Call him Mister President

Buncombe County Commissioner David Young was elected president of the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners during the organization’s 100th Annual Conference in Cumberland County on Aug. 18. Chairman Nathan Ramsey announced Young’s election at the commissioners’ Aug. 21 meeting, and said the only change that would make here at home was that “David has requested that from now on we all call him President Young.”

“The Association is concluding a successful year in which counties received Medicaid relief from the state as well as alternative funding sources for other important priorities,” Young said in a press release from the county.  “To take the Association to the next level, we will launch a new initiative to gather information and data to produce a comprehensive State of the Counties Report. The report will be a useful tool to assist counties in addressing their most pressing issues.  It will also be a valuable resource as we work with the General Assembly and the Governor’s Office on a common agenda to continue to improve our schools and grow our economy.”

Young joined the NCACC Board of Directors in 1994 and has been a member of its executive committee since he was elected NCACC third vice president in 2004, most recently serving as the Finance Chair. He has been a Buncombe County Commissioner for 15 years. He is the owner of Fugazy Travel in Asheville and is a member of the University of North Carolina Board of Governors, serving on the Budget and Finance Committee, and is said to be seriously considering a run for state treasurer in 2008.

— Cecil Bothwell, staff writer