A cantankerous seven-hour debate in the N.C. House yesterday ended in passage of a proposed $20.3 billion budget to become effective July 1. Their proposal moves on to more anticipated debate and changes in the Senate. Education funding was a primary point of contention as the House acted to adjust the second-year of the original […]
Author: Nelda Holder
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Mountain Resources Commission goes on chopping block
Draft legislation in the N.C. General Assembly would eliminate some 102 state boards and commissions, including the WNC-oriented Mountain Resources Commission and its accompanying Mountain Area Resources Technical Advisory Council. Both were created in the 2009 to address balancing growth and development in the mountains with the preservation of natural resources and farmland.
Tillis staffers receive full month’s pay after resignations
The recent resignations of chief of staff Charles Thomas — a former Buncombe County legislator — and another staff policy adviser in the office of N.C. House Speaker Thom Tillis have resulted in payments of one-month’s salary to each “in lieu of notice,” as approved by Tillis. The two staff members resigned following separate disclosures […]
Poll shows Dalton/McCrory drawing closer; videographer sets up N.C. voter fraud
Public Policy Polling’s latest analysis shows the N.C. gubernatorial race getting closer, with Republican Pat McCrory netting a 46 percent rating to Democrat Walter Dalton’s 40 percent. Meanwhile, conservative filmmaker James O’Keefe (of ACORN fame) has posted a video purporting proof of voter fraud in North Carolina — possibly breaking an elections law in the […]
Legislature’s back on stage, still carrying some old baggage
The N.C. General Assembly’s short session convenes tomorrow, May 16, with a primary objective of dealing with proposed adjustments to the 2012-2013 budget. But two ghosts from the 2011-2012 long session — photo ID for voters and legalization of natural gas extraction (known as fracking) — will be haunting the halls.
State regulators give thumbs up to fracking, despite lopsided opposition
The N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources has turned in a final, 484-page report on hydraulic fracturing, known as fracking, declaring that the procedure could be done safely in the geologically appropriate area around Lee, Chatham and Moore counties. The report, which was commissioned last year by the Legislature, calls for numerous safety applications […]
Second staffer for speaker of N.C. House leaves due to lobbyist involvement
Speaker Thom Tillis has lost a second staffer due to a romantic involvement with a state lobbyist, mere days after Buncombe County’s Charles Thomas, former chief of staff for Tillis, resigned due to an affair with a homebuilders’ association lobbyist. The News & Observer reports that the new disclosure involves Amy Hobbs, a policy analyst, […]
New York Times weighs in on North Carolina amendment
An editorial in today’s New York Times calls North Carolina’s Amendment One, on the May 8 primary ballot, “a test of tolerance versus bigotry that ought to be watched closely nationwide.”
Former Rep. Charles Thomas, linked to lobbyist, resigns as top aide to Speaker Tillis
Former Buncombe County Rep. Charles Thomas has resigned his position as chief of staff for N.C. House Speaker Thom Tillis, after acknowledging “an intimate relationship with a lobbyist for the North Carolina Home Builders Association, a special interest group that often seeks help from the legislature and provides money to political campaigns across the state.” […]
The people of this state know better
Preamble to the North Carolina State Constitution: We, the people of the State of North Carolina, grateful to Almighty God, the Sovereign Ruler of Nations, for the preservation of the American Union and the existence of our civil, political and religious liberties, and acknowledging our dependence upon Him for the continuance of those blessings to […]
New poll shows constitutional amendment support slipping
Support for the constitutional amendment on this spring’s primary ballot in North Carolina has slipped from 58 to 54, according to the latest survey by Public Policy Polling. The four percent drop came over the course of the past month. According to the N&O report on the amendment, “10 percent still erroneously think it legalizes […]
Debates between major Democratic candidates for governor televised this week
Former Congressman Bob Etheridge, Lt. Gov. Walter Dalton, and state Rep. Bill Faison have been invited to three debates being aired on public television this week. According to the published schedule, the Asheville area will be able to view only the first two debates, aired on UNC-TV (cable channel 8) Monday at 7 p.m. and […]
Coloring inside the lines: Redistricting complicates election preparations
Last year’s statewide redistricting pulled voting districts into unfamiliar shapes and posed challenges to local officials.
Ready, set, VOTE
In North Carolina's May 8 primary, all Tar Heel voters will confront new district boundaries for Congress, the Statehouse and the N.C. Senate. And in Buncombe County, the commissioners will now also be chosen via district elections.
N.C. amendment carries “massive implications”
The “untested language” of North Carolina’s proposed Amendment One draws scrutiny from the national web-news organization Talking Points Media.
Advisory council studying charter school impacts
The effects charter schools may be having on traditional public schools is being studied by a committee of Public Charter School Advisory Council members. Among the issues being looked at are district test scores, demographic trends and special program duplication.
Ready, set, VOTE
The recent statewide redistricting set the stage for significant changes in North Carolina's May 8 primary. Here are the details.
Poll finds voters confused on constitutional amendment question
Poll results released Thursday indicate 58-percent support for the so-called marriage amendment on the May 8 ballot – until potential voters learn it would ban civil unions. Support then drops to 41 percent.
State legislative committee delays comprehensive immigration reform
Following two hours of testimony regarding legislative overhaul of North Carolina’s immigration laws yesterday, the special committee charted with the review has signaled plans to delay comprehensive immigration legislation until 2013.
Final hearing set on Asheville water; annexation law found unconstitutional
The final study-committee hearing on the future of the Asheville water system is set for April 19. And the (assumed) final special session of the General Assembly convenes May 19. That session may address a new court ruling finding part of the Legislature’s newly adopted annexation provisions unconstitutional—which could affect the unresolved Asheville annexation of Biltmore Lake. And in other news, the state’s readiness for shale gas removal (fracking) has been reviewed by NC-DENR; and two top Republicans have taken opposite sides on Amendment One.
Legislative intent for billboard law saddled with confusion
Legislators and lobbyists express some confusion over the intent of the state’s new billboard rules, particularly the loss of local authority over tree-cutting permitted under new vegetation-clearing permits.