GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 2025

SESSION LAW 2026-17

SENATE BILL 809

AN ACT TO REMOVE THE CAP ON SATELLITE ANNEXATION FROM various municipalities and to Remove the Town of Rural Hall FROM THE FORSYTH COUNTY COUNTYWIDE Fire ServICE DistRICT.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  G.S. 160A‑58.1(b) reads as rewritten:

"(b)      A noncontiguous area proposed for annexation must meet all of the following standards:

…

(5)        The area within the proposed satellite corporate limits, when added to the area within all other satellite corporate limits, may not exceed ten percent (10%) of the area within the primary corporate limits of the annexing city.

This subdivision does not apply to the Cities of Archdale, Asheboro, Belmont, Claremont, Concord, Conover, Dunn, Durham, Elizabeth City, Gastonia, Greenville, Hickory, Kannapolis, King, Kings Mountain, Locust, Lowell, Marion, Mount Airy, Mount Holly, New Bern, Newton, Oxford, Randleman, Roanoke Rapids, Rockingham, Saluda, Sanford, Salisbury, Shelby, Southport, Statesville, and Washington and the Towns of Ahoskie, Angier, Apex, Ayden, Belville, Benson, Bladenboro, Bridgeton, Bunn, Burgaw, Calabash, Carthage, Catawba, China Grove, Clayton, Cleveland, Coats, Columbia, Columbus, Cramerton, Creswell, Dallas, Dobson, Erwin, Four Oaks, Franklin, Franklinton, Franklinville, Fuquay‑Varina, Garner, Godwin, Goldston, Granite Quarry, Green Level, Grimesland, Harrisburg, Holly Ridge, Holly Springs, Hookerton, Hope Mills, Huntersville, Jamestown, Kenansville, Kenly, Knightdale, Landis, Laurel Park, Liberty, Lillington, Louisburg, Madison, Maggie Valley, Maiden, Mayodan, Maysville, Middlesex, Midland, Mocksville, Morrisville, Mount Pleasant, Nashville, North Wilkesboro, Norwood, Oak Island, Oakboro, Ocean Isle Beach, Pembroke, Pine Level, Pollocksville, Princeton, Ramseur, Ranlo, Richlands, Rockwell, Rolesville, Rutherfordton, Shallotte, Siler City, Smithfield, Spencer, Spring Lake, Spruce Pine, Stanley, Stem, Stovall, Surf City, Swansboro, Taylorsville, Troutman, Troy, Vass, Wallace, Warsaw, Watha, Waynesville, Weldon, Wendell, West Jefferson, Wilson's Mills, Windsor, Wingate, Yadkinville, Youngsville, and Zebulon."

SECTION 2.(a)  The corporate limits of the Town of Rural Hall are hereby removed from the Forsyth County Countywide Fire Service District.

SECTION 2.(b)  This section has no effect upon the validity of any liens of Forsyth County for ad valorem taxes outstanding before the effective date of this section.

SECTION 2.(c)  This section becomes effective June 30, 2026. Property in the territory described in this section as of January 1, 2026, is no longer subject to Forsyth County Countywide Fire Service District taxes for taxes imposed for taxable years beginning on or after July 1, 2026.

SECTION 3.  Except as otherwise provided, this act is effective when it becomes law.

In the General Assembly read three times and ratified this the 24^th day of June, 2026.

                                                                    s/  Rachel Hunt

                                                                         President of the Senate

                                                                    s/  Mitchell S. Setzer

                                                                         Speaker Pro Tempore of the House of

Representatives