www.thecentersquare.com – By David Beasley | The Center Square contributor – (The Center Square – ) 2025-04-12 10:01:00
(The Center Square) – Hurricane Helene has put a new focus on the health of streams in North Carolina and making sure they are clear of debris such as fallen trees and trash.
When heavy storms hit, clogged streams can cause flooding to farmland, damage to bridges and homes and also make recreation, such as canoeing more difficult.
“A lot our streams across North Carolina typically have not had a typical maintenance type program,” Bryan Evans, executive director of the North Carolina Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts, told The Center Square.
Fixing the problem will require millions of dollars in federal and state tax dollars, Evans said.
The issue of stream clearing in North Carolina also came to the forefront after hurricanes Florence and Matthew, and the Legislature responded in 2022 with $36 million in funding for the Streamflow Rehabilitation Assistance Program also known as STRAP.
“It is set up to be a maintenance program, a proactive program to keep our streams functioning the way they should, prior to a storm,” Evans said.
When the STRAP program was first funded, soil and water districts throughout the state estimated that they needed $320 million for debris removal and other work.
The Legislature approved a second round of funding last year for $19.3 million and by then the cost of the work needed to be done dropped to around $200 million.
Then, last September, came Helene. The scope of the damage was so large that federal agencies and programs are still in charge of clearing and repairing it.
A federal program, the Emergency Watershed Protection Program, is in charge of stabilizing streams and removing debris, Evans said.
“In these areas where a blockage has happened, a lot of times the water will go around and it starts degrading the streambed and destabilizing the stream banks,” Evans said. “EWP also helps assist with that – they go back and stabilize those banks, especially where there are structure that are threatened because the streambeds are creeping in on them.”
The Federal Emergency Management Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are also involved in the Helene recovery effort.
“FEMA comes in and they do some debris removal that is considered an imminent threat,” Evans said.
The agencies are still performing an assessment of the damage in North Carolina. Only after that assessment is complete will the EWP fully kick in.
“Helene has affected so many places at such a level that we’ve not seen before,” said Evans.
State officials are working closely with federal agencies on the recovery. State efforts will focus on areas of state that are that outside of the federal efforts, said Evans.
“Once EWP completes what it can do within its scope, we will look at the STRAP program to pick up any additional things,” Evans said. “It’s all about working on streams to try to keep them healthy, to try keep them functioning.”
SUMMARY: Congress is debating a new federal fee on hybrid and electric vehicles, potentially charging drivers up to $500 annually. North Carolina’s electric vehicle registrations have surged from 10,000 in 2018 to over 110,000 today, with 70% in Wake County. The House budget bill proposes $100 yearly for hybrids and $250 for EVs, though some Republicans seek to double these amounts to offset declining gas tax revenue. Critics argue such fees could deter EV adoption and hinder emission reductions. North Carolina already charges state fees, and the same bill aims to phase out the $7,500 federal EV tax credit after next year.
Congress may add a yearly federal fee, $100 for hybrids and $250 for electric vehicles, with some senators pushing to double it. The charge would stack on state fees and could erase the fuel savings that attract many buyers.
SUMMARY: Residents in a Wilson, North Carolina neighborhood are expressing frustration after yet another round of flooding damaged homes and vehicles following heavy overnight rains. Water rose to knee level on Starship Lane, flooding driveways, cars, and apartments. One resident reported losing music equipment, furniture, and clothes for the third time due to recurring floods. The rising water even brought worms and snakes from a nearby pond into homes. Debris and trash were scattered as floodwaters receded, leaving many questioning why no long-term solution has been implemented. Residents are exhausted, facing repeated loss and cleanup efforts after each heavy rainfall.
“We have to throw everything out. This is my third time doing this.”
More than three months after McDowell County placed its Department of Social Services (DSS) director Bobbie Sigmon and child protective services manager Lakeisha Feaster on paid leave, details about internal issues remain limited. A state letter revealed McDowell DSS failed to notify law enforcement of child abuse evidence and violated state policies, also neglecting required face-to-face visits and risk assessments. After nearly four months on leave, both Sigmon and Feaster resigned. Interim director Ashley Wooten is overseeing operations as the county considers restructuring social services, potentially consolidating departments into a human services agency, which may eliminate the traditional DSS director role.
by Lucas Thomae, Carolina Public Press June 16, 2025
More than three months after McDowell County placed its Department of Social Services director on leave, officials have kept quiet about upheaval inside the office responsible for child welfare and a range of other public services. A letter obtained by Carolina Public Press revealed that McDowell DSS failed to alert law enforcement to evidence of child abuse — and violated other state policies, too.
County commissioners placed former McDowell DSS director Bobbie Sigmon and child protective services program manager Lakeisha Feaster on paid administrative leave during a special session meeting on Feb. 3. Another child protective services supervisor resigned the following week.
County Commissioner Tony Brown told local news media at the time that the county initiated an investigation into its DSS office and the state was involved, but did not provide any details about the cause for the investigation. County commissioners haven’t spoken publicly about the matter since.
That Feb. 21 letter, sent by the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services to Brown and county manager Ashley Wooten, offered previously undisclosed details about issues at the DSS office.
State letter details DSS missteps
According to the letter, McDowell County reached out to the state with concerns that its DSS office hadn’t been notifying law enforcement when evidence of abuse and neglect was discovered in child welfare cases.
The letter didn’t say how or when the county first became aware of the problem, but District Attorney Ted Bell told CPP that he had “raised issues” with the county about DSS prior to Sigmon and Feaster being put on leave. Bell’s office was not involved with the investigation into McDowell DSS.
The state sent members of its Child Welfare Regional Specialists Team to look into the claim. Their findings confirmed that McDowell DSS had failed in multiple instances to alert law enforcement to cases of abuse.
Additionally, the state identified several recent child welfare cases in which social workers failed to consistently meet face to face with children or adequately provide safety and risk assessments in accordance with state policy.
“Next steps will include determining how to work with (McDowell DSS) to remediate the service gaps identified in the case reviews,” the letter concluded.
However, that nearly four-month-old correspondence is the state’s “most recent engagement” with McDowell DSS, a spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services told CPP last week.
Sometimes the state will initiate a “corrective action plan” when it finds a county DSS office in violation of state policy. If a county fails to follow through on its corrective action plan, the state may strip the DSS director of authority and assume control of the office.
Just last month, the state took over Vance County DSS when it failed to show improvement after starting a corrective action plan.
The state hasn’t taken similar measures in McDowell.
McDowell considers DSS overhaul
Wooten has served as the interim DSS director in Sigmon’s absence. He told CPP that Sigmon and Feaster resigned “to seek employment elsewhere” on May 31, after nearly four months of paid leave.
That Sigmon and Feaster resigned, rather than being fired, leaves open the possibility that they may continue to work in DSS agencies elsewhere in North Carolina. CPP reported in 2022 on counties’ struggles to hire and retain qualified social workers and social services administrators.
Wooten would oversee the hiring of a new DSS director if the commissioners choose to replace Sigmon, but the county is considering an overhaul to its social services structure that may eliminate the director position entirely.
The restructure would consolidate social services and other related departments into one human services agency, Wooten said. The county may not hire a new DSS director in that case, but instead seek someone to lead an umbrella agency that would absorb the duties of a traditional social services department.
A 2012 state law changed statute to allow smaller counties to form consolidated human services agencies, which are typically a combination of public health and social services departments.
County DSS directors across the state opposed such a change to state statute at the time, but county managers and commissioners mostly supported it, according to a report commissioned by the General Assembly.
At least 25 counties moved to a consolidated human services model in the decade since the law was passed.
McDowell shares a regional public health department with Rutherford County, so it’s unclear what a consolidated human services agency there might look like. Statute does not define “human services” so it’s up to the county what to include in a consolidated agency.
Wooten told CPP that no decisions about such a transition have been made.
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Centrist
This article from Carolina Public Press focuses on administrative failures within McDowell County’s Department of Social Services, relying on official documents, quotes from public officials, and a chronological recounting of events. It avoids emotionally charged language and refrains from assigning blame beyond documented actions or policies. The piece does not advocate for a specific political solution or frame the story through an ideological lens, instead presenting the issue as a matter of public accountability and governance. Its tone is investigative and factual, reflecting a commitment to journalistic neutrality and transparency without promoting a partisan viewpoint.
