Tuesday at the General AssemblyReady to pledge
The General Assembly gave its final approval to a bill requiring school districts to set policies requiring daily times for public school students to recite the Pledge of Allegiance and continue to teach about its meaning. The Senate's unanimous approval of a House version of the bill didn't occur until the chamber deadlocked over whether to fight to get its own proposal approved - and created hard feelings among Senate members and with the House. Last year, the Senate approved a bill that would require school districts to provide a time each day for students to recite the pledge and require more education about the flags and North Carolina's symbols and motto. The current law only encourages daily recitation. But the House declined to take up that bill, deciding instead to approve a similar bill that left out the values provision. Neither bill compels anyone to say the pledge. The Senate initially voted 24-24 to reject the House version. Lt. Gov. Beverly Perdue declined to cast the tiebreaking vote and a recess was called for Senate leaders to figure out what to do next. Senate Democrats used a parliamentary maneuver to revive the question to accept the House bill and approved it 49-0. It now goes to Gov. Mike Easley for his signature.
Video programming
The House gave final legislative approval to a bill that would deregulate cable television service in a move supporters hope will lead to new programming choices and lower rates. The House voted 111-5 to approve the changes. Beginning Jan. 1, the measure would phase out local franchise agreements between cable providers and city and county governments. After that, any company who wants to provide pay television service over phone lines or broadband Internet can register with the Secretary of State's Office. Traditional phone companies such as BellSouth and Embarq consider the bill, which now goes to Gov. Mike Easley for his signature, an easier way to enter new markets.
Going home?
It's looking less likely that the General Assembly will wrap up for the year by this weekend. House Speaker Jim Black and Senate leader Marc Basnight said last week they hope to leave this week, but bills that have been identified as priority legislation to get passed are winding their away slowly through the two chambers. Black told colleagues that it's likely now that their chamber will work through Thursday and come back next week. He said trying to complete work hastily in the middle of the night can lead to some unforeseen problems. "You end up doing some bad things. We want to do it right," Black said. "We would like to make sure it is finished in a proper way."
Stormwater rules
Subdivisions and other home developers would have to install stormwater controls if they build near shellfish waters more often as part of new rules approved by a Senate committee. The panel agreed to changes that would require them to set up retention ponds or vegetation to control rainwater runoff in coastal areas where more than 12 percent of the land is covered by buildings, pavement, gravel or athletic courts. Homebuilders and real estate agents wanted the threshold at 24 percent, in line with the rest of the state, arguing earlier that the change would raise construction costs and home prices. Environmentalists won out, persuading Senate leaders that a 24 percent threshold wouldn't do any good to protect oyster and crab harvesting in sensitive coastal inlet waters. The measure now goes to the full Senate for debate. It attempts to put the final touches on federally mandated stormwater controls for small- and medium-sized communities that have been the subject of a lawsuit, temporary rules two years ago and months of detailed discussion this year.
Ethics rules
The Senate rolled out an ethics bill that would create one state ethics commission that oversees all of portions of the three branches of government but still wouldn't have power to investigate complaints against lawmakers. The Senate's version attempts to create a central clearinghouse for ethics rules, complaints and training for the executive, judicial and legislative branches. But the current Legislative Ethics Commission that monitors behavior of House and Senate members would keep its authority to investigate allegations against their own colleagues. Senate members cited the separation of powers doctrine and a constitutional provision that legislators alone determine who sits in their chamber in retaining investigative powers to the legislative commission in their bill. A Senate judiciary panel debated the measure but did not vote on it.
Campaign finance
Responding to a campaign finance investigation into House Speaker Jim Black, the state Senate passed fundraising reforms that includes a ban on incomplete checks. The State Board of Elections earlier this year ruled that Black, D-Mecklenburg, had unlawfully accepted incomplete checks from campaign contributors. The board ordered Black to return $6,800 in donations and he has appealed the ruling. However, the new law would explicitly prohibit any similar campaign contribution. The bill also outlaws cash contributions of more than $50, below the current $100 threshold. Campaign treasurers would have to report the identity of any person who contributes over $50, compared to $100. "We're trying to shed more and more light on the process," said Sen. Andrew Brock, R-Davie. "This is another way we can help improve our standing with the people back at home."
Primary changes
A Senate committee recommended that the state push back the date of primary runoffs by three weeks, from late May to the middle of June and allow up 10 cities and 10 counties to try "instant runoffs" in their local elections. The State Board of Elections has said the current four-week period between the primary and the runoff, or second primary, is too short to get absentee ballots mailed or sent to overseas and military voters. The bill also would cut in half the candidate filing period for partisan municipal elections to two weeks and also would expand the period between primary and runoff elections. The instant runoff pilot would create local elections in which voters would rank their order of preference among the candidates listed. Election officials initially would tally only the first choices. If the leading candidate fails to win more than 40 percent of the first-choice votes, the top two candidates would advance to the runoff. In the runoff, election officials would examine the ballots of voters whose first-choice candidate was eliminated and check how many times each of the remaining two candidates was the highest-ranked alternative choice. These totals would then be added to the original totals for the top two candidates, and the person with the most votes would be declared the winner.
Boxing commission
A bill to re-establish North Carolina's boxing commission narrowly survived a floor vote, with the House passing the measure 58-55. They will vote on it again before sending it to the Senate. The Division of Alcohol Law Enforcement has regulated state boxing events since 2004, when the General Assembly knocked out the commission in a cost-cutting measure. To restart the eight-person commission, the bill directs the Department of Crime Control and Public Safety to use about $3,000 in available funds to pay for meeting costs. The Legislature would then pay about $140,000 per year to sustain the eight-member panel.
Hall appointment
Gov. Mike Easley appointed Larry Hall of Durham to fill the unexpired term of state Rep. Paul Miller, who resigned from his post late last week after he was charged by federal authorities with mail fraud. Easley followed the recommendation of Democrats within Miller's Durham County district to appoint Hall, an attorney who won the Democratic primary for Miller's job. Miller, who had announced earlier this year that he wouldn't seek another two-year term, was accused by federal authorities of submitting copies of doctored checks to try to convince the U.S. Education Department that he had paid off $20,000 in student loans. Hall won't have a Republican opponent in the November general election, but could face a write-in challenge.
Smoking ban
A day after the governor signed a bill outlawing smoking within General Assembly buildings, the message was clear: "No Smoking" signs hung from the entrances to Legislative buildings, and most ashtrays had been stacked in a pile or taken from their usual spots. Lawmakers overwhelmingly approved the ban, a few years after deciding to ban smoking within House and Senate chambers. Meanwhile, the General Assembly gave final approval to a measure that would allow individual community colleges to declare a smoking ban on their campuses if they chose.
Upcoming
The Senate is expected to pass a resolution honoring former Sen. Hamilton Horton, who died earlier this year of cancer. Horton, a nine-term Republican, was well known for his impassioned speeches during his 35 years in the General Assembly.
A Senate committee on environment is expected to consider an 18-month moratorium on state landfills. The bill requests that the state do a comprehensive study to determine the future of solid waste in North Carolina.
Quotable
"You no longer can be transferring your campaign funds to your Swiss bank account." - Sen. Dan Clodfelter, D-Mecklenburg, as he explained a new campaign finance bill that would limit how political candidates spend election dollars.
"It really is a dirty shame that it has come to this." Senate Majority Leader Tony Rand, D-Cumberland, as he complained about the politics surrounding competing Pledge of Allegiance bills in the House and Senate.
END
The General Assembly gave its final approval to a bill requiring school districts to set policies requiring daily times for public school students to recite the Pledge of Allegiance and continue to teach about its meaning. The Senate's unanimous approval of a House version of the bill didn't occur until the chamber deadlocked over whether to fight to get its own proposal approved - and created hard feelings among Senate members and with the House. Last year, the Senate approved a bill that would require school districts to provide a time each day for students to recite the pledge and require more education about the flags and North Carolina's symbols and motto. The current law only encourages daily recitation. But the House declined to take up that bill, deciding instead to approve a similar bill that left out the values provision. Neither bill compels anyone to say the pledge. The Senate initially voted 24-24 to reject the House version. Lt. Gov. Beverly Perdue declined to cast the tiebreaking vote and a recess was called for Senate leaders to figure out what to do next. Senate Democrats used a parliamentary maneuver to revive the question to accept the House bill and approved it 49-0. It now goes to Gov. Mike Easley for his signature.
Video programming
The House gave final legislative approval to a bill that would deregulate cable television service in a move supporters hope will lead to new programming choices and lower rates. The House voted 111-5 to approve the changes. Beginning Jan. 1, the measure would phase out local franchise agreements between cable providers and city and county governments. After that, any company who wants to provide pay television service over phone lines or broadband Internet can register with the Secretary of State's Office. Traditional phone companies such as BellSouth and Embarq consider the bill, which now goes to Gov. Mike Easley for his signature, an easier way to enter new markets.
Going home?
It's looking less likely that the General Assembly will wrap up for the year by this weekend. House Speaker Jim Black and Senate leader Marc Basnight said last week they hope to leave this week, but bills that have been identified as priority legislation to get passed are winding their away slowly through the two chambers. Black told colleagues that it's likely now that their chamber will work through Thursday and come back next week. He said trying to complete work hastily in the middle of the night can lead to some unforeseen problems. "You end up doing some bad things. We want to do it right," Black said. "We would like to make sure it is finished in a proper way."
Stormwater rules
Subdivisions and other home developers would have to install stormwater controls if they build near shellfish waters more often as part of new rules approved by a Senate committee. The panel agreed to changes that would require them to set up retention ponds or vegetation to control rainwater runoff in coastal areas where more than 12 percent of the land is covered by buildings, pavement, gravel or athletic courts. Homebuilders and real estate agents wanted the threshold at 24 percent, in line with the rest of the state, arguing earlier that the change would raise construction costs and home prices. Environmentalists won out, persuading Senate leaders that a 24 percent threshold wouldn't do any good to protect oyster and crab harvesting in sensitive coastal inlet waters. The measure now goes to the full Senate for debate. It attempts to put the final touches on federally mandated stormwater controls for small- and medium-sized communities that have been the subject of a lawsuit, temporary rules two years ago and months of detailed discussion this year.
Ethics rules
The Senate rolled out an ethics bill that would create one state ethics commission that oversees all of portions of the three branches of government but still wouldn't have power to investigate complaints against lawmakers. The Senate's version attempts to create a central clearinghouse for ethics rules, complaints and training for the executive, judicial and legislative branches. But the current Legislative Ethics Commission that monitors behavior of House and Senate members would keep its authority to investigate allegations against their own colleagues. Senate members cited the separation of powers doctrine and a constitutional provision that legislators alone determine who sits in their chamber in retaining investigative powers to the legislative commission in their bill. A Senate judiciary panel debated the measure but did not vote on it.
Campaign finance
Responding to a campaign finance investigation into House Speaker Jim Black, the state Senate passed fundraising reforms that includes a ban on incomplete checks. The State Board of Elections earlier this year ruled that Black, D-Mecklenburg, had unlawfully accepted incomplete checks from campaign contributors. The board ordered Black to return $6,800 in donations and he has appealed the ruling. However, the new law would explicitly prohibit any similar campaign contribution. The bill also outlaws cash contributions of more than $50, below the current $100 threshold. Campaign treasurers would have to report the identity of any person who contributes over $50, compared to $100. "We're trying to shed more and more light on the process," said Sen. Andrew Brock, R-Davie. "This is another way we can help improve our standing with the people back at home."
Primary changes
A Senate committee recommended that the state push back the date of primary runoffs by three weeks, from late May to the middle of June and allow up 10 cities and 10 counties to try "instant runoffs" in their local elections. The State Board of Elections has said the current four-week period between the primary and the runoff, or second primary, is too short to get absentee ballots mailed or sent to overseas and military voters. The bill also would cut in half the candidate filing period for partisan municipal elections to two weeks and also would expand the period between primary and runoff elections. The instant runoff pilot would create local elections in which voters would rank their order of preference among the candidates listed. Election officials initially would tally only the first choices. If the leading candidate fails to win more than 40 percent of the first-choice votes, the top two candidates would advance to the runoff. In the runoff, election officials would examine the ballots of voters whose first-choice candidate was eliminated and check how many times each of the remaining two candidates was the highest-ranked alternative choice. These totals would then be added to the original totals for the top two candidates, and the person with the most votes would be declared the winner.
Boxing commission
A bill to re-establish North Carolina's boxing commission narrowly survived a floor vote, with the House passing the measure 58-55. They will vote on it again before sending it to the Senate. The Division of Alcohol Law Enforcement has regulated state boxing events since 2004, when the General Assembly knocked out the commission in a cost-cutting measure. To restart the eight-person commission, the bill directs the Department of Crime Control and Public Safety to use about $3,000 in available funds to pay for meeting costs. The Legislature would then pay about $140,000 per year to sustain the eight-member panel.
Hall appointment
Gov. Mike Easley appointed Larry Hall of Durham to fill the unexpired term of state Rep. Paul Miller, who resigned from his post late last week after he was charged by federal authorities with mail fraud. Easley followed the recommendation of Democrats within Miller's Durham County district to appoint Hall, an attorney who won the Democratic primary for Miller's job. Miller, who had announced earlier this year that he wouldn't seek another two-year term, was accused by federal authorities of submitting copies of doctored checks to try to convince the U.S. Education Department that he had paid off $20,000 in student loans. Hall won't have a Republican opponent in the November general election, but could face a write-in challenge.
Smoking ban
A day after the governor signed a bill outlawing smoking within General Assembly buildings, the message was clear: "No Smoking" signs hung from the entrances to Legislative buildings, and most ashtrays had been stacked in a pile or taken from their usual spots. Lawmakers overwhelmingly approved the ban, a few years after deciding to ban smoking within House and Senate chambers. Meanwhile, the General Assembly gave final approval to a measure that would allow individual community colleges to declare a smoking ban on their campuses if they chose.
Upcoming
The Senate is expected to pass a resolution honoring former Sen. Hamilton Horton, who died earlier this year of cancer. Horton, a nine-term Republican, was well known for his impassioned speeches during his 35 years in the General Assembly.
A Senate committee on environment is expected to consider an 18-month moratorium on state landfills. The bill requests that the state do a comprehensive study to determine the future of solid waste in North Carolina.
Quotable
"You no longer can be transferring your campaign funds to your Swiss bank account." - Sen. Dan Clodfelter, D-Mecklenburg, as he explained a new campaign finance bill that would limit how political candidates spend election dollars.
"It really is a dirty shame that it has come to this." Senate Majority Leader Tony Rand, D-Cumberland, as he complained about the politics surrounding competing Pledge of Allegiance bills in the House and Senate.
END
