Rep. Marcia Morey
Rep. Marcia Morey on the budget saga, casino gambling, gun violence, and election law changes
When state lawmakers returned to Raleigh last week, the word on the street was that, at last, two-and-a-half months into the new state fiscal year, a budget agreement between House and Senate Republicans had finally been achieved. As it turned out, however, this rumor proved inaccurate as a dispute over whether to introduce casino gambling […]
Durham Democrats say budget impasse harms teachers, students
State Republicans’ failure to reach agreement on the budget is “inexcusable” and “irresponsible” and will negatively impact North Carolina’s school children and educators, a group of Durham Democratic lawmakers said on Monday. Durham’s legislative delegation took part in a series of statewide press conferences held to highlight the state of public schools as most students […]
“Parents’ Bill of Rights” is headed to governor’s desk for a likely veto
The state House on Wednesday gave final approval to Senate Bill 49, the so-called “Parents’ Bill of Rights” that requires educators to notify parents if a student uses a different name or pronoun. SB 49 also requires school officials to notify parents about their child’s mental and physical health, obtain written consent from parents before […]
House sends crime bill to Cooper’s desk despite some Democrats warning it’s unconstitutional
The tension between public safety and a person’s right not to be held in jail without having been convicted of a crime once again took center stage in a House floor debate Tuesday as legislators voted on the Pretrial Integrity Act before sending it to Gov. Roy Cooper’s desk. “Our constitution says you are presumed […]
North Carolina lawmakers take first steps to regulate hemp-derived consumables, CBD products.
“When I started naively, I thought I just wanted to make sure that a 10-year-old kid can’t walk into a smoke shop and buy some of these products,” Rep. Jeff McNeely told members of a House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday. But House Bill 563 has grown over the past three months to a 17-page bill […]
Rash of legislation, intimidation, threats of violence pressure LGBTQ allies
When the giant retail chain Target rolled out its line of LGBTQ Pride Month merchandise earlier this month, it was welcomed as a bright spot in a dark year of near unprecedented legislative assaults for the community. More than 700 bills have been filed across the country, including in North Carolina, that would restrict how […]
NC House Committee approves bill to effectively repeal state’s concealed handgun carry law
The North Carolina House Judiciary 2 Committee voted 7-4 on Tuesday to approve House Bill 189 – a bill that would make it lawful for any person 18 years or older to carry a concealed weapon in the state without a permit. The so-called “constitutional carry” legislation would repeal a system that’s been in effect […]
House committee advances bill to erase language in law describing minor offenses that lead to school suspensions
A bill stripping language from current law that provides examples of student conduct that’s not serious enough for suspension or expulsion received a favorable hearing Tuesday before the House Standing Committee on Education – K-12. House Bill 188 removes from state law the use of inappropriate or disrespectful language, noncompliance with a staff directive, dress […]
North Carolina to be represented on national life-without-parole webinar
The Sentencing Project will host a webinar next Tuesday titled “Life Without Parole in the Era of Mass Incarceration” — and North Carolina will feature prominently in the discussion. Among the panelists are Anthony Willis, who served 26 years of a life-without-parole sentence before Gov. Roy Cooper commuted his sentence last year, and Rep. Marcia […]
After the GOP proposes ‘commonsense gun reform,’ Dems float their own ideas
The bills are broadly aimed at keeping guns out of the hands of people deemed a risk to themselves or others. After he found out his fiancée had been shot and killed while walking her dog, a grief-stricken Rob Steele took his gun out of his safe. He unloaded the magazine, put the ammunition back in the metal box, then handed his firearm to a doctor.
Modest national progress on gun safety likely to have little impact in NC
For decades, American politicians have had a disturbing tendency to make big promises about tackling gun violence in the aftermath of horrific mass shootings and then, as the weeks go by, the headlines wane, and gun lobby bullying increases, lose interest. You know the mantra: “We’ll keep studying the matter,” they say. And tragically, the […]