Pardon Our Dust
We recently launched this new site and are still in the process of updating some of our archived content. Some details of this article may be incomplete, links may be broken, and other elements may not display properly yet. We appreciate your patience and understanding.
ECONOMY & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
WRAL: Lost Mercedes deal unlikely to speed action on incentives
A day before Mercedes-Benz USA passed on North Carolina sites and opted to move its headquarters to Atlanta, Gov. Pat McCrory urged legislators to act quickly when they return to Raleigh in the coming weeks to shore up the state’s job incentive programs.
WRAL: Skvarla says he wants to push for crowd funding legislation
North Carolina’s new commerce secretary wants to allow small investors to help fund in-state entrepreneurs through crowd-funding.
JACKSONVILLE DAILY NEWS: State economy to dominate long session
When the region’s local delegation returns to Raleigh later this week for the opening of the North Carolina General Assembly’s long session, not much will have changed since the legislators bid goodbye to the State Capitol at the end of last year’s extended short session.
CITIZEN-TIMES: Economists: Recession (really) over in WNC, state
The Great Recession in Western North Carolina, and the state as a whole, is dead.
CHARLOTTE OBSERVER: After CRVA’s NASCAR Hall of Fame debt write-off, some homeowners cry foul
The city of Charlotte’s tentative deal with Bank of America and Wells Fargo to erase $17.6 million in NASCAR Hall of Fame debt has left some homeowners angry after they said they struggled to restructure their loans and fight foreclosure.
EDUCATION
CITIZEN-TIMES: WNC educators question letter grades for schools
Schools in Western North Carolina will be labeled with grades from A to F next month as part of an effort to let families know how educators are doing.
WINSTON-SALEM JOURNAL: State task force recommends ending end-of-grade testing
A state task force reviewing how and how often North Carolina public school students are tested is recommending a drastic reduction in the number of state-mandated exams.
NEWS & OBSERVER: NC grading changes give some high school students a boost over others
For the next three years, current North Carolina high school students will get a bigger boost on their grades from taking Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and Honors courses than those students who will come after them.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT
WUNC: North Carolina’s Legislative Year Ahead: Environment
Coal ash and fracking will dominate the environmental headlines this year. But the story will be different in the Legislature, where as much news will be made by what’s not discussed as by what is.
HEALTH CARE
THE STATE: NC doctors, patients face Medicaid pinch in 2015
The new year brings two new challenges for North Carolina doctors who take Medicaid, as a temporary boost from the Affordable Care Act goes away and a state cut kicks in after a year’s delay.
WBTV: McCrory discusses Medicaid expansion with President Obama
McCrory went to The White House yesterday to discuss the issue directly with President Obama.
PUBLIC SAFETY
WINSTON-SALEM JOURNAL: Lawmaker: Reducing delays at crime lab will be priority
As the General Assembly convenes this week, lawmakers will mark as a priority the complex task of dealing with enormous delays at the State Crime Lab that law-enforcement officials say jeopardize the full prosecution of certain criminal cases, Republican Sen. Buck Newton of Wilson said in a phone interview last week.
STATE LEGISLATURE
WRAL: Lawmaker leaves Democrats to work with legislative majority
Sophomore Rep. Paul Tine will leave the Democratic Party next Monday and hopes to work as part of the Republican majority during the upcoming legislative session, potentially expanding the GOP’s control in the chamber and dealing a blow to Democrats hoping to use the coming session as a springboard to electoral success in 2016.
HICKORY DAILY RECORD: NC House Republicans agree to bring Rep. Paul Tine into fold
North Carolina House Republicans have accepted into their fold a Democratic lawmaker switching his voter registration to unaffiliated.
CHARLOTTE OBSERVER: Tim Moore set to jump from small town to big stage of N.C. House speaker
Tim Moore still lives and works near the heart of this old textile town, not far from the Bethlehem community where he was born.
WBTV: Rural interests rise with Republicans
Wednesday’s General Assembly opening will spotlight a paradox of North Carolina politics – the re-ascendance of rural power in one of the nation’s most rapidly urbanizing states.
STAR NEWS: Familiar faces, issues to welcome legislators as new session begins
When the region’s local delegation returns to Raleigh later this week for the opening of the N.C. General Assembly’s long session, not a lot will have changed since the legislators bid goodbye to the state Capitol at the end of last year’s extended short session.
HIGH POINT ENTERPRISE: What’s on the agenda? Legislature convenes this week
The latest session of the N.C. General Assembly kicking off this week may show whether the tax reform experiment of Republican legislators turns into a net plus or minus for taxpayers.
TAXATION
WRAL: Campaign urges lawmakers to restore tax break for rehabbing historic buildings
A social media campaign is urging state lawmakers to bring back a tax credit given to developers who restore historic buildings for new uses.
NEWS & RECORD: Mayors lobby for tax credits
A group of 26 North Carolina mayors, including those from the Triad’s four largest cities, have started a petition drive to prod state Republican legislative leaders into restoring two popular historic preservation tax credits.
NEWS & OBSERVER: For poor in wealthy mountain areas, new taxes a likely hit
The chill made it harder for William Broom to get around his yard, but he stood outside anyway, hoping a Christmas tree buyer might drive up.
Please contact the Raleigh McGuireWoods Consulting team if you have any questions or comments:
Harry Kaplan, Senior Vice President
hkaplan@mwcllc.com
Jeff Barnhart, Senior Vice President
jbarnhart@mwcllc.com
Franklin Freeman, Senior Vice President
ffreeman@mwcllc.com
John Merritt, Senior Vice President
jmerritt@mwcllc.com
Johnny Tillett, Senior Vice President
jtillett@mwcllc.com
Kerri Burke, Vice President
kburke@mwcllc.com
Bo Heath, Vice President
dbheath@mwcllc.com
Jillian Totman, Assistant Vice President
jtotman@mwcllc.com
Sarah Wolfe, Assistant Vice President
swolfe@mwcllc.com
Katy Feinberg, Vice President, MWCAdvocacy
kfeinberg@mwcllc.com