WHAT HAPPENED: The General Assembly sent the governor a
stopgap bill to continue federal funding to North Carolina as the state budget impasse held. An override vote on the governor's budget veto didn't materialize, though the majority party continued work to that end. Separate end-of-session-ish bills continued moving as chamber leaders kept committees open for business. And a Republican House member resigned.
WHAT IT MEANS: We're still going at the General Assembly, though House Rules Chairman David Lewis did tell the Insider State Government News Service that the number of bills under consideration will thin out next week and in the week after. The state budget veto remains on the calendar.
ON TAP: There's a process for replacing a resigned legislator, in this case for House District 113 in western North Carolina, which until noon today (Friday)
was occupied by Cody Henson, who explained his departure in a
Facebook post. Until that seat is filled (and as of this writing it was unclear when that will happen;
by law the party selects someone and the governor is supposed to approve the appointment within seven days of that), there's one less vote on the Republican side of the chamber. House leaders expect votes daily next week.
THE SKINNY: There's plenty of activity around Jones Street as we hit the 26th day of the new fiscal year, though we haven't seen publicly any signs of agreement between the governor and legislature that would lead to a signed and enacted state budget. But there have been actions on bills we're following. Read on for the updates.
A bill placing rules around billboard relocations passed the Senate on Tuesday after senators approved several favorable amendments. HB 645 Revisions to Outdoor Advertising Laws allows billboard owners to relocate signs, pursuant to numerous restrictions, when the removal is prompted by a condemnation action such as for a road widening. Throughout the legislative process, the League has worked to place more restraints on where the signs could be moved during condemnations. The League appreciates the willingness of the primary bill sponsors to include these restrictions. The bill now returns to the House for a concurrence vote.
The Cooper administration is touting its efforts to improve broadband access, even while acknowledging that many rural areas of the state remain without reliable and fast internet connections. State Chief Information Officer Eric Boyette was in Morehead City last week speaking to the Interstate 42 Corridor Commission Board of Directors about state initiatives to improve broadband access, focusing on those included under an executive order signed by Gov. Roy Cooper in March. The executive order’s provisions and other action by the Cooper administration have the potential to both boost and to benefit from local public-private broadband partnerships. The FIBER NC Act, introduced this session with overwhelming bipartisan support, would unlock the ability of local governments to partner with private ISPs to build broadband networks. Read more about Boyette’s discussion here.
Among other bills that saw activity this week:
-Budget: Without a state budget in law yet, the legislature sent the governor a limited stopgap bill,
HB 961 Ensuring Authorization of Federal Funds. The bill lists implicated programs, many of which are under the Department of Health and Human Services or are for community development.
-Utility safety: The Senate passed
HB 872 Underground Utility Safety Act/Changes, which would make various technical changes to the
Underground Utility Safety and Damage Prevention Act and give more authority to the Underground Damage Prevention Review Board. The bill was the result of a broad stakeholder process and now goes to the governor for his signature.
-Traffic control:
HB 784 Traffic-Control Training Program passed the House and has gone to the Senate for consideration. It would direct law enforcement agencies to increase the age requirement for traffic-control officers and set up a training course in the community college system.
-Hemp: After disagreements on a proposal to define non-psychoactive smokable hemp as marijuana, a House committee this week approved a substitute version of SB 315 North Carolina Farm Act of 2019 defining them differently. WRAL coverage of the story includes viewpoints from law enforcement.
