#ncleg

[the-beaches-band]

Berger Spokesperson: There Won't Be A Vote On Controversial Transgender Treatment Bill In NC Senate

Pat Ryan, a spokesperson for North Carolina GOP Senate leader Phil Berger, said the state Senate will not vote on S.B. 514, which prohibits people under 21 from receiving gender reassignment therapy or surgery.

[bbrownmedia]

The local 'fiscal cliff'

As the North Carolina legislature sunsets a fairly significant local government revenue source....

The N.C. League of Municipalities calls it a local-level “fiscal cliff.”

But lawmakers say they’ll try to help cities like Wilmington replace the revenue they’re going to lose under changes signed into law last week that will repeal municipal authority to levy a privilege license tax on businesses.

To Wilmington’s government, it’s a good chunk of change that if lost could prompt a property tax rate increase, city council members say. The city collected $2.2 million on it last year and projects the same this year. The taxes fall on businesses for the “privilege” of carrying out their trade.

Rest of the story here.

[bbrownmedia]

'General Assembly! Reassemble!'

A couple pieces--one a preview story, the other an explainer--about North Carolina's legislature reconvening. And the direction here, as far as reporting, has been simpler-the-better, write-to-the-point and keep-it-easy. I try. The first below is the explainer. 

What locals are watching for in the General Assembly

By Ben Brown

With the N.C. General Assembly back online as of Wednesday, county and city officials are at attention, monitoring for local impacts and promoting their wishlists.

While lawmakers expect it’ll be a brief session, with limited scope, below are some of those local interest items, with quick catch-ups on what they mean for this area.

On the City of Wilmington’s legislative agenda:

‘Save the film tax credit’

This one is sure for discussion. The 25 percent refundable tax credit–in most cases a reimbursement to film productions for expenses in the state–is set to expire at the end of this year. The legislature will have to decide whether to extend it, modify it, or let it go away as scheduled. Supporters like the City of Wilmington say....

Read the rest here.

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Legislators return to Raleigh for brisk session

By Ben Brown

Lawmakers will return to Raleigh on Wednesday for a short and tight-packed session of the General Assembly, with game plans eyeing teacher pay, coal ash regulations and the expiring film tax credit.

That’s in addition to the primary reason for the even-yeared session: to address the state’s budget, a challenge in itself with its projected $445 million revenue shortfall, a number cited in a recent General Assembly staff analysis.

Leaders hope to adjourn well within two months, before Independence Day, and that being the case, lawmakers don’t expect much wiggle room.

“I don’t know that there’s going to be a whole lot of action in terms of filing new bills or trying to create new law,” said Rep. Susi Hamilton (D-New Hanover).

Rest of the story here.

[bbrownmedia]

Not about the trees, here

Most of the Wilmington-area media covered this not under tree shade, but under blazing hot sun. My fair-skinned nose remains reddened.

On the surface, it’s a tree issue. To Kevin O’Grady, it’s a much bigger deal.

“The issue is control,” the Wilmington City Councilman said. “This is an effort of having central government control rather than citizen control.”

On April 30, the state legislature’s Agriculture and Forestry Awareness Study Commission proposed legislation that would eliminate a local government’s ability to enforce tree-protecting ordinances on private property–ordinances that are in effect in Wilmington, a city that prides itself on its tree charm.

O’Grady’s point: the state legislature shouldn’t be in the business of banning this kind of local rulemaking.

Rest of the story here.

[bbrownmedia]

The best, and the least-best

Southeast North Carolina's second-term legislators saw their ratings rise this past week. The story:

Our legislators’ report cards have arrived.

Rep. Susi Hamilton (D-New Hanover), for one, saw a surge in her rank among lawmakers statewide, while Sen. Bill Rabon (R-Brunswick) shot into the top 10 for work in the N.C. Senate.

That’s as reported in the biennial “effectiveness rankings” from the North Carolina Center for Public Policy Research (CPPR), a nonpartisan nonprofit that issues such reports after each long session of the General Assembly (whose last one spanned most of 2013). The ranks are based on survey responses from legislators, lobbyists and capital reporters.

In the 50-member Senate, Rabon was ranked seventh-most effective, up from 18th in 2011. The Southport Republican is in his second term and currently co-chairs the chamber’s committees on finance and transportation department appropriations. He also chairs the committee charged with studying revenue laws.

Reached by phone Friday, Rabon said he was “flattered” by the report.

Rest of the story here.