Weekly Great Gas Give-Away! FULL Brought to You
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SEE Back By Popular Demand!! PAGE 3 FOR Weekly Great Gas Give-Away! FULL Brought To You . DETAILS By: SAMPSON COUNTY’S COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER FREE TheVOLUME 4, ISSUE 35 Sampson Weekly www.thesampsonweekly.com Week of August 23-29, 2013 INSIDE Sampson County Friends of Agriculture The Secret Is Out “This is an attack on our way of life ~ We will not settle.” Proposed Industry is Enviva Local News Page A2 Entertainment Page A9 Wood Pellets produced by Enviva Sports Page A13 After several tight-lipped months, Sampson County Econom- Area members of the North Carolina General Assembly, from left to right – Rep. Larry Bell (Sampson/Duplin/Wayne), Rep. J.H. Langdon (Johnston), ic Development has finally released the name of the proposed WEATHER Sen. Brent Jackson (Sampson/Duplin/Johnston), Rep. Jimmy Dixon (Duplin/ developer for the I-40 Exit 355 site in Sampson County. The Wayne), and Rep. William Brisson (Sampson/Bladen/Johnston) company, Enviva Pellets Sampson, LLC, provides renewable and sustainable alternatives to fossil fuels for energy, woody Isolated Fri Monday night’s Friends of Agriculture Meeting at Heritage Hall at the Sampson County T-Storms biomass, and wood pellets in particular and also offer an un- 30% Agri-Exposition Center was well attended. An audience of nearly 200 farmers, state paralleled advantage for economic, base-load renewable fuel and community leaders, and business owners had the opportunity to hear updates supply. Hi: 90 º Lo: 68 º concerning the recent barrage of nuisance complaints targeting Smithfield Foods Inc., Murphy-Brown LLC, and approximately 150 of the company’s contract growers Sat Isolated After a three hour closed session on Tuesday night, Samp- T-Storms in Sampson and surrounding counties. Complaints filed by, “Out-of-state ambulance 30% chasers,” according to Don Butler of Murphy-Brown, LLC. son County commissioners emerged and agreed to hold a public hearing on Monday September 9, 2013 at 7:00pm in Hi: 84 º Lo: 64 º The key message of the night: “This is an attack on our way of life – And we will not the Sampson County Auditorium located at 435 Rowan Road settle!” FRIENDS, see P. 4 Sun Partly in Clinton. The purpose of the hearing is to receive public Cloudy comment concerning the proposed appropriations and expen- 20% ditures for economic development at the proposed Enviva Hi: 83 º Lo: 61 º Sampson County site. The proposed site has been identified Mon Partly Clinton Doctor Arrested as a 200 acres site located at Interstate 40, Exit 355 in Samp- Cloudy son County. 20% Dr. Mouhamed Iyad Fakhri MD, a Sampson county doctor, who operates an Hi: 84 º Lo: 63 º The County has proposed to provide performance-based Internal Medicine Clinic at 620 College business incentive payments to Enviva Pellets Sampson, Tues Sunny St, Clinton, NC 28328 was arrested 10% LLC over a ten year period that include: Direct Incentives of Monday and charged with three counts $2,445,854; Site Acquisition (180 acres site, 11 acre non-de- of failure to maintain records, one count veloped site) $1,252,005; and Site Development (buffer site Hi: 85 º Lo: 67 º of trafficking in opiates, one count purchase, natural line gas extension, site analysis, water grant Wed Partly possession of a schedule IV controlled match) $910,185. According to John Swope, Director of Cloudy substance and a “practitioner” charge for 20% Sampson County Economic Development, “The Company the issuing of fraudulent prescriptions. (Enviva) would commit to make certain capital investments Hi: 86 º Lo: 69 º in the County, and to maintain certain levels of employment.” According to Chief Jay Tilley of the Clinton Police Department, “The investigation The potential public benefits anticipated to be derived from was initiated a few months ago. We received information in another drug investigation this agreement include: Taxable investment- $117,750,000; WEEKLY VERSE which led us to start an investigation on Dr. Fakhri. This investigation is part of an Estimated property tax revenues (years 1-10 in operation) - ongoing effort by the Neighborhood Improvement Team (NIT) into the illegal use & $4,891,708; Direct company employment- 79 full time jobs I am sending distribution of prescription medication. NIT will continue to concentrate on the people at an average annual salary of $36,686; Indirect regional em- him [Tychicus] to who are providing illegal prescription medicine to our citizens.” ployment of 100 jobs with 300 jobs during construction; Re- you for this very gional purchases- $35,000,000; and State grant funding for purpose, that you According to the arrest report, Dr. Fakhri turned himself in at the Sampson County water system improvements-$1,523,925. may know how we Magistrate’s office on the outstanding arrest warrants. The arrest report indicated that are, and that he the Clinton Police Department initiated the investigation and contacted the SBI-DECU Additional information on the com- ARRESTED, see P. 3 ENVIVA, see P. 3 may encourage you. Ephesians 6:22 WEEKLY INDEX Local............................................1-6 Faith.............................................7-8 Entertainment................................9 Food..............................................10 Education................................11-12 Sports............................................13 Health...........................................14 Crime............................................15 Obituaries.....................................17 Classifieds.....................................18 Business........................................19 Ford of Clinton.............................20 thesampsonweekly.com 910-590-2102 A2 www.thesampsonweekly.com Week of August 23-29, 2013 LOCAL NEWS On Thursday, August 15, Governor McCrory vetoed two bills. From The Desk of -House Bill 392: Warrant Status/Drug Screen Public Assist and House Bill 786: RECLAIM NC ACT. Senator Brent Jackson House Bill 392: Warrant Status/Drug Screen Public Assist Representatives Arp, Horn, Starnes and Burr were primaries on this I know the transition House Bill 74: Regulatory Reform Act of 2013 bill, which would require the Department of Social Services to verify from a summer routine This is the General Assembly’s annual regulatory reform bill and whether an applicant for or recipient of Temporary Assistance for to the school-year represents the compromise between the House and Senate. This bill Needy Families (TANF) benefits or Food and Nutrition Services schedule is hard, and was written with the intent to amend or repeal restrictive laws, create (FNS) benefits is a fleeing felon or a probation or parole violator; to I hope that process jobs, save small business owners money and create a more efficient direct interagency cooperation and information sharing in order to is going well. Debbie government. I was asked to represent my fellow Republican senators verify the eligibility status of an applicant or recipient; to deny TANF and I just welcomed by running this bill on the Senate side. or FNS benefits to an applicant or recipient who is a fleeing felon or our third grandchild, a probation or parole violator; and to require drug screening and Weston Cade Jackson, I encourage you to take a look at the bill, but wanted to highlight the testing for certain applicants and recipients of work first program into the world provisions I think will most impact agriculture and rural areas: assistance. yesterday; and our -We exempted ponds that are constructed and used for agriculture daughter-in-law is in from riparian buffer rules. For those of you with irrigation ponds, House Bill 786: RECLAIM NC ACT good health! we have grandfathered those that were either in existence on or Representative Harry Warren championed this bill, which requires constructed after July 22, 1997. This will increase a farmer’s ability to the Department of Public Safety to study measures for addressing As always, when you use more property around the irrigation pond. the problem of illegal immigration in this state. It also mandates that call or email my office, -We have directed the Department of Transportation to adopt rules they clarify which employers are subject to the state’s E-Verify laws. normally you speak with a member of my staff. I want to assure you for selective pruning within highway rights-of-way for vegetation that I read each and every email that is sent to my legislative account that obstructs a motorists’ view of properties on which agritourism I am interested in hearing your opinions regarding the Governor’s and my staff provides detailed records of phone calls. activities occur. Some of our wineries and flower farms live and die on decisions. Please call or email my office with any questions or people seeing their operation from the road. Overgrown vegetation concerns on these issues. This week, I wanted to bring your attention to the bills of mine that can cause serious economic harm to these small business owners. remain on Governor McCrory’s desk. -We have amended the rules regarding daily flow rate for wastewater systems. The problem many rural areas run into is many times, you DISTRICT HEADLINES: “Sampson Perspective” will Bring Citizens and Leaders together First, though, there is an important event that I would like to draw cannot even add a bedroom to a dwelling if the soil doesn’t percolate for Discussion your attention to: enough to allow for the additional occupant in the bedroom. The Organized by the Sampson County Chamber of Commerce, the intent is to provide relief to rural homeowners wanting to build a new Sampson Perspective meeting will provide an open forum for The NC Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services will home or addition. exchange and dialogue among local, state, and regional leaders and be hosting the 9th Annual Commissioner’s Food Safety Forum -We amended the Right to Work statutes to protect our agriculture the communities they represent. The event, which is free and open on Tuesday, August 27 from 9 AM - 12:30 PM at the N.C. State producers and growers from having their contract purchasers force to the public, is scheduled for Tuesday, August 27th at 5:30pm in Fairgrounds.