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Confirmations
WLOS NEWS: Senate confirms Cooper choices for DOT, public safety agency
Three members of North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper’s Cabinet have now beenconfirmed by the state Senate after strong support in the chamber fordepartment heads overseeing transportation and public safety.
Education
One of NC. Central University’s trustees is getting a promotion, and willbe joining the UNC system’s Board of Governors as of Monday.
NEWS & OBSERVER: 14 House nominees up for UNC Board of Governors
Fourteen people have been nominated in the House for six seats on the UNCBoard of Governors.
WILMINGTON STAR NEWS: Schools scramble to meet N.C.’s new class sizerule
For months North Carolina’s superintendents have begged legislators to walkback a requirement to cut class sizes in the lower grades. With timerunning out, local school districts are bracing for the worst-case scenario– pulling millions of dollars worth of teachers, classrooms and suppliespractically out of thin air.
WRAL NEWS: NC Superintendent: State board ‘will not budget’ over powerstruggle
As the State Board of Education and state superintendent continue todisagree over who should have more power over North Carolina’s publicschool system, it’s unclear whether they will be able to settle theirdifferences outside of a courtroom.
Finance
ASHEVILLE CITIZEN-TIMES: Republicans roll out tax plans, led bySenate’s $1B offer
Republicans at the North Carolina legislature have started rolling outtheir tax cut ideas, and Senate finance chiefs offered more income tax ratereductions and other breaks they estimate would save the public about $1billion over two years.
NORTH STATE JOURNAL: Senate passes bill to let voters decide whether tocap state income tax
N.C. Senate lawmakers passed a constitutional amendment Wednesday that capsthe amount that the state can raise income taxes.
Health Care
NEWS & OBSERVER: New state health leader Mandy Cohen makes opioidtreatment a priority
Dr. Mandy Cohen, the new state Department of Health and Human Servicessecretary, has made tackling opioid addiction in the state a top priorityfor the department.
WRAL NEWS: Doctors, nurses face off over supervision requirement
An effort to free some advanced practice nurses from physician oversight isbeing roundly criticized by North Carolina doctors groups.
In the Courts
NEWS & OBSERVER: GOP angles for more Republican judges in urbanareas
Hoping to improve their chances of electing Republican judges in a liberalpart of the state, two Mecklenburg County state senators introduced a billThursday that would split a judicial district in that county into three.
WRAL NEWS: Cooper rejects bill to make NC judicial elections partisan
Gov. Roy Cooper has used his veto for the first time to reject a bill thatwould make races for Superior Court and District Court judgeships partisan.
WTVD NEWS: Judges give partial wins to GOP, Gov. Cooper in powerstruggle
North Carolina judges issued partial victories Friday to both Republicanlegislators and new Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper over laws designed toundercut his powers.
Regulatory Reform
NEWS & OBSERVER: Deregulation bill resurrected from last session
This year’s version of last year’s deregulation bill is moving through thestate legislature.
North Carolina’s craft beer brewers could produce more than four times asmuch beer if a bill introduced this week in the state Senate becomes law.