Gurnal Scott

A state House committee has moved along a bill that would block any state-funded expansion of Medicaid.  The Health and Human services Committee voted to follow Governor Pat McCrory's lead saying that Medicaid should not grow to cover about half-a million uninsured residents.  States can expand Medicaid to help cover the uninsured under the Affordable Care Act..but they can also opt out of that expansion.   Governor McCrory said the program's budget is tight in a speech at the Emerging Issues Forum at N-C State yesterday.

A federal safety panel will open hearings on the sinking of a tall ship during Hurricane Sandy last October.  The H-M-S Bounty set out to sea from a Connecticut port to outrun Sandy before it grew into the superstorm that slammed the northeast.  The crew had to abandon ship in 30 foot swells before the tall ship sank just off Cape Hatteras.  One crew member died.  The body of the the ship's captain was never recovered.  Coast Guard spokesman Lieutenant Mike Patterson says eight days of hearings are scheduled to find out what went wrong.

Energy watchdog group NC WARN is asking state utilities commissioners to look at an alternative way for companies to generate electrical power.  NC WARN sent a report to commissioners outlining a process called "cogeneration” that allows businesses to use an on-site turbine to generate electricity and capture escaping heat.  The group's report says doing that can drop the rate of wasted energy from 55 percent to as low as 20 percent.

Duke Energy officials have decided to retire a controversial nuclear facility in Florida.  They say it will be more cost effective to shut down the Crystal River facility than to repair it.  Regulatory leaders in North Carolina and Florida discussed Crystal River's future during the merger of Duke Energy and  Progress Energy.  Spokesman Mike Hughes says the utility used a repair scenario analysis to make the decision.

Researchers at Duke University say the number of Muslim Americans convicted of terrorist acts in the U.S. is on a steady decline. They released the findings in conjunction with the Triangle Center on Terrorism and Homeland Security.  In 2009, 49 people were arrested, and the number has dropped each subsequent year to 14 arrests last year. David Schanzer, director of the Triangle Center, says recent terrorism plotters haven’t been as sophisticated.

Farmers and many of those they do business with will gather at the State Fairgrounds Thursday for the annual Ag Development Forum.  State Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler will begin his third term in office by discussing the state of the industry.  Ag Department spokesman Brian Long says the meeting will be about much more than just tending crops and animals.  It's about the process of getting the goods to your home.

Senators from both sides of the political aisle have come to a compromise on federal immigration reform.  North Carolina Senator Kay Hagan is welcoming an immigration proposal from a group of eight of her colleagues. Their proposal seeks to revamp the system that allows immigrants into the country as well as create a citizenship pathway for the millions of immigrants currently in the country illegally. 

Charlotte leaders released a report calling the 2012 Democratic National Convention an economic success for the Queen City.

Triangle areas are experiencing sleet, freezing rain and -- in some parts snow -- as part of a winter weather system quickly passing through.  While the falling precipitation is expected to end this evening, the slick conditions it will leave behind may cause issues for drivers into tomorrow morning.  NC DOT spokeswoman Jennifer Garifo says maintenance employees are planning for long shifts today.

North Carolina's attorney general wants new laws for state agents and prosecutors to urge cooperate in public corruption investigations.

Attorney General Roy Cooper says state prosecutors should be able to convene grand juries to get to the heart of corruption.  He's tried before to secure the power..but says the legislature has so far refused to act.  Wake County D-A Colon Willoughby says they can do it for drug offenses..but that needs to expand.