Senate Bill 465 requires the North Carolina Department of Administration to more actively inventory, track, report on, and dispose of vacant or underused state-owned and state-leased real property. It expands the information that must be maintained in the state real property inventory to include detailed building data such as vacancy status, condition assessments, operating and maintenance costs, utilization, workspace counts, and other facility characteristics. The bill also directs the Department to develop statewide facilities plans, utilization measures, space-planning standards, and a surplus-property disposal system, while requiring state agencies to submit regular property-use information and five-year real property management plans.
The bill further creates a formal process for identifying surplus real property and disposing of it more quickly. Properties deemed surplus would generally be sold, and if not sold within six months, could be auctioned or transferred to a city or county for an economic development use. Sale proceeds would be allocated first to costs and any applicable title restrictions, then split with 50% going to the General Fund and 50% to the Department of Administration for repair and renovation projects. The bill also requires a report on vacant building data shortly after the act takes effect and makes the act effective July 1, 2025.
Impact
The bill would amend G.S. 143-341 and add a new G.S. 143-341.3, significantly expanding the Department of Administration’s statutory duties over state real property management. It would impose new reporting, inventory, planning, audit, and enforcement obligations on state agencies and the Department, and it would create a new legal framework for defining surplus state property and disposing of vacant or unneeded assets. It also changes how proceeds from surplus property sales are distributed, overriding other statutes to dedicate half of remaining proceeds to the Department of Administration for repair and renovation funding.
Sentiment
No committee transcripts or recorded votes were provided, so there is no direct evidence of debate, amendments, or partisan division in the available materials. Based on the bill text alone, the measure appears to be framed as a government efficiency and asset-management bill, with an emphasis on reducing vacancy, improving utilization, and generating revenue from surplus property. The overall tone of the legislation is administrative and reform-oriented rather than ideological.
Contention
The most likely points of contention are the bill’s increased reporting and compliance burdens on state agencies, the Department of Administration’s broad discretion to determine whether agencies have justified deviations from space standards, and the mandatory disposal timeline for surplus property. Another potential issue is the reallocation of sale proceeds, especially the provision directing 50% of remaining proceeds to the Department of Administration for repair and renovation projects instead of other uses. Local governments may also have an interest in the transfer provisions for economic development purposes, while agencies with specialized or partially exempt facilities may be concerned about how the oversight rules apply to them.
Creates a vacant property classification for vacant and blighted properties; allows for cities with a population of one million or more to levy an additional real property tax on vacant and blighted properties with funds raised from such taxes being used to address homelessness.