Lawmakers, Courts Examine Annexation Laws

CHARLOTTE — In December, a specially appointed Joint Legislative Commission on Municipal Annexation began conducting hearings about possible changes to North Carolina’s annexation laws. While the Assembly has resisted reforming annexation laws, state courts frequently hear cases of property owners fighting annexation. In October, the N.C. Court of Appeals overturned a lower-court ruling that had prohibited the village of Sugar Mountain from involuntarily annexing a number of properties.