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Economic Development
WRAL TECH WIRE: New jobs for North Carolina: Tracking 25 biggest job-rich investments in 2022-23
In the wake of record-setting job creation announcements in 2020 and 2021, North Carolina continues to show why global media outlets heap praise on the state as a top business destination. Wolfspeed’s $5 billion investment in Chatham County tops the list and symbolizes the country’s move to electric vehicles and an economy much less dependent on fossil fuels.
Education
NC NEWSLINE: State Board of Education signs off on seven new charter schools
Seven new charter schools are scheduled to open next month after receiving final approvals from the State Board of Education on Thursday. The seven schools have been in what is called the “Ready to Open” (RTO) phase, which is essentially a two-year planning period during which the schools must show progress toward opening.
WCNC: K-12 science standards updated by North Carolina Board of Education
North Carolina’s new science standards for K-12 schools will push for more hands-on learning. The State Board of Education approved the new standards Thursday. Schools will begin implementing them this fall, and they’ll be fully implemented in the 2024-25 school year, according to a report by WRAL.
Government
WRAL NEWS: All North Carolina state employees will soon get paid parental leave. Here’s what it could look like
Hundreds of thousands of North Carolina state government employees will have access to paid parental leave, starting this month. Paid parental leave is expanding to every state government employee under the state’s new law that also restricts abortion at 12 weeks of pregnancy.
NBC NEWS: N.C. governor vetoes trio of LGBTQ restrictions in ongoing fight with GOP supermajority
Democratic North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper vetoed Wednesday a trio of bills aimed at LGBTQ youth that would ban gender-affirming health care for minors, restrict transgender participation in school sports and limit classroom instruction about gender identity and sexuality.
WUNC: NC Gov. Cooper vetoes building code and charter school bills
Gov. Roy Cooper on Friday vetoed two bills — one that would prevent the governor-appointed state Building Code Council from updating energy efficiency rules for new homes until 2031 and another that would change the way charter schools are approved.
Healthcare
NC HEALTH NEWS: U.S. Senator Tillis heads to Raleigh with a mental health care agenda
North Carolina’s U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis convened a small group of state health care leaders last week in Raleigh to discuss his legislative agenda about mental health and substance use. Tillis hosted the meeting during the week of the one-year anniversary of the passage of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, the first significant piece of gun violence prevention legislation to make it through Congress in the past 30 years.
THE NEWS & OBSERVER: Medicaid expansion deal could jack up hospital prices, some experts argue. Here’s how.
When North Carolina expanded Medicaid earlier this year, the bipartisan law drew few criticisms. The legislation would extend health insurance coverage to about 600,000 low-income North Carolinians while coming at “no additional cost to the state,” thanks to ample federal funding and a tax on hospitals.
Politics
THE NEWS & OBSERVER: Where’s the money? When NC’s state employees, teachers could see raises in their paychecks
Happy new fiscal year, but the time to celebrate has not arrived for tens of thousands of state employees. The state fiscal year started on July 1, which is when raises would start showing up in government paychecks.
Transportation
THE FAYETTEVILLE OBSERVER: Drivers blocking roads to do doughnuts and burnouts? New NC law to ban ‘street takeovers’
A proposed law pending on the governor’s desk will give North Carolina police a new tool to deter drivers who illegally race and perform car and motorcycle stunts on public streets. The legislation, Senate Bill 91, makes it illegal to organize or participate in a street takeover. “Street takeover” is defined in the legislation as any organized event that uses motor vehicles to block a public street, road or highway for the performance of a motor vehicle stunt, contest or exhibition.