Home-based business bill returns to House after Senate changes

RALEIGH — A statewide bill affecting home-based businesses has returned to the North Carolina House after Senate changes.

House Bill 372, titled the “Home-Based Business Fairness Act,” was received by the House for concurrence in a Senate committee substitute on Thursday, June 25, according to the North Carolina General Assembly bill page.

The measure is statewide in scope, with no counties specifically cited. The bill page lists Reps. Jeffrey Johnson, Mike Chesser, Donnie Rhyne and Brian Schietzelt as primary sponsors. Other sponsors listed include Reps. Jake Johnson Balkcom, Grey Mills McNeely, Ray Pickett, David Pike and Bill Ward.

The bill page identifies the affected statute as Chapter 160A, which governs cities and towns. Its keyword list includes commerce, corporations, housing, local government, municipalities, planning and zoning, property, real estate, small business, homeowners associations and nongovernmental organizations.

The Senate approved the bill on second reading June 24 by a 42-0 vote. The House had previously approved the measure on second reading April 29 by a 114-1 vote.

Because the Senate changed the measure, the bill did not go directly to the governor. The House must decide whether to concur in the Senate committee substitute before the measure can advance further.

The bill comes as lawmakers continue to consider how state law should balance local zoning authority, property rules and small-business activity conducted from homes. If the House concurs and the bill is enrolled, it could then move to the governor for consideration.

Editor’s note: This article was drafted with the assistance of artificial intelligence and was reviewed and fact-checked by a member of the NC Political News editorial team before publication.