Farmers across the country, including North Carolina, are “taking it on the chin” when it comes to diesel and fertilizer prices, which have risen to unprecedented levels. The U.S. is dependent on and a major importer of foreign fertilizer.
OPINION: Ted Budd's really good week
Congressman Ted Budd just finished his second-best week of the primary election with a wave of public opinion surveys showing him surging in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate and a high-profile rally with former President Trump.
Briefs aim to sway judge in long-running N.C. school funding legal dispute
Plaintiffs and N.C. Justice Department lawyers are urging a judge to order $795 million in new state education spending. Briefs filed Friday afternoon confirmed agreement from both groups about whittling down the size of a $1.75 billion spending order issued last fall.
Voters can still be persuaded
Some partisans I know insist political allegiances are so rigid that elections have become little more than turnout contests. Whichever party gets its base out wins. Persuadable swing voters used to exist in significant numbers, they concede, but are now about as hard to find as Bigfoot.
Most GOP voters oppose Medicaid expansion
A new statewide poll shows that a majority of Republican primary voters oppose expanding North Carolina's Medicaid entitlement program. Once the details of Medicaid expansion are offered to respondents their opposition climbs, pointing to a potential messaging hole for expansion opponents.
Judges reject appeal of lawsuit over removal of Asheville monument
A three-judge panel in the N.C. Court of Appeals has ruled in favor of the City of Asheville in a lawsuit brought by a historic preservation group over the city’s work to remove the Zebulon Vance Monument in the city’s Pack Square Park.
Governor Cooper appoints two District Court Judges
Governor Roy Cooper announced two District Court Judge appointments.
Governor Cooper announces State Boards and Commissions Appointments
Governor Roy Cooper announced nominations and appointments to North Carolina boards and commissions.
Record businesses growth, avian bird flu focus of April Council of State meeting
New business growth in North Carolina shows no signs of stopping according to Secretary of State Elaine Marshall. “Nothing has slowed down. In fact, it has accelerated,” she said at the Tuesday, April 4 Council of State meeting.
Republicans strike oil registering voters at the pump
Edzell Lowry knows firsthand about rising gas prices. He owns Sun-Do gas station in Pembroke. Lowry, a former Democrat who later registered as unaffiliated, recently switched to the Republican Party.
Appeals Court rejects Wilmington's short-term rental registrations, upholds rest of ordinance
The N.C. Court of Appeals has affirmed a lower-court ruling blocking Wilmington from using a registration scheme to limit ownership of short-term rental properties.
Raleigh city employees file suit over vaccine mandate
On Monday, 68 police officers, firefighters and other Raleigh municipal employees filed a lawsuit against the City of Raleigh and Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin over the city’s denial of promotions to those who haven’t received a COVID-19 vaccine, and their requirement that employees either need to be vaccinated or submit to weekly testing.
Appeals Court blocks ruling that would allow felons to vote in N.C.
The N.C. Court of Appeals has issued a temporary stay in a case dealing with felon voting in North Carolina. The stay blocks any felons from registering to vote until appeals in the case are resolved.
John Hood: Stay the Course on Tax Reform
Over the past decade, North Carolina’s tax code has undergone a dramatic transformation. Once rated by the Tax Foundation as having one of the nation’s worst business-tax climates, our state now has one of the best. Our top marginal tax rate on personal income, once the highest in the Southeast at 7.75%, is now 4.99%
OPINION: Preparing for energy security and sustainability
As Russian aggression disrupts stability around the globe, we feel it here at home. Our economy continues to experience the ripple effect of President Biden’s dependence on foreign oil.
OPINION: Medicaid expansion supporters should listen carefully to Berger's analysis
Fans of Medicaid expansion in North Carolina have been touting a recent change in attitude from the Senate’s top officer. He has dropped his steadfast opposition to expansion.
Supporters of voting rights for felons seek N.C. Supreme Court review
Winners of a recent trial court ruling on voting rights for felons want the N.C. Supreme Court to take up the case. The ruling could affect 56,000 felons who have completed active prison time.
U.S. Senate to vote on SCOTUS nominee this week after committee deadlocks
The United States Senate voted 53 to 47 Monday, April 4, to discharge the Senate Judiciary Committee from further consideration of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court. This after the committee deadlocked along party lines with a tie vote of 11 to 11.
State says nearly $800 million from Leandro order remains unfunded
State officials report that close to $800 million remains unfunded from a judge's $1.7 billion state education spending order. That assessment resulted from a court-ordered comparison of the spending plan and the new state budget.
ALEC chief economist says Cooper should thank legislature for rating
The 2021 governors’ report was released by the free-market-focused American Legislative Exchange Council in late March, and many conservatives were surprised that Democratic N.C. Gov. Roy Cooper received a better-than-average rating on his performance.