All in Politics
North Carolina’s traditional public schools are represented by 115 county and city school districts. For almost 100 years since the Great Depression and the Machinery Acts of 1931 and 1933, the State of North Carolina has provided the preponderance of financial support for most of the public school employees in these school districts.
Unemployment rates (not seasonally adjusted) decreased in all 100 of North Carolina’s counties in April 2024.
On Wednesday and Thursday, Governor Cooper met with 14 companies in Switzerland as part of an economic development trip, including Syngenta, ABB and Novartis. He also met with the Director of the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs Secretary Helene Budliger Artieda.
The Republican-controlled Environmental Management Commission is stalling efforts to regulate PFAS in North Carolina while members of the Commission own stock in companies that lobbied against PFAS regulation. The Commission is responsible for adopting rules for the “protection, preservation, and enhancement of the water and air resources of the State.”
While some economic metrics continue to offer good news to North Carolinians, others point in a different direction. U.S. agricultural exports, for example, fell by $17 billion last year and appear to be on track for another decline of about $8 billion or so this year.
Senate Transportation Committee Chairs Sens. Michael Lazzara (R-Onslow), Tom McInnis (R-Moore), and Vickie Sawyer (R-Iredell) released the following joint statement on Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto of House Bill 198, “DOT Legislative Changes.-AB”:
Governor Roy Cooper vetoed the following bill: House Bill 198: DOT Legislative Changes.-AB, AN ACT TO MAKE CHANGES TO TRANSPORTATION LAWS, AS RECOMMENDED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION.
On May 23 the University of North Carolina System Board of Trustees voted to repeal its Diversity & Inclusion Policy in favor of “institutional neutrality.” This new policy, which was introduced in April, will remove funding for DEI offices and eliminate various diversity-related positions across the 17 UNC System schools. Chancellors will be required to report cuts to existing jobs and DEI spending by September 1.
North Carolina House Leadership filed House Bill 1074, to ensure citizens-only voting in North Carolina.
RALEIGH: Governor Cooper and a delegation of state officials will travel to Europe on an economic development trip from May 24-31. The Governor and state officials will meet with companies and government officials in France, Germany and Switzerland and will focus on investment opportunities and job creation in North Carolina.
North Carolina is a diverse state and that diversity is our strength. It is troubling to see the continued politicization of important state institutions, particularly higher education.
In 1993 Robeson County residents had a median income of approximately $21,000. Respectively, in 2022, residents of Robeson County, NC had a median income of approximately $35,000. This is the county I grew up in and this county remains one one of North Carolina's poorest counties.
“Today marks one year in North Carolina since Republican leaders stripped women of their fundamental right to bodily autonomy. SB20 was the first step toward a full abortion ban, and North Carolinians should have no doubt about it," House Democratic Leader Robert Reives said.
RALEIGH: Governor Roy Cooper signed the following bill into law:
State Treasurer Dale R. Folwell, CPA, has submitted a framework for draft legislation that introduces a monthly $25 employer match for nearly 350,000 active members in the Teachers’ and State Employees’ Retirement System (TSERS), Consolidated Judicial Retirement System (CJRS), Legislative Retirement System (LRS) and the Optional Retirement Program (ORP).
Leaders from the North Carolina Department of Commerce and the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services formally launched a collaborative process of developing a report to the North Carolina General Assembly on opportunities to provide workforce development services in conjunction with the state’s Medicaid expansion.
Most students and their families invest time, effort, and resources into higher education for vocational reasons. They expect the knowledge, skills, and relationships acquired at a college or university will lead to good jobs — which will, in turn, generate income for graduates to support themselves and their families as well as the satisfaction and fulfillment that comes from productive employment or entrepreneurship.
Political strategist Hal Weatherman won the Republican runoff for North Carolina lieutenant governor, defeating Forsyth County District Attorney Jim O'Neill with 74% of the vote. Dave Boliek secured the primary win for State Auditor.
Congresswoman Deborah Ross (NC-02) hosted a renter-focused affordable housing roundtable at Dorcas Ministries with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development North Carolina office, the Raleigh Housing Authority (RHA), Wake County Department of Affordable Housing & Community Revitalization, and other state and local organizations.
