RALEIGH, N.C. – North Carolina Gov. Beverly Perdue has only a few pieces of legislation left to consider before a bill-signing deadline.

Perdue last week signed 102 of the 108 bills that the General Assembly placed on her desk before it adjourned Aug. 11.

She signed 43 on Friday, including legislation that expands a prison indoor smoking ban to the grounds surrounding them. Others make largely minor changes to election and campaign finance laws, although one allows children as young as 16 pre-register to vote.

Two others adjusted the state’s sentencing grid in a move hat could reduce the need for another 2,100 prison beds.

The governor has through Sept. 10 to sign or veto the remaining bills. Those not considered by then automatically become law.

RALEIGH, N.C.  – North Carolina lawmakers passed nearly 500 new laws before shutting down for this year, but plenty of updates and reforms were left pending until next year.

Terry Shook of Claremont said Thursday he wants the General Assembly to look again next year at legislation clarifying state law on using deadly force in self-defense. Lawmakers returning to Raleigh next May will consider whether illegal and forced entry into a home allows the resident to shoot without fear of potential prosecution.

State Sen. John Snow said the deadly force legislation was overwhelmed by all the time lawmakers spent finding a compromise on how much to raise taxes and which programs to cut. The Cherokee County Democrat said legislators will try to pass it next year.

RALEIGH, N.C. – House Republican Leader Paul Stam (R-Wake) and Senate Republican Leader Phil Berger (R-Rockingham) said Tuesday they oppose two controversial bills expected to be acted on this week.  Amendments will be offered during consideration of these bills to remove provisions most onerous to young people.

The “Bullying Bill”, SB 526, titled “School Violence Prevention Act”, is scheduled for a hearing in the House Education Committee Tuesday.  Rather than providing protection to all students from all harassment, this bill specifies categories of victims.  “Sexual orientation” and “gender identification” are two such categories which single out special classes of victims.  Rep. Stam stated that he intends to offer language from HB 776, “No Bullying Anyone at Public Schools”, as a substitute to SB 526.  HB 776 has 62 bipartisan sponsors.

This is consistent with State Board of Education policy adopted in 2004.  The GOP leaders said this has worked well and does not differentiate between types of bullying or potential victims.

“It is ironic that the House proponents of the enumerated category legislation claim that a prohibition covering all students would be ineffective.   Just 12 days ago they all voted for the “cybernet bullying” bill sponsored by Rep. Nick Mackey (D-Mecklenburg). HB 1261 protects all “minors” without differentiation or enumeration,” the GOP said in a press release.

“A majority of the House is sponsoring HB 776, the ‘No Bullying Anyone’ bill.  It simply provides protection from all forms of harassment and bullying to all students – period,” said Rep. Stam.  “There are no special classes of victims and no ambiguity in our legislation.  All students should be provided the same protection from bullies.  Hopefully, the House will not use its rule on title amendments to defeat this superior approach.”

“Our Constitution already guarantees certain rights to all individuals.  We don’t need to create new or special rights for various groups,” said Sen. Berger.

The “Healthy Youth Act”, HB 88, is scheduled for a hearing in the Senate Committee on Mental Health and Youth Services later this week.  This bill mandates that local school districts provide “comprehensive” sex education to all middle school students.

“This prescribed curriculum changes the current focus from abstinence from sexual activity until marriage to a much broader direction promoting risky and alternative sexual behaviors,” the two said in the release.

“Guidelines for Comprehensive Sexuality Education”, which is attached, provides curriculum guidance for “comprehensive” sex education in a way most North Carolina parents reject.  It is no more comprehensive than abstinence education, only more radical. Local school districts have the authority to offer sex education curricula other than abstinence before marriage, but only 10 of the state’s 115 school districts do so.

During House consideration of this bill, Republicans forced Democrats to make several changes to what was an otherwise bad bill during committee consideration and floor debate.  As a result, students would no longer be forced to take the “comprehensive” sex education curriculum if a parental consent form is not returned.  The original bill required most students to take the “comprehensive” curriculum.  House Republicans also succeeded in having the bill’s sponsors remove language requiring middle school students to be taught respect for “long term committed relationships” as an equivalent to marriage.

Using the term “comprehensive” as the title for the prescribed curriculum will suggest to teachers that they encourage middle school students to experiment with various forms of risky behavior.  That is the approach of the National Guidelines on Comprehensive Sexuality Education.

“Parents should be directly involved with making decisions on what sex education is appropriate for their young children.  There is no question that the vast majority would choose abstinence before marriage if they were fully aware of what the “comprehensive” curriculum entails,” said Rep. Stam.

“These bills are part of the radical left’s social agenda and show how legislative Democrats have abandoned traditional North Carolina values and are now wedded to liberal special interests,” said Sen. Berger.

HEADLINES:

- NC residents tell Perdue and Obama officials about health care costs and coverage problems
- NC weighs broad ban of indoor smoking from restaurants, bars, all other businesses
- House approves compromise on malpractice reporting level

THE BRIEF:

HEALTHCARE HOLES: Gov. Beverly Perdue and White House health reform director Nancy-Ann DeParle co-hosted one of five regional health care reform meetings around the United States to hear from citizens struggling with high health care costs and uneven coverage. Speakers at the forum at North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro pleaded for solutions to their coverage woes. More than 700 people attended the regional meeting, the fourth of five being held nationwide as part of Obama’s process to focus attention on getting health care reform approved in Congress this year, with the ultimate goal of universal coverage.

SECONDHAND SMOKE: Tobacco’s fading influence on political leaders headed for a new test in the state that remains the country’s largest tobacco grower. The House was scheduled to vote Wednesday on outlawing smoking in restaurants, bars and almost all workplaces. A similar effort narrowly failed in the House two years ago, and this will be the third such attempt in four years. Health advocates have marshaled money and grassroots networks to overload House members’ offices with e-mails and telephone calls. If approved, North Carolina would become the 35th state with a smoking ban.

DOCTORS ORDERED: The House voted 115-0 in favor of a solution to a dispute pitting physicians with their state regulator over how much information about malpractice judgments and settlements to make public. The North Carolina Medical Board last year ordered that all judgments and awards over $25,000 be posted on the regulatory board’s Web site so that consumers could learn more about their physician. The North Carolina Medical Society, which represents doctors, argued that settlements that are less than $150,000 represent minor lawsuits, and publicizing them would hurt a physician’s reputation. The House approved legislation that would disclose medical malpractice lawsuits that were settled for a total
of $75,000 or more.

MONDAY’S SCORECARD:

In the House:
- H225, to authorize county managers to consider refund requests for overpaid excise stamp taxes. Approved 115-0. Next: Senate.
- H18, would amend the length of clinic time novice speech and language pathologists must gain with people suffering from various communication disorders. Approved 116-0. Next: Senate.

Introduced in the House:
- H907, to clarifies that money available to judicial candidates receiving public campaign support cannot receive matching funds for communication that supports or opposes all candidates for the same office. Sponsor: Rep. Melanie Goodwin, D-Richmond.
- H905, would create a tax credit for alternative fuel vehicles and infrastructure. Sponsors: Reps. Angela Bryant, D-Nash, Pricey Harrison, D-Guilford, and Joe Tolson, D-Edgecombe,
- H914, would exempt the pay of National Guard and Reserve members from state income tax. Sponsor: Rep. Ric Killian, R-Mecklenburg.
- H925, to authorize sharing of confidential information within the Department of Health and Human Services to conduct quality assessment and to coordinate effective care. Sponsor: Rep. Martha Alexander, D-Mecklenburg.
- H926, would allow the use of systems that continuously monitor for alcohol in probationers ordered to abstain. Sponsors: Reps. Martha Alexander, D-Mecklenburg, Bill Faison, D-Orange, and David Guice, R-Transylvania.
- H930, to expand the rights of mortgage debtors and constrain debt collection means. Sponsors: Reps. Deborah Ross, D-Wake, and Larry Hall, D-Durham
- H944, would require appointees to state offices or commissions to list the contributions they or members of their immediate family made to political campaign committees. Several sponsors.
- H941, would extend to all state taxpayers the waiver of penalties if their tax debt is less than $50,000, a treatment enjoyed by U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner. Sponsor: Rep. Jerry Dockham, R-Davidson.

AROUND THE STATEHOUSE:

- Republicans used their weekly press conference to spotlight bills seeking to take the redrawing of legislative district lines out of the hands of the politicians who use the process to favor friends, punish enemies, and build the advantage of the party in power. Districts are redrawn every decade after census results are published. Minority Republicans said companion bills filed in the House and Senate would take the responsibility away from legislative leaders and place it in the hands of an independent panel. House Minority Leader Paul Stam, R-Wake, said nearly a dozen states have taken similar steps. Rep. Nelson Dollar, R-Wake, noted that dozens of legislative districts had just one candidate last year because the way they were drawn so favored one party that fielding a competitor was pointless.

- Gov. Bev Perdue signed legislation formally authorizing Grandfather Mountain as the states newest state park. An agreement for the purchase of 2,456 backcountry acres of Grandfather Mountain for $12 million was announced in September. The purchase from the heirs of deceased owner Hugh Morton is expected to be completed later this spring.

ON THE AGENDA:

House Speaker Joe Hackney told members to expect a lengthy floor calendar on Wednesday and to “prepare accordingly.” The session will be preceded by Democratic and Republican caucuses and is expected to feature a debate on an indoor smoking ban, the most controversial issue to come to a vote so far this session.

QUOTABLE:

“Lord if it be thy will, and we know we are pushing the limits of our petition here, let our team from the Old North State whup up on them there folks from South Carolina and bring them home safely to us, even if them old bones end up needing to be wrapped, taped and iced for a few days. Amen.” House Chaplain Rev. James Harry, who opened the House session on the day many lawmakers planned to travel to Columbia, S.C., to play and attend their biennial basketball game against South Carolina legislators.

A bill in committee Wednesday, H148, would allow voters in Forsyth, Guilford, Wake, Durham and Orange counties to choose higher local sales taxes to pay for public transit systems.

The N&O reports that despite budget shortfalls this year, legislators legislators have filed 137 bills requesting $785.6 million in special appropriations for state agencies, public and private universities, local government and nonprofits.

HEADLINES:

- Top NC House committee leaders unchanged compared to last session
- Five House members named majority whips
- Legislators told $90M needed next year for university, community college enrollment

THE BRIEF:

HOUSE COMMITTEES: Leaders on the two most powerful committees in the North Carolina House are the same compared to two years ago. Speaker Joe Hackney rolled out committee assignments for the chamber Wednesday. The eight chief budget-writers and four Finance Committee leaders are identical to those in the 2007-08 session. So are the chairs for the chamber’s three judiciary panels.

HOUSE WHIPS: House Democrats have named five lawmakers to serve as majority whips for the next two years. Reps. Larry Hall of Durham County and Bruce Goforth of Buncombe County have received the titles in addition to whips from the 2007-08 session – Reps. Larry Bell of Sampson County, Jean Farmer-Butterfield of Wilson County and Deborah Ross of Wake County. Whips ensure party members
are present for important votes and are aware of House Democratic leadership positions on bills.

HIGHER EDUCATION: The General Assembly will need to find more than $90 million to pay for expected enrollment increases next fall on University of North Carolina and community college campuses next fall. The amount was released at another budget briefing, this time on higher education. Legislative fiscal analysts told lawmakers that enrollment at UNC system campuses are expected to grow by more than 12,000 students over the next two years. Community colleges are projected to see enrollment rise by 13,000 students next year alone.

UNC CAMPAIGNING: A campaign finance reform group says two political action committee linked to the state’s leading public research universities have given $1 million to state political candidates since 2005. Democracy North Carolina says the Citizens for Higher Education PAC – associated with boosters of the University of North Carolina – has given more than $900,000 of that amount. The University Development Coalition PAC, which is linked to N.C. State University supporters, gave $100,000 during the latest two-year election cycle. Democracy North Carolina put out the information after a bill was filed to attempt to repeal a law that allows university athletic booster clubs to pay the scholarships of out-of-state athletes at the in-state tuition rate.

Introduced in the House:
- H123, to direct the state Supreme Court, when it is reviewing whether a death sentence is fair an proportionate in a capital murder case, to compare each case with cases that share similar facts, including cases where juries recommended life imprisonment and death. Sponsor: Rep. Rick Glazier, D-Cumberland.
- H124, would allow a judge to decide whether extraordinary circumstances justified paying more than the standard rate to defense attorneys representing indigent defendants. Sponsor: Rep. Tim Moore, R-Cleveland
- H126, to eliminate the statewide limit of 100 charter schools. Sponsors: Reps. Jim Gulley, R-Mecklenberg, and Marilyn Avilla, R-Wake.
- H129, would create the crime of habitual misdemeanor larceny and classify the offense as a low-level felony. Sponsor: Rep. Tim Moore, R-Cleveland.
- H134, would make it a felony to assault any state or local officer or employee on the job. Sponsor: Rep. Russell Tucker, D-Duplin.
- H135, would allow broadband service providers to offer voice-grade telephone service outside its defined territory if the telephone service is an add-on to its broadband package. Several sponsors.
- H136, to expand the state Transportation Deparment’s authority to acquire rights-of-way to extend fiber-optic cable. Several sponsors.
- H137, would rule out execution for murderers who were found during a pre-trial hearing to suffer from severe mental illness. Sponsor: Rep. Verla Insko, D-Orange.

Introduced in the Senate:
- S130, would require that identification numbers be prominently displayed inside each elevator so passengers who may become trapped inside can report the number to rescuers. Sen. Don Vaughan, D-Guilford.
- S131, to add an additional 24-hour jail sentence to DWI convictions if the driver’s blood alcohol content was 0.20 percent or higher. Sponsor: Sen. Don Vaughan, D-Guilford.
- S135, would require mopeds to be registered with DMV and operators to be insured. Sponsor: Sen. Tony Rand, D-Cumberland.
- S137, would allow in-state tuition rates to universities or community colleages to persist for dependents of a member of the armed services killed while on active duty. Sponsor: Sen. Neal Hunt, R-Wake.
- S138, would classify Salvia Divinorum, a type of Mexican sage plant that can produce psychodelic effects, a Schedule I controlled substance alongside heroin and codeine. Sponsor: Sen. Bill Purcell, D-Scotland.
- S140, to make it a felony for a person named in a domestic violence court order to trespass at a safe house or shelter. Sponsor: Sen. John Snow, D-Cherokee.
- S150, to advance the date of the next presidential primary election from May to February 2012. Sponsor: Sen. Andrew Brock, R-Davie.
- S155, to prohibit illegal aliens from attending community colleges. Sponsor: Sen. Phil Berger, R-Rockingham.
- S161, to block the North Carolina Medical Board or other medical regulatory board from disciplining physicians taking part in state executions. Sponsor: Sen. Phil Berger, R-Rockingham.

AROUND THE STATEHOUSE:

- The North Carolina Biotechnology Center, which received $15.4 million in state funding this year, touted its achievements to legislators during a presentation. The center was created 25 years ago to promote a cluster of industries that includes drug-development and production companies, agricultural chemicals and plant advances, medical devices, and research and testing labs. The center also has been giving grants or loans to seed 118 growing companies over the past decade.

ON THE AGENDA:

- The Legislature plans to honor the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People on its 100th anniversary with a joint resolution of congratulations. The country’s oldest civil rights organization was founded in New York City on Feb. 12, 1909.

OVERHEARD:

“We have a dummy in the Senate today.” – Lt. Gov. Walter Dalton said jokingly in noting there was a CPR dummy on the Senate floor as part of a demonstration for the Legislature’s “Heart Health Day.”