Legislature
Blue Cross NC deregulation bill could lead to higher premiums, Insurance Commissioner says
Changes to state law that Blue Cross NC wants could mean increased premiums for millions of health insurance policyholders, state Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey said Monday. Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina, a nonprofit health insurer, disagreed with Causey’s assessment. In an email, company spokeswoman Sara Lang said the bill has been revised to […]
NC Senate committee approves caps on medical debt interest, limits on aggressive collection tactics
A bill that would limit aggressive medical debt collection tactics got its first affirmative vote in the legislature Thursday as it moved through a Senate committee with little discussion. Treasurer Dale Folwell, a Republican running for governor, has been promoting the “Medical Debt De-Weaponization Act” for months at community gatherings statewide. The bill would prohibit […]
Transgender sports ban passes N.C. Senate
The North Carolina Senate passed its version of a bill that would exclude transgender female athletes from middle and high school sports Thursday. The bill is less expansive than the similar House version passed Wednesday, which includes college sports. The Senate version also does not prohibit female athletes from playing on teams designated male, while […]
NC Senate Republicans disagree with House counterparts on vouchers, tax cuts
Both Senate Republicans and House Republicans want tax cuts more spending on private school vouchers, but their ideas differ in the details. The differing tax and school voucher proposals could end up as points of conflict in the House and Senate budget proposals. Senate Republicans have lined up behind a universal school voucher program that […]
NC Rep. Tricia Cotham, then and now
About two weeks before her Democratic primary last spring, Rep. Tricia Cotham declared her unequivocal support for abortion rights. “Now, more than ever we need leaders who will be unwavering and unapologetic in their support of abortion rights,” she wrote on Twitter on May 3, 2022. At a news conference last week where Cotham announced […]
ACLU sues over new state law it says puts peaceful protestors in danger of prosecution
The ACLU of North Carolina filed a federal lawsuit against a new state law that is supposed to curb rioting, saying provisions give police discretion to arrest nonviolent protesters. The law violates both the U.S. and state constitutions and includes provisions that a federal court previously found to be unconstitutional, the ACLU said in a […]
One-word change in Farm Act could increase greenhouse gas emissions from hog farms
A one-word change in the Farm Act could allow hog farmers to capture methane from their waste lagoons, but choose not to use the gas for energy. Instead, the farmer could merely send the potent greenhouse gas through a flare and into the air. Current law allows for methane to be collected from the farms […]
New raft of bills target transgender youth in sports, health care
As news broke this week that Rep. Tricia Cotham’s party change would hand Republicans a veto-proof super majority in both chambers of the General Assembly, GOP lawmakers filed six new bills targeting transgender youth, their participation in sports, and their healthcare. Senate Bill 631 and House Bill 574, both filed Wednesday, would prohibit transgender students […]
NC House committee approves absentee ballot restrictions
A bill that would make it harder for voters to return absentee ballots in time to have them counted passed a state House committee along party lines Tuesday. The bill would eliminate the three-day grace period for absentee ballots mailed to local boards of elections. Under the current law, those ballots count as long as […]
Senate bill would strip governor of some appointment powers, give it to legislature
A new bill would strip the governor of some of his appointment powers and transfer them to the state legislature, potentially teeing up another constitutional showdown reminiscent of the 2016 court case McCrory v. Berger. Senate Bill 512 would change the political complexion of nine key boards and commissions. Sen. Warren Daniel, a Republican and co-sponsor of […]
Critics of NC GOP tax policy want to stop corporate income tax cuts
Eliminating the state’s corporate income tax means more money for out-of-state corporations and less to support the needs of North Carolinians, critics said Monday. They discussed bills that would freeze the corporate income tax at 2.5% rather than have it fall to zero in 2030. North Carolina’s corporate income tax rate was 6.9% from 2011 […]
Gov. Cooper will allow two bills similar to those he previously vetoed to become law without his signature
Gov. Roy Cooper said Friday he is allowing bills on hotel tenants and rioting penalties to become law without his signature. Senate bill 53 says that people who live in inns, motels, campgrounds, or other lodgings do not have legal rights afforded tenants if they live in those places for fewer than 90 consecutive days. […]