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~/ PRIVATE WELL TESTING -Seek legislation limiting state mandated contaminant testing of private wells to naturally occurring chemicals, and authorizing local control over well testing for named petroleum-based pollutants. S141 (Private Well Testing) instructs the Commission of Public Health to "adopt rules concerning when the testing for volatile organic compounds in newly constructed private drinking water wells is required and limits drink- ing water testing for the presence of volatile organic compounds." S141, sponsored by Sen. John Snow (Chero- kee), was ratified by the General Assembly on June 11 and signed by the Governor on June 19. X WATER CAPACITY/RESERVOIRS -Seek legislation to streamline the permitting of local water supply res- ervoirs without sacrificing the scientific rigor of Environmental Impact Assessment and the opportunity for public comment. ./-YARD WASTE FACILITIES -Seek legislation clarifying that runoff from yard waste staging areas at county landfills does not require wastewater treatment. • Bill was introduced, but no action was taken this session. • A wastewater study was created in H945, The Study Act, which can address this topic. The NCACC Executive Director is appointed to serve on this committee ./ WATERSHED POLLUTION RULES -Seek legislation eliminating re- quired retrofitting by counties of existing development under rules impacting nutrient levels in existing watersheds. H239 (Restore Water Quality in Jordan Reservoir), sponsored by Rep. Lucy Allen (Franklin), was ratified June 23 and signed by the Governor on June 30. HUMAN SERVICES +/-MENTAL HEALTH FUNDING -Seek legislation to ensure that state- funded mental health, developmental disability, and substance abuse servic- es are available, accessible and affordable to all citizens and that sufficient state resources fund service provision costs inclusive of sufficient. crisis beds. The General Assembly appropriated funding to increase psychiatric beds in local hospitals, but overall mental health funding was cut. HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES FUNDING -Support state funding to provide adequate health and social services specifically: ~/ • Assist each school system in reaching the school health nurse:student ratio of 1:750 and incorporate into the allocation formula a criterion that recognizes the level of county effort in funding school nurses. The Legislature should examine the appropriateness of the target ratio for small school districts and consider whether a target of nurse hours per day per school is a better measure of nurse availability; • Restore the financial incentives for counties that opt to be "Electing Counties"; • Restore funding of the Division of Emergency Preparedness and Regulatory Compliance within the county health departments to previous levels; ~/ • Support additional funding for child-care subsidies and increase the administrative limit from 4 percent to 5 percent to enhance program integrity and eligibility review; • Increase the "general aid to county" funding for local health departments to build necessary infrastructure and support the capacity to provide essential public health services; and, ./ • Support funding for the NC FAST automation initiative in sociaGs4rvices. Page 137