Lawmakers in the state House have passed a measure that would help finance improvements to the Carolina Panthers' stadium in Charlotte.
The bill would give the city the flexibility to spend money collected from hotel and prepared food taxes for two options the city council has asked for. Charlotte Republican Ruth Samuelson is a sponsor of the measure.
"One of those options would be to consider funding for some improvements to a stadium that is named Bank of America stadium, otherwise known as Panther Stadium, and secondly to allow them to use some funding for amateur sports." says Samuelson.
City officials say they need to invest in the stadium to keep the Carolina Panthers NFL franchise. Governor McCrory has said that no state money will be available for the Panthers.
But some Democrats and Republicans say the bill is tantamount to corporate welfare. The football team has asked for 144 million dollars from the city to upgrade the stadium.
