WINSTON-SALEM, N.C.  – A retroactive change in North Carolina law allows thousands of students who came close to getting a high school diploma to finally collect their sheepskins.

The Winston-Salem Journal reported Thursday the change affects students who finished all requirements for graduation except passing the state competency tests in reading and math, or a computer skills test.

The General Assembly eliminated competency tests as graduation requirements in a move retroactive to 1981, when they were first required for a diploma.

Kenneth Simington with Winston-Salem/Forsyth County schools says several dozen students in each class since 1981 now could be eligible for a diploma, but they’ll have to step forward themselves.

RALEIGH, N.C. — On July 15, 2009, HB 1342, “Free Medical Exams-Victims of Rape/Sex Offenses,”  passed both the House and Senate and was sent to Gov. Bev Perdue for her signature.

In a press release from the North Carolina Coalition Against Sexual Assault (NCCASA), the group said when signed, the law will ensure that survivors of rape and sexual assault in North Carolina will not be billed for forensic medical exams (commonly referred to as “rape kits”), nor will their health insurance be charged for this kind of evidence collection.

What began as an online petition campaign by the NCCASA in the Spring of 2008 that garnered over 6,000 signatures demanding that survivors not be charged for rape kits, led to local and national media coverage, online organizing, the introduction of legislation, and, ultimately, the passage of HB 1342.

“The amazing organizing work that went into this campaign was phenomenal—from the online petition to students creating Facebook groups around passing HB 1342, we were amazed at the overwhelming community response to ensuring justice for survivors,” said Monika Johnson Hostler, Executive Director of NCCASA.

Not only does passing this piece of legislation rectify the process concerning who pays for rape kits, but it also “places North Carolina in compliance with the federal Violence Against Women Act, which is extremely important since not being in compliance would have led to approximately $7 million in federal monies being withheld from North Carolina,” said Ms. Johnson Hostler.

“Achieving justice for survivors of rape and sexual assault would not have been possible without the hard work of countless individuals across the state,” Ms. Johnson Hostler continued.  “Without advocates, allied professionals, and community members calling their legislators, HB 1342 would not have passed.  Without legislators who believe in ending sexual violence, this would not have happened.”

The North Carolina Coalition Against Sexual Assault would like to thank the numerous rape crisis center advocates, North Carolina legislators, members of the media, community members, and allied professionals who helped pass HB 1342.

RALEIGH, N.C.  – People who successfully sue North Carolina governments for public records would be more likely to get legal fees paid for them in legislation approved by a House panel.

The House Finance Committee agreed Wednesday on a bill that would carve out smaller exceptions where a judge could deny news media outlets or individuals attorneys fees. The bill also would formalize an “Open Government Unit” in the Attorney General’s Office.

John Bussian with the North Carolina Press Association said the measure would improve the public’s ability to know what government is doing.

Members deadlocked 13-13 on an amendment that would have allowed governments to collect legal fees from those who sued them if they prevailed in the public records lawsuit.

The measure now goes to the full House.

By Scott Sexton
Media General News Service
Writing laws can be slow, frustrating and messy.

Such is the case with an effort to overhaul the state’s contributory negligence laws. Basically, contributory negligence means that if two people are in an accident and one is determined to be the least bit at fault, the other – even if he or she was 99 percent at fault – doesn’t have to pay up.

The N.C. House of Representatives passed a bill earlier this year to change that. A similar bill is working its way through the Senate. (We’re one of just four states that still use the contributory negligence concept.).

Under the House bill, we would switch to a modified “comparative fault” system, one based on a concept familiar to most 4-year-olds: If you’re 75 percent at fault, you (or your insurance company or both) pay 75 percent of the damage.

“Your periodic attention to this ludicrous NC law has been invaluable to those of us who are intent on changing it,” wrote George Gates in a May e-mail after the House took action.

Gates is the father of a young man who was killed changing a flat tire on Interstate 40. Lawyers later argued that Stephen Gates contributed to his death because his car stopped a few inches in the travel lane.

“Pat and I have continued our efforts, together with others, since the day (now five years ago) when we were rudely smacked by an insurance company representative asserting that our son Stephen had caused his own death,” Gates wrote.

Perhaps by fall, the Gateses’ work will bear fruit.

RALEIGH, N.C. – The North Carolina House has approved an effort to increase the prosecution of drivers who pass stopped school buses.

The legislation, which passed 115-0 on Wednesday and was sent to the Senate, was named for 16-year-old Nicholas Adkins of Stoneville in Rockingham County. A 60-year-old woman pleaded guilty Tuesday and was sentenced to three years of probation for passing a stopped school bus and killing Adkins.

Judy Earlene Stilwell had a clean record before passing the school bus which had its lights on and stop sign extended.

The bill would let school districts install cameras on stop arms that extend from parked school buses, and allow the resulting photos to be used in prosecuting violators.

RALEIGH, N.C. – The North Carolina Education Lottery can still operate after the state Supreme Court deadlocked over whether the votes creating the games were lawful.

Three of the seven justices agreed Friday the lottery law was unconstitutional and three others upheld the law. A seventh justice had recused himself from the case and did not vote.

The 3-3 decision means a lower court ruling that rejected the claim challenging the law remains in place.

Taxpayers and advocacy groups sued before the first tickets were sold in March 2006, arguing that the General Assembly didn’t pass the lottery legislation properly in 2005. They said the state constitution required the House and Senate to each hold two separate votes on separate days. Each chamber only took one day.

RALEIGH, N.C. – Gov. Bev Perdue Wednesday signed a bill into law that lays the foundation for her major restructuring in education leadership.

Senate Bill 198 is the first piece of legislation signed into law by Gov. Perdue.  The act modifies the restrictions on service on the State Board of Education by allowing a second North Carolina public schools employee to serve on the State Board.  The new law enables the governor to restructure and streamline North Carolina’s education leadership and allows Dr. Bill Harrison to serve both as Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the State Board of Education.

“This new leadership structure will bring a clear line of accountability and efficiency for moving North Carolina’s public schools forward,” said Gov. Perdue. “Our schools can be the best in the nation and I believe these changes will lead to students who become an innovative, well-educated, well-trained workforce of tomorrow.”

In the newly created CEO position, Bill Harrison will manage the day-to-day operations of the public school system.  Gov. Perdue also has appointed Harrison to the State Board of Education and is asking the Board members to select him as their chair at Thursday’s meeting.

Harrison is the former superintendent of Cumberland County schools, the fourth largest school system in the state.  He has also served as superintendent of Orange and Hoke County schools.  Harrison began teaching in 1975 in Fayetteville.

RALEIGH, N.C. — N.C. Young Democrats will advocate passage of three laws in partnership with members of the House and Senate on Feb. 24.

The Young Democrats of North Carolina will lobby members of the North Carolina General Assembly to support the Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency Tax Credit, the Prohibit Smoking in Public & Work Places Act, and the School Violence Prevention Act.    

Preceding the effort will be a press conference held in the North Carolina General Assembly Legislative Building Press Room at 10:40 a.m. 

The following members of the North Carolina General Assembly will be on-hand to discuss specific pieces of legislation: N.C. House Majority Leader Hugh Holliman (Davidson County), N.C. Sen. Josh Stein (Wake County), N.C. Rep. Rick Glazier (Cumberland County) and N.C. Rep. Tricia Cotham (Mecklenburg County).

“In 2008, young people across North Carolina demonstrated that the application of our energies, our resolve, and our commitment to North Carolina’s future can accomplish great things,” said President of the Young Democrats of North Carolina Zack Hawkins. “The Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency Tax Credit, the Prohibit Smoking in Public & Work Places Act, and the School Violence Prevention Act each represent a worthy investment in the people of our state by placing North Carolina on the cutting edge of the green-energy economy, promoting public health, and ensuring a safe learning environment for our children.”

The $787 billion stimulus package includes a “buy American” law sponsored by North Carolina Rep. Larry Kissell that’s designed to help the textile industry.

It’s unclear how many jobs will move to the United States because of the provision, which is the first Kissell measure to become law since he joined Congress last month.

The measure has the backing of textile manufacturers, who participated in a conference call Tuesday to praise the provision from Kissell, a Democrat from Montgomery County.

The law expands a rule that military uniforms be made and assembled in the United States to include textiles worn and used by Transportation Security Administration officers who monitor airports and other transportation systems.