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2017 Long Session Outlook
NEWS & OBSERVER: Cooper won, but most of NC was McCrory territory, geographically speaking
While Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper is expected to clash with the Republican-controlled General Assembly over the next several months, he has other political challenges: Most of the state is Pat McCrory territory, geographically speaking.
WRAL-NEWS: GOP eases into session before facing Democratic governor
North Carolina Republican legislators handed out chairmen’s gavels and filed bills on Wednesday, easing into a new work year that is likely to feature clashes with the state’s Democratic governor, including over what to do with a controversial law limiting LGBT rights.
WRAL-NEWS: NC senators still mapping confirmation process, say HB2 repeal possible
Senators have not yet determined what procedures they’ll use to approve or reject Gov. Roy Cooper’s cabinet picks, Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger told reporters Wednesday.
WRAL-NEWS: Democrats say HB2 repeal, education funding, Medicaid expansion are top priorities
House and Senate Democrats used a news conference on the first working day of the legislative session Wednesday to outline their priorities and hopes for the year.
Economy
ASHEBORO COURIER TRIBUNE: NC adds jobs but jobless rate rises again
North Carolina’s unemployment rate rose a notch for a fourth consecutive month even though the number of people with jobs expanded yet again.
A bill filed Wednesday would provide millions of dollars of tax relief to the state’s disabled veterans.
NEWS & OBSERVER: NC Revenue Department tax proposal draws ire of business, taxpayer groups
A state government proposal that would change how revenue from services affects the corporate income tax of companies that do business in multiple states has drawn opposition from some heavy-hitting business and taxpayer groups.
Education
DURHAM HAROLD-SUN: UNC wants to waive tuition for grads of NC Science and Math school
It looks like the UNC system will try this spring to persuade legislators to reinstate a tuition waiver for graduates of the N.C. School of Science and Mathematics who choose to attend one of the system’s universities.
One of the first bills filed in the N.C. House Wednesday addresses a class size reduction that school districts said could force them to cut arts and physical education classes.
The state’s top education leaders still have not tapped someone to lead the turnaround of North Carolina’s lowest-performing schools, more than six months after the position was created.
Mark Johnson is a hard guy to pigeonhole.
Energy
ELIZABETH CITY DAILY ADVANCE: Official to Moore: Win farm benefits area
Area officials told one of the state’s top lawmakers Tuesday that North Carolina’s first industrial-scale wind farm should be allowed to operate because it’s a boon to the local economy and not a national security threat.
Health & Human Services
CHARLOTTE OBSERVER: Blue Cross: ACA plans intact in NC despite Trump’s executive order
Blue Cross and Blue Shield, the state’s largest health insurer, said Monday that President Donald Trump’s executive order to weaken the Affordable Care Act does not affect the policies being sold for the current year.
ASHEVILLE CITIZEN TIMES: Stein working on anti-opioid plan with legislators
The state’s new attorney general says he is working on a plan to decrease opioid addiction that is likely to focus on treatment and ways to get doctors and dentists to prescribe fewer doses of the pain killers.
In the Courts
BURLINGTON TIMES NEWS: Judge puts NC Medicaid litigation on hold
Litigation between Republican state lawmakers, federal officials and new Gov. Roy Cooper’s administration on his effort to expand Medicaid to hundreds of thousands of North Carolina residents has been put on hold for a couple of months.
Justice & Public Safety
FOX-CAROLINA: Judge: Release video in Charlotte police shooting of suspect
A judge on Monday ordered the release of video showing a fatal shooting by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, the second such ruling since a new state law regulating the release of police video footage went into effect.
WILMINGTON STAR NEWS: Lawsuit: NC sex offender law goes too far
Convicted sex offenders are pushing back against North Carolina laws they contend deprive them of constitutional rights without protecting children.
NEWS & OBSERVER: Could a “Raise the Age” law save North Carolina millions?
Rep. Duane Hall is a Democrat, but he nevertheless believes a bill he has supported for years finally has a chance to pass the Republican-controlled General Assembly this year.
NEWS & OBSERVER: What to do when police pull you over? NC legislators want guidelines.
North Carolina’s 98-page driver’s handbook can teach how to deal with school-bus stops, funeral processions and railroad crossings – but it won’t tell you how to act during a police traffic stop.
Transportation
WINSTON-SALEM JOURNAL: NC House again attempts constitutional amendment on eminent domain
State House Republicans will try again in the 2017 session to give voters a chance to vote on an eminent domain amendment to the state Constitution.