LEGISLATIVE NEWS

ADJOURNMENT RESOLUTION

North Carolina state legislators have wrapped up their short-session action and have left Raleigh after a busy week. The House and Senate agreed to an adjournment resolution on Friday, with intermittent reconvening throughout the remainder of the year. Both chambers will reconvene on July 10, August 1, September 25, November 18-22, and December 30. During these sessions, activities would be limited to dealing with vetoes, appointments, conference reports, elections, and a final adjournment. The November session may involve discussions on the state budget, crossover bills, and potential constitutional amendments for voters in the 2024 election.

NO AGREEMENT ON STATE BUDGET AS LEGISLATORS LEAVE TOWN

On Monday, the state Senate passed its own $31.4 billion proposed state budget with a 27-19 vote, after failing to reach a budget agreement with House Republicans. Talks between the two chambers broke down, with neither willing to take up the other's bill. There remains a significant gap between the Senate and House on overall spending numbers, with House Speaker Tim Moore (R-Cleveland) stating that they were only $30 million apart, while Senate leader Phil Berger (R-Rockingham) put the difference at $312 million in new net general fund spending and $523.8 million in total spending. Last week, the House approved a $31.7 billion budget that includes additional raises for state employees and teachers, as well as a bonus for retired government employees. However, the Senate's budget proposal maintains the current raises and does not include the retiree bonus. Ultimately, the House and Senate were unable to agree to a comprehensive budget adjustment measure for the next 12 months before adjourning on Thursday.

LEGISLATURE OVERRIDES COOPER VETOES

On Thursday, the House and Senate voted to override Governor Roy Cooper's vetoes on three bills. One of the bills reverses some juvenile justice reforms introduced in 2019 (House Bill 834). Another enables billboard companies to cut down more trees and increases toll road late fees (House Bill 198). The third bill is comprehensive, affecting face mask rules, penalties for protesters, and campaign finance laws (House Bill 237). The override votes fell along party lines. The most contentious and high-profile bill is the measure affecting masks, protesters, and campaign finance. It requires the use of medical-grade masks and restricts their use to preventing the spread of contagious diseases. The bill also imposes stricter penalties on protesters that block roads and allows for lawsuits against protest organizers.

CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT APPROVED BY HOUSE AND SENATE

North Carolina lawmakers have approved a constitutional amendment regarding voting rules, which will be presented to voters in the upcoming fall elections. The amendment clarified that only citizens can vote, reinforcing what is already stated in the state constitution. Supporters of this amendment argue that it is necessary to oppose the idea of non-citizen voting, even though it is not currently permitted in North Carolina. However, four other proposed amendments did not pass during the legislative session, which concluded on Thursday. One of the failed amendments sought to repeal a Jim Crow era law in the state constitution, which advocates for racial justice have been trying to eliminate for decades. The remaining failed amendments concerned the governor's powers, voter ID rules, and an income tax cap. There may be another attempt to approve these amendments in late July or early August.

SHORT SESSION HITS AND MISSES

Several significant pieces of legislation were approved during the final days of the short session. The General Assembly approved Senate Bill 357, providing over $67 million in childcare stabilization subsidies as the federal subsidies from the American Rescue Plan expire. Senate Bill 332 was also passed, authorizing teacher raises already planned in the 2023 state budget. Legislators achieved bipartisan success by passing bills to tackle sex exploitation, extortion, and human trafficking. They also reached a compromise to resume the automatic removal of criminal charges that are dismissed or result in "not guilty" verdicts.

However, efforts to eliminate the waiting list for the Opportunity Scholarships program were left out of the last-minute budget changes. Legislators were also unable to agree on a bill that would require sheriffs and jailers to comply with federal immigration requests regarding inmates believed to be in the country illegally. Additionally, a Senate effort to legalize medicinal marijuana did not gain enough support from House Republicans, even when attached to a measure imposing strict regulations on federally legal hemp products. Each of these bills could be eligible for consideration later this year.