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Courts and Justice
NEWS & OBSERVER:Veto Override on Marriage Bill Postponed Again
The North Carolina House adjourned for the weekend Thursday without formally deciding whether to cancel Gov. Pat McCrory’s veto of legislation allowingsome government officials to avoid performing gay marriages because of religious beliefs.
NEWS & OBSERVER:Court: Attempt to End Teacher Tenure Unconstitutional
A three-judge panel ruled that legislators’ attempt in 2013 to end teacher tenure was unconstitutional, echoing the findings last year of a Superior Courtjudge.
NEWS & OBSERVER:Bill Requires Jury Excuses be Reported to NC Elections Board
The reason potential jurors are excused from jury duty would be reported to the State Board of Elections under a House bill cleared by the Senate’sJudiciary II Committee last week. Many of the reasons that someone can’t serve as a juror, such as being a convicted felon, no longer living in the stateor not being a citizen, also would disqualify someone from voting.
Economy and Economic Development
WINSTON SALEM JOURNAL:McCrory Touts Return of Manufacturing Jobs
Governor Pat McCrory traveled a familiar path to Davie County last week, a trip he has made about five times over the last 1½ years in the name of economicdevelopment. He visited the new Dex Heavy Duty Parts LLC facility in an old textile warehouse on Cornatzer Road, touting the return of manufacturing jobsto a state that was hit hard by unemployment during the recent economic downturn.
Elections
WRAL:National Candidates, GOP Incumbents Gather for State Republican Convention
North Carolina Republicans gathered in Raleigh over the weekend for the 2015 NC GOP Convention, hearing from the likes of presidential candidates Sen. TedCruz, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and Dr. Ben Carson. Gov. Pat McCrory and Sen. Richard Burr also had the opportunity to address attendees.
NATIONAL JOURNAL:North Carolina Republicans Close to Agreement on March Presidential Primary Date
Lawmakers in North Carolina are working to push the state’s 2016 presidential primary election back to March instead of February, meaning the state wouldavoid a stiff delegate penalty from the Republican National Committee.
Healthcare
NEWS & OBSERVER: State Owes Medical Providers for Caring for Poor, Elderly
The state Medicaid office owes medical providers nearly two years worth of back payments for poor, elderly patients, an expense that will increase past andfuture costs, according to the state budget office. The state has not been properly paying providers for patients who use both Medicare and Medicaid.
CHARLOTTE OBSERVER:Local Governments Ending Health Coverage for Spouses
To combat spiraling medical costs, some local governments in the Charlotte area are joining a national trend of dropping health-care coverage foremployees’ spouses. The latest action came Thursday, when the Lincolnton City Council eliminated coverage for all employee spouses.
NEWS & OBSERVER:A Medicaid Cloud Envelopes the Legislature
Nearly a year has passed since the state House and Senate sharply divided over money for the state’s Medicaid program; the legislature may be facing arepeat showdown this year with bigger consequences.
Regulatory Reform
WRAL:Far-reaching Alcohol Bill Gets Tentative Nod from State House
The General Assembly passed a bill last week that clears the way for distilleries to sell bottles of their own products to tourists, along with makingdozens of other changes to state alcohol laws.
WRAL:Committee Gives Nod to Bill Expanding Access to Guns
A sweeping firearms bill that passed the House Rules Committee on Wednesday morning would narrow the number of gun sales for which a background check isconducted, but would allow the state agriculture commissioner to ban firearms at the North Carolina State Fair.
NEWS & OBSERVER:‘Biscuit Bill’ Clears NC House Committee
An NC House committee backed legislation Wednesday that would allow convenience stores to set up tables and chairs for customers eating inside.
WILMINGTON STAR NEWS:Legislation on Billboard Control Troubles City Leaders
City officials are expressing concern about a bill working its way through the General Assembly that would give more freedom to billboard owners.
State Budget
NEWS AND OBSERVER:NC Senate Likely to Delay Budget Release
The Senate will likely delay budget votes originally slated for Wednesday and Thursday, according to Senate Majority Leader Harry Brown. Brown, one of thechamber’s top budget writers, said he expects the schedule released late last month will change.
Transportation
NEWS & OBSERVER:Dredging at Morehead City Hasn’t Brought Relief Yet
The state ports’ biggest shipping customer has been losing two million dollars monthly since October because the clogged navigation channel is still tooshallow to handle fully laden freighters. A dredging operation which started in May is expected to bring some relief by August, helping the state’ssecond-busiest port get back to normal.
CHARLOTTE OBSERVER:I-485 The end of the era of new free lanes
The opening of the last segment of Interstate 485 last week marked the end of a 27-year construction program to encircle Charlotte with a highway. It alsomarked another milestone: It was most likely the last large-scale highway program in Charlotte that won’t include toll lanes.
WRAL:Top Legislative Leaders Cast Doubt on Transportation Bonds
Both Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger and House Speaker Tim Moore said Tuesday that any bond package that comes out of the General Assembly this yearwill likely be smaller than the $3 billion sought by Gov. Pat McCrory.
NEWS & OBSERVER:House Panel Rejects Driving Permits for Undocumented Immigrants
A House panel rejected a push Tuesday to gut legislation that would provide state-issued identification cards and driving permits for many thousands ofimmigrants in the United States illegally, while increasing penalties for selling or using phony IDs.
CONTACT US
HarryKaplan
Senior Vice President
hkaplan@mwcllc.com
JeffBarnhart
Senior Vice President
jbarnhart@mwcllc.com
Franklin Freeman
Senior Vice President
ffreeman@mwcllc.com
Bo Heath
Senior Vice President
dbheath@mwcllc.com
John Merritt
Senior Vice President
jmerritt@mwcllc.com
JohnnyTillett
Senior Vice President
jtillett@mwcllc.com
Kerri Burke
Vice President
kburke@mwcllc.com
JillianTotman
Assistant Vice President
jtotman@mwcllc.com
Sarah Wolfe
Assistant Vice President
swolfe@mwcllc.com
Philip Barefoot
Research Assistant
pbarefoot@mwcllc.com