Jessica Jones

Dozens of Wake County residents filled a legislative committee room yesterday to weigh in on several controversial bills affecting the county.

One of the measures would scrap the lease between the state and the city of Raleigh to create a destination park on the site of the old Dorothea Dix hospital.

A Senate committee has passed a measure  that would void a deal signed three months ago to turn Raleigh's Dix hospital site into a destination park.

The Senate Appropriations Committee would void a 99-year lease signed amid great fanfare by the mayor of Raleigh and former Governor Bev Perdue. Under the deal, the city would pay $500,000 a year plus yearly adjustments to lease the land.

Governor Pat McCrory released his budget proposal earlier today. It’s a $20.6 billion plan that emphasizes spending on education and economic development and sets aside money for emergencies. It doesn’t seek to create any new high-priced programs.

Earlier today, Governor McCrory told reporters in a news conference at the historic old State Capitol that North Carolina needs to fix its broken government.

House lawmakers have passed a bill that would change the way habitual DWI status is determined.

State legislative leaders have filed bills that would revamp the deal that allows the city of Raleigh to create a regional park on the grounds of a closed mental hospital. The proposed legislation would nullify the lease agreement signed by Governor Beverly Perdue on her way out of office.

Elections and voting experts testified before the state House Elections Committee Wednesday, just one day after a public hearing that lasted hours. Republican leaders have said they plan to introduce a bill that would require voters to present photo IDs at the polls. They say it would help fight voter fraud. But Bob Hall of Democracy North Carolina says voter fraud isn't a problem in North Carolina. He told lawmakers if it is, then they should investigate and document it.

Several dozen people spoke before the state House Elections Committee yesterday at the General Assembly to express their opinions about a proposed voter ID measure. Committee leaders say they plan to bring forth a measure that would require voters to bring photo IDs with them to the polls. Jo Nicholas is with the League of Women Voters.

State officials have signed an agreement to clean up a former Superfund site near Charlotte. The deal is part of a project to create an eco-industrial park on a nearly 670-acre site. The site was once home to a former textile complex. Governor Pat McCrory says the agreement will launch the development of the region's largest eco-industrial park, called ReVenture West.

The insurance giant MetLife will move 2600 jobs from six states to North Carolina as it seeks to consolidate its operations.

The company plans to make Charlotte its national headquarters for its retail business. Cary will become the company's global technology and operations hub.

"The campuses in Mecklenburg and Wake Counties will be multifaceted, bringing functions together to provide a rich work environment, as well as increased career opportunities for our associates from both wide and far," says executive vice president Marty Lippert.

State lawmakers in the Senate have tentatively passed a bill that would revive a federal study of a proposed section of the 540 Outer Loop highway across Wake County. Back in 2011, Garner residents convinced lawmakers to pass a bill that banned studying what's called the Red Route. It's a proposed part of the Outer Loop that would have required bulldozing parks and neighborhoods in Garner. Local leaders favor what's known as the Orange Route, but that would extend through wetlands that are home to an endangered mollusk.