 153A-313. Research and production service district advisory committee. 17
(a) The board or boards of commissioners, in the resolution establishing a research and 18
production service district, shall also provide for an advisory committee for the district. Such a 19
committee shall have at least 10 members, serving terms as set forth in the resolution; one 20
member shall be the representative of the developer of the research and production park 21
established as a research and production service district. The resolution shall provide for the 22
appointment or design ation of a chair. The board of commissioners or, in the case of a 23
multi-county district, the boards of commissioners shall appoint the members of the advisory 24
committee. If a multi -county district is established, the concurrent resolutions establishing the 25
district shall provide the number of members of the adv isory committee, which shall be at least 26
10, and how many members of the advisory committee are to be appointed by each board of 27
commissioners. commissioners. The concurrent resolutions may allow for the appointments to 28
be divided among the counties proportionate to the respective size of the research and production 29
service district. Before making the appointments, the appropriate board shall request the 30
association of owners and tenants, required by G.S. 153A-312(a), to submit a list of persons to 31
be considered for appointment to the committee; the association shall submit at least two names 32
for each appointment to be made. Except as provided in the next two s entences, the board of 33
commissioners shall make the appointments to the committee from the list of persons submitted. 34
In addition, the developer of the research and production park shall appoint one person to the 35
General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
Page 2 House Bill 823-First Edition
advisory committee as the developer's repre sentative on the committee. In addition, in a single 1
county district, the board of commissioners may make two additional appointments of such other 2
persons as the board of commissioners deems appropriate, and in a multi -county district, each 3
board of count y commissioners may make one additional appointment of such other person as 4
that board of commissioners deems appropriate. Whenever a vacancy occurs on the committee 5
in a position filled by appointment by the board of commissioners, the appropriate board, before 6
filling the vacancy, shall request the association to submit the names of at least two persons to 7
be considered for the vacancy; and the board shall fill the vacancy by appointing one of the 8
persons so submitted, except that if the vacancy is in a p osition appointed by the board of 9
commissioners under the preceding sentence of this section, the board of commissioners making 10
that appointment shall fill the vacancy with such person as that board of commissioners deems 11
appropriate. 12
…." 13
SECTION 1.3. G.S. 153A-314 reads as rewritten: 14
"§ 153A-314. Extension of service districts. 15
… 16
(a1) Multi-County Districts. – If territory that lies wholly in one county is to be annexed 17
to a multi-county district, only the board of commissioners of that county is required to adopt a 18
resolution annexing the territory . In annexing territory under this subsection , t he board of 19
commissioners shall comply with the provisions of this section. 20
…." 21
SECTION 1.4. G.S. 153A-315 reads as rewritten: 22
"§ 153A-315. Required provision or maintenance of services. 23
(a) New District. – When a county or counties define a research and production service 24
district, it or they shall provide, maintain, or let contracts for the services for which the district is 25
being taxed within a reas onable time, not to exceed one year, after the effective date of the 26
definition of the district. The county may designate the developer of the research and 27
development park established as a research and production service district as an agent that may 28
contract, with the approval of the county in which the research and production service district is 29
located, for the provision of services, construction, and procurement within the research and 30
production service district. The developer -agent may own property necessary to provide the 31
services, including, but not limited to, streets, sidewalks, parks, schools, utilities, and public 32
transportation systems, and proceeds of taxes levied within the research and production service 33
district used to pay for or maintain the property providing the service are presumptively expended 34
for a public purpose. 35
…." 36
37
PART II. URBAN RESEARCH SERVICE DISTRICT 38
SECTION 2.1. G.S. 153A-316.1 reads as rewritten: 39
"§ 153A-316.1. Urban research service district (URSD). 40
… 41
(a1) Multi-County Districts. – If an area that meets the standards for creation of a research 42
and production service district lies in more than one county, the boards of commissioners of those 43
counties may adopt concurrent resolutions establishing a district, even if that portion of the 44
district lying in any one of the counties does not by itself meet the standards. Each of the county 45
boards of commissioners shall follow the procedure set out in this section for creation of a district. 46
…." 47
SECTION 2.2. G.S. 153A-316.2 reads as rewritten: 48
"§ 153A-316.2. URSD advisory committee. 49
(a) Members. – The board of commissioners, in the resolution establishing a URSD, shall 50
also provide for an advisory committee for the URSD. The committee shall have at least 1 0 51
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House Bill 823-First Edition Page 3
members, serving whose appointments and terms as shall be set forth in the resolution. The 1
resolution shall provide for the appointment or designation of a chairperson. The board of 2
commissioners shall appoint the members of the USRD [URSD] advisory committee. In the case 3
of a multi-county URSD, the resolution may allow for the appointments to be divided among the 4
counties proportionate to the respective size of the research and production service district. 5
Before making the appointments, the board shall request the association of owners and tenants, 6
required by G.S. 153A-312(a), to submit a list of persons to be considered for appointment to the 7
committee. The association shall submit at least two names for each appointment to be made. 8
Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, the board of commissioners shall make the 9
appointments to the committee from the list of persons submitted. 10
(b) Additional Members. – In addition to the members provided in subsection (a) of this 11
section, the developer of the research and production park established as a research and 12
production service district shall appoint one person to the URSD advisory committee as the 13
developer's representative on the committee. The board of commissioners may make two 14
additional appoi ntments of such other persons as the board of commissioners deems 15
appropriate.appropriate; provided, however, in the case of a multi-county URSD, established as 16
provided in G.S. 153A-316.1(a1), the board of commissioners of each county may make one 17
additional appointment. 18
…." 19
SECTION 2.3. G.S. 153A-316.3 reads as rewritten: 20
"§ 153A-316.3. Extension of URSD. 21
… 22
(a1) Multi-County Districts. – If territory that lies wholly in one county is to be annexed 23
to a multi -county URSD, only the board of commissioners of that county shall be required to 24
adopt a resolution annexing the territory. In annexing territory under this subsection, the board 25
of commissioners shall comply with the provisions of this section. 26
…." 27
SECTION 2.4. G.S. 153A-316.5 reads as rewritten: 28
"§ 153A-316.5. Required provision or maintenance of services in URSD. 29
(a) New URSD. – When a county or counties defines a URSD, it shall provide, maintain, 30
or let contracts for the services for which the URSD is being taxed within a reasonable time, not 31
to exceed one year, after the effective date of the definition of the URSD. When a county defines 32
a URSD, it may designate the developer of the research and development park established as a 33
research and production service d istrict in which the URSD is located as an agent that may 34
contract with any local government for the provision of services within the URSD.contract, with 35
the approval of the county or counties in which the URSD is located, for the provision of services, 36
construction, and procurement within the URSD. The developer -agent may own property 37
necessary to provide the services, including, but not limited to, streets, sidewalks, parks, schools, 38
utilities, and public transportation systems, and proceeds of taxes levied within the research and 39
production service district used to pay for or maintain the property providing the service are 40
presumptively expended for a public purpose. 41
…." 42
SECTION 2.5. G.S. 153A-317 reads as rewritten: 43
"§ 153A-317. Research and production service district taxes authorized; rate limitation. 44
(a) Tax Authorized. – A county, upon recommendation of the advisory committee 45
established pursuant to G.S. 153A-313, may levy property taxes within a research and production 46
service district in addition to those levied throughout the county, in order to finance, provide, or 47
maintain for the district services provided therein in addition to or to a greater extent than those 48
financed, provided, or maintained for the entire county. In addition, a county may allocate to a 49
district any other revenues whose use is not otherwise restricted by law. The proceeds of taxes 50
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only within a district may be expended only for services provided for the district . Only those 1
services that counties and cities are authorized by law to provide may be provided. 2
Property subject to taxation in a newly established district or in an area annexed to an existing 3
district is that subject to taxation by the county as of the preceding January 1. 4
(b) Limit. – Such additional property taxes may not be levied within any district 5
established pursuant to this Article in excess of a rate of ten cents (10¢) twenty cents (20¢) on 6
each one hundred dollars ($100.00) value of property subject to taxation or, in the event that the 7
research and production service district satisfies the criteria of G.S. 143B -437.08(h), such 8
additional property taxes may not be levied within said district in excess of a rate of twenty cents 9
(20¢) on each one hundred dollars ($100.00) value of property subject to taxation.taxation. 10
…." 11
SECTION 2.6. G.S. 153A-317.1 reads as rewritten: 12
"§ 153A-317.1. Urban research service district taxes authorized; rate. 13
(a) Tax Authorized. – A county, upon recommendation of t he advisory committee 14
established pursuant to G.S. 153A-316.2, may levy property taxes within a URSD in addition to 15
those levied throughout the county, and in addition to those levied throughout the county research 16
and production service district, in order to finance, provide, or maintain for the URSD services 17
provided therein in addition to or to a greater extent than those financed, provided, or maintained 18
both for the entire county and for the county research and production service district. Only those 19
services that counties and cities are authorized by law to provide may be provided. In addition, a 20
county may allocate to a URSD any other revenue not otherwise restricted by law. 21
… 22
(c) Use. – The proceeds of taxes levied within a URSD may be expended only for the 23
benefit of the URSD. The taxes levied for the URSD may be used for debt service on any debt 24
issued by the county that is used wholly or partly for capital projects located within the URSD, 25
but not in greater proportion than expense of projects located within the URSD or for the benefit 26
of the URSD bear to the entire expense of capital projects financed by that borrowing of the 27
county. A capital project does not have to be located wholly within the URSD to be considered 28
a project that benefits the URSD. For the purpose of this subsection, "debt" includes (i) general 29
obligation bonds and notes issued under Chapter 159 of the General Statutes, (ii) revenue bonds 30
issued under Chapter 159 of the General Statutes, (iii) financing agreements under Article 8 of 31
Chapter 159 of the General Statutes, and (iv) special obligation bonds issued by the county." 32
33
PART III. MISCELLANEOUS 34
SECTION 3.1. G.S. 153A-149 reads as rewritten: 35
"§ 153A-149. Property taxes; authorized purposes; rate limitation. 36
… 37
(c) Each county may levy property taxes for one or more of the purposes listed in this 38
subsection up to a combined rate of one dollar and fifty cents ($1.50) on the one hundred dollars 39
($100.00) appraised value of property subject to taxation. Authorized purposes subject to the rate 40
limitation are: 41
… 42
(27) Public Transportation. – To provide public transportation by rail, motor 43
vehicle, or another means of conveyance other than a ferry, including any 44
facility or equipment needed to provide the public transportation. 45
transportation, such as a greenway to the extent it supports a means of public 46
conveyance. This subdivision does not authorize a county to provide public 47
roads in the county in violation of G.S. 136-51. 48
…." 49
50
PART IV. EFFECTIVE DATE 51
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SECTION 4.1. This act is effective when it becomes law. 1