Robbinsville – Graham County commission candidate Chase Lancaster had already traded barbs with a pair of his potential fellow board members at the Jan. 20 meeting when the topic of a search-and-rescue boat acquired by the sheriff's office last year was broached.
Speaking during public comment, Lancaster had taken the board to task on the low pay rates being offered to new hires at the Graham County Detention Center – even calling the hourly rate of $14 "pathetic" – and questioned the county's decision to cut the sheriff's office budget over the last several years.
"It's time to stop," Lancaster said of the budget cuts.
Lancaster pointed out that surrounding counties, like Cherokee and Swain, offer entry rates between $18-$19 before asking commission Chair Meggan Smith about her proposal at the Jan. 2 special called budget meeting to introduce a new ¼-cent sales tax referendum, which would appear on the November ballot if approved by the board.
Smith said sales and property taxes differ greatly in those counties. Lancaster replied by noting the lower prices of fuel and groceries in neighboring counties.
"You do realize that the sales tax rate is not any less in Cherokee County, Jackson County, Swain County – any of the above," Commissioner Natasha Williams added. "They're not going to save on sales tax; they're going to save on groceries."
When the premise of paying overtime due to a staffing shortage was brought up, Lancaster and Smith were quick to share their respective thoughts.
“Maybe the county would have more money if it stopped spending money on things that we want and use it for things that we need," Lancaster said.
"I agree 100% with that," Smith immediately replied.
Smith's response opened up a new can of worms.
'The boat'
Obtained as part of an $18.7 million package, a 2025 Yamaha AR250 boat was purchased for search-and-rescue missions in Graham and Swain counties.
Advocated for by U.S. Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-N.C.), the $80,000 allocation came from the Community Project Funding Grant – which fell under the Agricultural Appropriation bill. Per the department's website, grants are awarded yearly for projects such as housing, homelessness prevention, workforce training, public facilities, parks, resilience planning, and other critical infrastructure and services.
The allocation was part of the $18.7 million package, which was signed into law in March 2024. The boat was purchased from a dealership in Tennessee and formally introduced during an Aug. 14 press tour at Lemmons Branch Boat Ramp on Fontana Lake.
Brookfield Smoky Mountain Hydropower donated an additional $25,000 toward the effort, which went toward the purchase of fuel, equipment, solar electronics, radios, blue lights, marking the boat itself and a canopy for the boat to be housed under outside the Graham County Sheriff's Office.
"I know there has been a lot of discussion about Graham County taxpayers having to purchase the boat," Hoxit said on Aug. 14. "I just want to state that this information is not correct and everything purchased has come 100 percent from the federal grant and donation from Brookfield Smoky Mountain Hydropower donation. The residents of Graham County should be very thankful and blessed that we have such partners that want to work to help and keep our county as safe as possible."
Despite the publicized information about how the boat was purchased, many local residents still feel taxpayers are footing the bill. Lancaster cited this shortly after Smith's reply about spending on Jan. 20.
"If you're wanting to talk about that boat, it was grant funded," Lancaster said. "I hear people all the time talking about that boat. I'm sick and tired of hearing about it. The boat was grant funded. It was free. The boat is here to stay. It can't be sold.
"If that's what you're talking about, let's move on to another subject, because that boat is irrelevant at this point."
"I don't know that the community would agree with that, but you're entitled to your opinion," Smith said.
"Look at the paperwork for yourself," Lancaster responded.
Lancaster moved onto an attempt to wrap up his public comment – which had eclipsed the nine-minute mark by this point – by stating his belief that a "couple" of the commissioners have "a personal grievance with the sheriff's department."
"That needs to stop," Lancaster said. "You were voted in. Sworn in to do a job. Your personal differences – whether it's with the sheriff over here or with any of the deputies of the department – should not interfere with your job. You should not be trying to destroy the sheriff's department.
"Think about it: sooner or later, you're not going to have any officers because of the pay. That's not going to be on the sheriff. That's not going to be on his chief deputy. That's going to be on y'all. Maybe you should think about treating the sheriff's department as good as you treat the other facilities."
"I think we're fairly equal across all our departments," Williams responded. "We're trying to be fiscally responsible with the taxpayers' dollars. We're trying to save the most money that we possibly can."
"You're saving by cutting the men and women that's sworn to uphold the law and protect this county?" Lancaster asked, before asking Graham County Sheriff Brad Hoxit how much his office had been cut in the last several years.
Hoxit said he did not have those figures in front of him, so he didn't feel comfortable citing any numbers at the moment. The Star reported on Jan. 8 that $89,000 had been trimmed from the detention center budget, while an additional $33,000 had been cut from the sheriff's office.
Hoxit then asked Smith about her response concerning the community's feelings about the boat's purchase, adding that the board had to first sign off on the grant before the application process began.
"If you want to be honest, we were forced into it," Williams said. "We can't dictate what you do with what's in your budget."
"How were you forced?" Hoxit asked. "The congressman (Edwards) sent paperwork for y'all to sign off before he could submit it to the budget. You weren't forced into anything.
"Before we were even allowed to apply for the grant, y'all were presented with it. You voted and signed off on it before it could even move to the federal government."
More to talk about
The meeting finally progressed forward a few minutes later and after reaching the 90-minute mark, seemed to be heading toward its usual executive session. Until local resident J.J. Odom stood up at the back of the room.
Odom admitted he wasn't fully up to date on the boat, but he did ask Hoxit about the recent acquisition of a Utility Task Vehicle, commonly referred to as a "side by side."
Odom simply asked Hoxit if a $40,000 UTV had been purchased, to which Hoxit said "$30(,000)something."
Odom questioned where the funding came from for the UTV.
"That came from drug tax money and money that the sheriff's office has received," Hoxit said. "That has nothing to do with the county."
"Was that money designated for a side by side?" Odom asked.
"It's used for anything that's drug enforcement," Hoxit replied.
Hoxit said the sheriff's office utilized a donated UTV in 2025 to execute two narcotic search warrants amid inclement weather, which he added "could not have been done without that."
The donated vehicle was used to help transport stranded individuals to their homes as well as during a search for a missing individual.
Odom asked Hoxit if the money for the UTV could have instead been used to give raises across his department, to which Hoxit said, "No, sir."
Williams followed by mentioning the need for a fingerprint machine, which had also been discussed at the Jan. 2 meeting. She asked Hoxit if the money spent on the UTV could have went to the machine.
"That's not drug enforcement," Hoxit said.
"In a roundabout way, could you not tie it to that?" Williams asked.
"It's not drug enforcement," Hoxit repeated.
Odom and Hoxit went on to talk about the funding for raises against the purchase of the UTV once again, until county attorney Bill Coward asked that the conversation be shut down and discussed later.
The meeting can be viewed on The Star's YouTube channel.