Commissioners in North Carolina have a duty to vote and cannot excuse themselves or be excused from a vote unless there is a conflict of interest as narrowly defined: "A direct, substantial, and readily identifiable financial impact on the member. This means it isn't enough that a commissioner owns property that might receive an indirect benefit from a decision (such as in a re-zoning issue). The only time they should not and cannot vote is if financial payments to them (or their spouse) would result from a decision of the council. Examples include town contracts with the commissioner or a company owned by the commissioner. It would not include re-zoning or classification of property even if those decisions indirectly enhance the commissioner's property value.
