Reps. Jim Crawford (D-Granville), Nelson Cole (D-Rockingham), and Larry Hall (D-Durham) are the primary sponsors of HB1823 entitled “Sell Underutilized State Aircraft.” The bill would carry out the recommendations of a study completed by the Program Evaluation Division calling for the elimination of 25 state owned aircraft. The elimination of these aircraft is long overdue. Legislators should expect a push back from agencies which own aircraft that would be eliminated.
According to the report, the elimination of 25 underutilized aircraft and five aircraft hangers may yield up to $8.1 million and save the state $1.5 million annually. This is certainly a step in the right direction. Now, if only our elected officials would continue to eliminate waste in government, like traveling to Jacksonville, NC via car instead of via aircraft, this state may yet pull itself out of its current fiscal crisis. Read about the structural fiscal issues facing North Carolina here.
Leave a Comment