Elkin Tribute: Filing for municipal races ends Friday

YVSA Staff

Supports including medical and public health professionals as stakeholders in utility board decision-making processes.

Candidate website

Supports a return to a 40-hour work week, but only if there is not another outbreak in the Yadkin Valley area.

Believes in studying the impact of COVID-19 on public utilities, as evidenced by the candidate's website's mention of the Yadkin Valley Sewer Authority's case study on the pandemic's effects on a North Carolina wastewater utility.

Believes wastewater infrastructure should be prioritized due to its impact on public health.

Supports including medical and public health professionals as stakeholders in utility board decision-making.

Believes in the importance of maintaining public services such as stormwater management to prevent flooding and damage to the community.

Served as Chairman of the Surry County Board of Health.

Served as chairman of the Surry County Board of Health.

Supports the use of tractors for scraping roads.

Supports enhancing public services, such as improving library facilities.

Served as director of the Northwestern Regional Public Library.

Supports public services such as libraries and appreciates community assistance in maintaining them.

Supports public services, as evidenced by thanking employees for cleaning on behalf of the Northwestern Regional Library.

Believes utilities should monitor usage levels and compare them to previous years, noting that the pandemic significantly impacted non-residential customers.

As of July 31, 2024, Alvin W. Hayes did not have a website or any information online.

Public Services

As YVSA director, slowed capital expenditures to save funds.

Believes in implementing fiscally responsible practices to ensure financial stability for utilities, even in uncertain economic times.

Supports budget amendments to reduce costs, such as eliminating overtime hours and decreasing capital outlay, resulting in approximately $160,000 in savings.

Plans to supplement unrestricted cash reserves whenever possible.

Believes in reducing expenses by adjusting worker schedules and minimizing contract work to prepare for emergency situations that could impact revenue.

Believes in maintaining transparency and providing detailed financial information to the public.

Believes the manufacturing plant should operate at full capacity to boost the economy.

Believes the budget is restricted due to the utility's lack of knowledge about current delinquencies and payment plans.

Supports small, minority, and female-owned businesses.

Economy

Public Safety

Education

Supports the Utility Donation Fund, a voluntary program that provides emergency assistance for low-income families and people in crisis in Elkin.

Believes in adjusting rates to cover losses and fund necessary improvements, such as enhancing wastewater infrastructure.

Believes in improving housing and urban development policies to increase revenue from bills charged, reduce delinquencies, and enhance non-rate revenue.

Supports rate increases for utilities to protect public health.

Believes in monitoring and managing wastewater flows to ensure environmental sustainability and public health.

Believes the COVID-19 pandemic has affected long-term financial planning for utilities, including wastewater management.

The candidate's website includes financial projections for YVSA, estimating that by the fourth quarter of 2020, the agency could see a gain in monthly net revenue compared to 2019, but will likely take several years to recover from the losses suffered in the first half of 2020.

Believes the COVID-19 pandemic financially impacted all businesses, including water and wastewater utilities, and supports policies like Executive Order 124/142, which prevented utility disconnections for residential customers due to missed payments during the pandemic.

Supports extending moratoriums on utility shutoffs to protect communities from revenue declines due to non-residential customers ceasing operations.

Believes analyzing individual utility case studies can reveal the pandemic's specific financial impacts on diverse customer bases.

Believes in providing key takeaways for other utilities to enhance housing and urban development.

The candidate's website says, "In total, the loss of this manufacturing plant’s revenue amongst other commercial customers contributed to 85% of the YVSA’s revenue loss from January to June 2020."

The candidate's website says, "In late 2019, YVSA saw a change in usage from its top billing customer. A manufacturing company had made a transition from a 7-day to a 5-day work week. This caused the company, which contributed to 25% of YVSA’s annual revenue, to cut down their wastewater usage to about 80% of its average 2019 levels. In terms of financial impact, this translated to an estimated 5% annual operating revenue loss for YVSA. At the beginning of 2020 and thus before pandemic impacts, the manufacturing plant had already slowed down its production and thus YVSA’s revenue was already being impacted."

Believes utilities with a large non-residential customer base should be aware of potential revenue impacts from state-issued business closures.

Housing & Urban Development

Supports the Yadkin Valley Sewer Authority's mission of providing efficient and cost-effective sewer service to Elkin, Jonesville, and Ronda.

Believes that a common reason for inside odors in homes is a dry trap, which can be easily fixed by pouring water into the drain.

Believes in preserving natural landscapes and is glad there was no damage to local creeks despite high water levels.

Supports improving transportation and infrastructure.

Believes in maintaining clean and dry conditions for electrical equipment and appliances to ensure safety.

Supports providing financial assessment tools to utilities, such as the COVID-19 Revenue Change Tool, to evaluate and project revenue loss due to pandemic conditions.

Supports the North Carolina Division of Water Infrastructure's efforts to improve water and wastewater services in rural communities.

Supports sustainable transportation and infrastructure development.

Supports the Yadkin Valley Sewer Authority.

Plans to install 85 miles of sewer lines.

Supports the construction of the Yadkin River Bridge to improve transportation infrastructure.

Supports extending sewer infrastructure by installing a force main to Ronda (inside Wilkes County) along with five (5) miles of sewer within the town.

Supports the continued operation of the Water Treatment Plant due to its excellent record of complying with state and federal regulations.

Supports the Yakima Valley Storage Area (YVSA) as a transportation and infrastructure solution, believing it has a "history of safe and reliable treatment performance."

Transportation & Infrastructure

Alvin W. Hayes

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Elkin NC, Mayor & Town Commissioners

As of July 31, 2024, Robert Ball did not have a website or any information online.

Facebook

Robert Ball

As of July 31, 2024, Whitney Laws did not have a website.

Whitney Laws

- Town commissioners serve as the legislative body for the town government. 
- Town commissioners have the authority to decide the services offered to the town, pass the budget, decide the property tax, acquire property, and enter into agreements with other governments. 
- The town commissioners can create or abolish any offices, positions, departments, etc. to improve the organization of the town. 
- Town commissioners may make investigations into the town or any of its departments or agencies. 
- Most town commissioners in Georgia are elected in odd years to staggered 4 year terms. Elections are nonpartisan. 