NC House Republicans criticize Cary's $800 monthly car stipends

NC House Republicans criticized Cary’s $800 monthly car stipend for town council members, arguing that local property taxes are covering a perk in a 60-square-mile town where seven elected officials now receive a combined $5,600 each month. The payment has become a flashpoint in Cary after a broader state audit raised fresh questions about how town money was handled.

The stipend was described in reporting as an $802-a-month car allowance for the mayor and town council members, a sum that comes to nearly $10,000 a year for each recipient. Former Town Manager Sean Stegall approved the allowance, according to the reporting, and Cary Mayor Harold Weinbrecht and council member Carissa Johnson defended it. The material reviewed did not identify any mileage requirement, attendance standard, or official-use test tied to the payments.

That defense landed in a town already under pressure over spending and oversight. On June 25, 2026, Cary approved a $573.5 million budget that included a property tax increase and two additional positions aimed at improving oversight. Days later, State Auditor Dave Boliek said Cary’s former town manager and other employees made more than a dozen questionable expenses, while WRAL reported that Stegall alone made more than $1 million in questionable purchases using town money.

The audit widened the political damage around Cary Town Hall and made the car stipend look less like a routine compensation item than part of a larger problem. Residents criticized town leaders at public meetings after the audit, and some called for a recall election. In response, the Cary Town Council voted to create a committee to examine possible policy changes related to how town money is spent.

For Cary, the scrutiny now stretches from the mayor’s office to the council dais and into the town’s budget choices. The car allowance, funded by property taxes, has become one more test of whether town leaders can explain what taxpayers receive in return for payments that now total thousands of dollars every month.