9/19 Letters: Treasurer ‘should be ashamed’ over handling of disability check glitch

I am dumbfounded by “After disability check glitch, state wants its money back” (Sept. 17). Of course, relocating companies get millions in tax breaks, and Berger and crew get to use our millions to defend unconstitutionally gerrymandered voting plans while keeping a multimillion-dollar “rainy day fund” for themselves.

But when a calculation glitch gives a 74-year-old, obviously disabled woman a marginal increase barely noticeable over 10 years, they drop the hammer. By extracting a claw-back on the glitch, her monthly check now drops to $735 per month. I have no idea how to live on $735 per month; perhaps State Treasurer Dale Folwell does. Has the person responsible for the glitch been prosecuted? U.S. residents are marshaling all kinds of resources to help people in Florida and Texas recover from hurricanes while N.C. leadership is cutting our own residents off at the knees. Good luck attracting new business. Dale Folwell should be ashamed; the “law” seems to be selectively applied these days.

Prioritize housing

The N&O is to be commended for its recent articles and opinion columns regarding the shortage of affordable housing in Raleigh and Wake County. This type of housing shortage represents a serious state and national problem that deserves much more attention than it is currently receiving.

Surely, one possible solution to this shortage would be for our cities and state to offer the same kinds of financial incentives to low-cost-housing developers and builders that are currently offered to private firms if they will relocate to North Carolina and bring new jobs. As “Raleigh’s affordable housing crisis looms larger” (Sept. 17) suggests, this shortage of low-cost housing is also a long-term problem that will require some type of public-private partnership to produce the numbers of affordable housing units needed to keep pace with our growing population and economy.

Where’s the support?

While our hearts go out to the folks in Texas and Florida, we should ask, “What about North Carolina?” Recent stories detail the drop-in-the-bucket responses of the people who supposedly represent us. Congress and the state legislature have done very little to help the folks who suffered similar losses a year ago with Hurricane Matthew.

Last October, I told friends in Robeson County that the media and politicians would soon forget them. Same thing is happening this week. Hurricane Irma has already pushed the Longhorn state off the front pages and lead stories. In the next few weeks there will be the usual “One year ago” stories about Hurricane Matthew from print and electronic media and then the topic will again be forgotten by those who don’t live in southeastern North Carolina. As a Lumberton native, I can tell you that all a visitor has to do is drive around Robeson County and it’s easy to see that many North Carolinians are still suffering. Where’s the support?

This story was originally published September 18, 2017 at 6:00 PM with the headline "9/19 Letters: Treasurer ‘should be ashamed’ over handling of disability check glitch."