Another StopNCAnnexation Newsletter

From Chairman Ron Thoreson

January, 2007

Greetings!

The first order of news and business is to, always and again, gratefully thank everyone who diligently continues to have an interest in the changing of the unfair, forced, involuntary annexation laws of the State of North Carolina.  Without your combined interest, participation, and support, nothing can or will ever be accomplished towards our goal of changing North Carolina’s Involuntary Annexation laws.  You, the thousands who receive this electronic newsletter, are the back-bone of all of our grassroots efforts, without which, no small group or individual can or will accomplish the mammoth objective and goal of changing these Unfair, Forced, Involuntary Annexation laws. I and we of StopNCAnnexation cannot thank you enough!  By combining efforts from around the state to seek the same objective, you, as the citizens are the reasons these laws WILL BE CHANGED!

A lot has happened since I last addressed all of you who receive our electronic mailings.  I, for one, have spent a year in Afghanistan and Iraq, as a contractor for our US military.  While this may seem to you like I have been far away and perhaps out of touch, let me assure you that good computer access there has allowed me to stay current, up to date, and informed about what is happening here in North Carolina regarding Involuntary Annexation. 

Along with the help of Cathy Heath, who has diligently kept the web site current and up to date, and the many e-mails that I have been copied on, I have been able to follow along as I also served our militaries electrical needs.

I even had the privilege of working over there with several military residents from the Fayetteville area who were not pleased at being involuntarily annexed.  Yes, even half way around the world, involuntary annexation here in North Carolina has meaning to those serving our great country.

Today, as we continue forward in our goal and quest to change North Carolina’s Involuntary Annexation Laws, I want to update everyone on things that have taken place up to this point.  To do so, I ask that you first take a moment to understand a bit of our history.

StopNCAnnexation was formed by myself and others who were a part of a local group facing annexation.  Our group was facing annexation by The Town of Cary.  Our local group name became, and still is, Stop Cary. 

While our local StopCary group was successful in delaying The Town of Cary’s involuntary annexation of our properties, we fully understood at the time that the laws of the State of North Carolina would allow Cary to come calling again.  We realized that without a change in the State Involuntary Annexation Laws, that we probably eventually would become another victim of Involuntary Annexation, as has happened to many other citizen properties since 1959.

With the help of my neighbors, we set out to start this State-Wide organization that would educate, organize and facilitate other local groups from around the state that faced and would face the same peril as we, the neighbors of the Town of Cary.

After coming up with the name StopNCAnnexation, (SNCA) the name of the organization was filed with the Secretary of State and application filed for a Federal Tax ID, which was given to us before we made application to be a non profit organization.

At the time, the issue that our local StopCary people had been involved with, (the Town of Cary’s attempt to Involuntarily Annex) had been resolved to our satisfaction.   The reason I mention this is that many of the volunteers who were directly affected by what Cary might have done, did not stay fully active with our new state-wide, StopNCAnnexation effort after the threat subsided.  I realize that people have their own lives to lead, and once the issue of their property being annexed by Cary was resolved for the time being, they went back to their normal day to day lives.  The bottom line is that participation dropped off, (as it does in many areas after Involuntary Annexation is either successfully challenged or the area is annexed) and so did the volunteer efforts toward formal completion of the legal formalities of StopNCAnnexation.

I am please today to inform everyone that all formalities are now completed, and that StopNCAnnexation now has, on record, a Formal Board of Directors, a Formal Non-Profit Tax Status, By-Laws, A Mission Statement, and Guidelines of Our Goals, Objectives, Principles and Beliefs.

The details of each of the above are included below this message for you to examine and file for future reference.

It is my sincere hope that this informational newsletter will be helpful to you in understanding more about StopNCAnnexation.  We need your help, both as a volunteer and as financial supporters.

Your continued financial support of StopNCAnnexation, aside from the covering the obvious office costs of administration, letterhead, postage, printing, and the web site, could go much further in spreading the word about involuntary annexation, with your volunteer efforts and contributions. 

The cost of flyers, signs, bumper stickers, shirts with NO Forced Annexation logos, along with newspaper, radio, and even TV public service informational statements or billboards could go a long way to raising more awareness and more participation in our efforts.   Rental of halls to have citizens awareness education, mobilization and facilitation using a local gathering for a combined state and local effort can help local areas better organize and become a more intimate part of the Statewide effort as well.

Please take the time to contribute today.  Without your help, we have a much harder time reaching our goal.  Please send your check to: 

StopNCAnnexation. 

PO Box 292,

Cary, North Carolina, 27512

or click on the CONTACT INFO link on the web site to contribute by credit card.

Together, as grassroots citizens, we WILL change the Involuntary Annexation Laws of the State of North Carolina to the benefit of ALL property owners.

As Always, and Sincerely,

Ron Thoreson

Co-Chair, StopNCAnnexation

Non-Profit Status, Mission & Goals of StopNCAnnexation:

StopNCAnnexation is a IRS 501(c)(4) social welfare organization that, in order to achieve its goal of changing the existing Involuntary Annexation Laws of the State of North Carolina, participates in the following activities:

  • StopNCAnnexation citizen volunteers work to promote the education, organization and facilitation of all the citizens of the State of North Carolina and their interest in learning about, organizing, and facilitating an organized means to educate local and state citizens and elected officials of the need to change the unfair, forced involuntary annexation laws.
     

  • Education is primarily promoted by StopNCAnnexation through its web site www.StopNCAnnexation.com and various produced literature, all of which eventually becomes available on the web site in electronic format for any citizen perusal, use and distribution. 
     

  • The SNCA website has existed since February of 2005, and is constantly updated with new information.  StopNCAnnexation will continue this educational service. 
    This service includes information on how to get involved in the fight to change the involuntary annexation laws, current news from around the state, and current legislation and all the meetings that go with the legislation, and efforts to have and get citizen representation at and to such meetings, so the citizen voice will be heard by our legislators. 
    This effort is necessary to educate more citizens and interested parties of North Carolina about what is happening to change involuntary annexation laws and constitutes 75% of StopNCAnnexation’s time.
     

  • Local organization is promoted by StopNCAnnexation because involuntary annexation, following state laws, is accomplished by individual local municipal governments across the State of North Carolina. 
    Local groups best understand local desires and needs to fight local municipalities involuntary annexation aggression.  StopNCAnnexation does not get involved in the many specifics of local efforts due to the fact that local efforts vary from area to area. 
    For instance, some local areas decide to hire outside legal help based on a specific illegalities that they feel a municipality is doing, and some do not.  Only the local area knows whether the local residents are willing to help with and pay for organizing their local fight. 
    StopNCannexation’s goal is to assist local efforts with information, and let local groups set the standards for their own local fight. SNCA’s focus is to remind local groups that part of what they need to work on is change to the STATE laws that effect ALL involuntary annexations.  Without the State law, their local issue would not exist.  
    StopNCAnnexation understands the importance of making this message clear.
     

  • Since many local area citizens facing involuntary annexation are not aware of other areas in the state that have faced involuntary annexation, and have not been forced to organize as citizen groups in opposition to other local battles, StopNCAnnexation, by primary use of its web site, assists all areas to organize citizen opposition and organize efforts to fight the local battle of involuntarily annexation of property. 
    Organizational assistance is combined with our issue focus of the need for changing the state involuntary annexation laws. 
     

  • We believe StopNCAnnexation and it’s educational information has assisted more than 20 local groups over the past 2 years which are not formally a part of StopNCAnnexation, yet act as affiliates due solely to the common interest their groups end up sharing as to changing the state involuntary annexation laws.
    We plan to continue to promote more organization and interaction between all the independent citizen groups.  This effort is necessary to organize those who have become educated about involuntary annexation and want to do more on a combined statewide level to change the law, and this focus constitutes 20% of StopNCAnnexation’s time  
     

  • StopNCAnnexation facilitates all interested local citizen groups and promotes the idea of working in concert with each other in the effort to convince elected officials of the need to chance the existing State Involuntary Annexation Laws. StopNCAnnexation has organized and facilitated 4 State rallies in Raleigh, North Carolina, encouraging local citizen groups from around the state to join others at the State Capital to raise awareness of the issue of Involuntary Annexation that affects all citizens of the State of North Carolina. StopNCAnnexation plans to continue this annual event.  This event is a necessary part of further educating both citizens and those in elective office that the issue of involuntary annexation hurts the social welfare of all the citizens who own property in the state.   This effort constitutes 5% of StopNCAnnexation’s

    What StopNCAnnexation is NOT:
     

  • StopNCAnnexation is NOT a “Political Action Committee”.  While we do deal with politicians who make and CHANGE laws, we are an issue oriented and focused organization.  The issue is simple. 
    SNCA, for the social welfare of citizen property owners in the State of North Carolina, desires to change the Involuntary Annexation Laws.  We believe such changes will benefit ALL North Carolina Property Owners
     

  • StopNCAnnexation is NOT an organization that will allow use of its electronic mailing list for political party interests, regardless of whether the candidates or partisan interests support change in the Involuntary Annexation Laws.  StopNCAnnexation is an APOLITICAL organization, and will not endorse, work for or work against, as a formal organization, any political candidates or organizations. 
    It is a violation of lobbying laws to do otherwise.
    Individual citizens can support candidates of their choice and support StopNCAnnexation at the same time. We will report to supporters of this issue the position that individual elected officials take regarding forced annexation and reform of State Law.
     

  • StopNCAnnexation is not a fund raising organization for local efforts, yet StopNCAnnexation can assist, if we have adequate funds, in local efforts that are focused on addressing the State level goal of changing involuntary annexation law. An example would be the statewide survey for last November’s election of all legislative candidates regarding their position on changing the involuntary annexation laws.
    This survey was accomplished with the volunteer efforts of the local Moore Co. group while StopNCAnnexation paid the material costs of the survey, using some of your financial donations.
     

  • StopNCAnnexation, at this time, is NOT planning to hire a full time lobbyist.  The reason is simple.  StopNCAnnexation believes that the best lobbyists are all of you, the citizen property owners. 
    Who better understands the additional cost of taxation than those who are forced to pay it after they have been annexed against their will. 
    StopNCAnnexation firmly believes that as a growing group of citizens, we can get the legislature to change the laws. 
    We believe that many voices are louder than one paid voice and the many voices, joined together, represent votes to legislators.  The more voices (and what is seen by elected officials as votes) that participate, the better we will be heard.