Island Towns Navigate Tax Law Twist | Wilmington News

Wilmington News Today | 2 Min News | The Daily News Now! · Jul 2, 2026 · 2m

Three North Carolina beach towns narrowly dodged tax hikes thanks to a last-minute state law twist—Senate Bill 889 forced them to use 2025 property values instead of 2026’s, staving off revenue spikes. North Topsail Beach passed a $17.4M budget with unchanged rates, cutting capital projects. Topsail Beach had to undo its earlier vote, settling on a $20.6M, 48-cent rate using older data. Surf City slashed its tax rate by over five cents, trimming over a million dollars via delays and cuts—though one council member balked over fire truck funding and resident bin programs. A chaotic, but…