The petitioners have published two different budgets.
Same proposed town. Same proposed tax rate. Same May 2026. Different numbers.
A Facebook post from the Gray's Creek Organizing Committee describes an $11M expense budget against $17M in projected revenues. The website at grayscreeknc.com describes a $7.5M operating budget against $13.97M in revenues. Both are public. Both are presented as the plan. Neither is supported by a published feasibility study. Residents deserve to know which version is the real one.
The Facebook version
$17.0M / $11.0M
Revenue / expenses · Implied $6M surplus · "Eliminate individual monthly trash bills" · "Add 2 to 3 dedicated patrols"
The website version
$13.97M / $7.5M
Revenue / operating · $4.95M one-time capital · $325/household sanitation fee · "Option to fund dedicated patrol if warranted"
§ 01 · Revenue, line by line
Where the money is supposed to come from.
| Revenue source |
Facebook post |
grayscreeknc.com |
| Ad valorem property tax | $5.5M | $5.5M |
| Sales tax / intergovernmental | $7.0M | $4.0M |
| Refuse / sanitation | $1.5M "refuse tax" | $1.52M sanitation fee @ $325/household |
| Recreation | $1.3M (recreation + misc.) | $1.1M |
| Street & transportation | $1.2M | $400K Powell Bill (restricted) |
| Utility franchise tax | Not listed | $900K |
| Permits & fees | $450K | $350K |
| Other | (not broken out) | $208K |
| Total revenue | $17.0M | $13.97M |
§ 02 · What residents actually pay
Two pitches, two different answers.
| Charge to a typical household |
Facebook post |
grayscreeknc.com |
| Property tax rate | $0.10 "modest" municipal tax (presented as the increase) | $0.25 total municipal rate ($0.10 new + $0.15 existing fire tax consolidated) |
| Annual trash / sanitation | "Eliminate individual monthly trash bills" | $325 per household, per year |
| $200K home, annual cost | ~$200 + "no more trash bills" | $500 property tax + $325 sanitation = $825/year |
| $285K home, annual cost | ~$285 + "no more trash bills" | $713 property tax + $325 sanitation = $1,038/year |
The structural problem with the Facebook budget
$17M revenue against $11M expenses is a 55% surplus margin. No functioning NC municipality runs that. Hope Mills's adopted budget is balanced. Spring Lake's is balanced. Fayetteville's is balanced. NC law requires balanced budgets. A 55% surplus suggests one of three things: (1) revenue is overstated, (2) expenses are understated, or (3) spending is planned that hasn't been disclosed. The website version is closer to balanced, but the petitioners owe residents an explanation for why the Facebook version is so different.