DOT board praises former member

When Kinston businessman and N.C. Board of Transportation member Cameron McRae resigned from the DOT board last month after disclosure that neither he nor former Gov. Mike Easley had disclosed flights he had provided Easley while still governor, some DOT officials evidently were unhappy with the treatment McRae got and the way he was squeezed out.

Secretary of Transportation Eugene Conti, Gov. Bev Perdue's appointee to run the department, fired off a letter to the editor of The News & Observer praising his service on the Board of Transportation and on the Global TransPark Authority, of which Conti is vice chairman. Conti said he wrote the letter to provide "additional perspective" to news coverage about McRae, and said McRae was "a dedicated and energetic contributor to the work" of both DOT and the TransPark. "I am grateful to Cam McRae for his service to the residents of North Carolina," Conti wrote.

At Thursday's Board of Transportation meeting, board chairman Doug Galyon of Guilford County read Conti's letter into the board record, and Judge Bob Collier, a board member, moved that the minutes show it reflected the sentiment of the entire board about McRae. The motion was approved unanimously.

McRae, whose term on the board actually ended in January but who stayed on until a replacement could be named, resigned his post in a letter to Gov. Perdue so she could move forward with a successor. The resignation came a few days after news stories appeared noting that McRae had acknowledged flying Easley twice. State law requires DOT board members to disclose their campaign activities related to the board seat; McRae also made contributions to Easley, and the story raised questions whether the value of the flights and the contributions exceeded legal limits.