Jeff Tiberii

The North Carolina General Assembly is in a last-minute special session, called yesterday, to rewrite two proposed constitutional amendments to appear on the November ballot.

A three-judge panel met Wednesday to discuss two challenges to constitutional amendments proposed by the Republican-led General Assembly.

Some U.S. House races that were once considered reliably Republican are becoming more competitive, and three of these districts are in North Carolina. 

Stateline’s annual legislative review analyzes how political trends affect policy questions in legislatures around the country. This year’s findings examine decisions about Medicaid expansion, the impact of the #MeToo movement on policy and behavior, the changing power of unions, gun control legislation in the wake of the Las Vegas and Parkland shootings, and the ongoing fight over sanctuary cities and immigration policy. 

Gov. Roy Cooper vetoed the latest state budget Wednesday, claiming the spending plan does not do enough to support teachers. But is Cooper’s budget plan fiscally sound? The legislature’s nonpartisan Fiscal Research Division says his proposed budget would rack up a nearly $500 million deficit by 2020.

Facebook’s stock plummeted at the news that 50 million user accounts had been breached and used to create profiles of prospective voters. Since then the company behind the breach, Cambridge Analytica, has been suspended from Facebook. The damage in North Carolina has already been done.

North Carolina Rep. Duane Hall (D-Wake) was met with harsh criticism from other Democratic lawmakers, including Gov. Roy Cooper, when he refused to step down amid claims of sexual harassment by multiple women.

Democratic leaders in Raleigh are calling for one of their own to step down. According to reporting from left-leaning publication NC Policy Watch, five women say North Carolina Rep. Duane Hall (D-Wake) engaged in inappropriate sexual conduct. Hall denies the allegations, But Governor Cooper and other Democratic leaders say he must resign from his post.

The U.S. Supreme Court has temporarily blocked new voting maps for Wake and Mecklenburg counties. The districts are in the state’s two most populous counties, and the decision comes just days before candidates are set to start filing for office.

Revelations of sexual misconduct at the federal level have opened up inquiries into the culture in state houses around the country. At the North Carolina General Assembly, WUNC Capitol Bureau Chief Jeff Tiberii uncovered two incidents of reported misconduct: one from 2007 involving former Representative David Almond (R-Stanly), who allegedly exposed himself to a legislative assistant and then masturbated on an office chair.

Judge Roy Moore is facing new allegations of sexual misconduct from multiple women who say he tried to date them when they were teenagers and he was in his 30s. 

Democrats claimed big wins across the country in this week’s elections. Meanwhile, a series of mayoral races took place in North Carolina. 

The NCAA infractions committee issued a verdict today and concluded it could not find evidence the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill violated academic rules with the use of fake classes. 

The North Carolina House and Senate have approved new plans for dozens of district boundaries. 

Protesters toppled a confederate monument in Durham last night. The statue came down during a demonstration against the violence that erupted in Charlottesville, Virginia this past weekend.

A panel of three federal judges has set a deadline for lawmakers to redraw 28 legislative districts that were found to be racially gerrymandered. The judges have also determined that North Carolina will not have special elections this year. Meanwhile Governor Roy Cooper signed a bill that will boost solar energy in the state, but the new law also includes a moratorium on wind development through December 2018.

State lawmakers are considering another voter ID bill that would be brought to voters as a constitutional amendment. In 2013 lawmakers passed a voter ID measure that was deemed unconstitutional last year by the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals . 

State lawmakers are rushing to tackle a large number of bills in an effort to wrap up their legislative session for summer break. One of the top priorities for Republican legislators was to override Governor Roy Cooper’s veto of the state budget bill. That override passed through the House with a 76-43 vote on Wednesday. 

Yesterday evening, the North Carolina Senate and House leaders reached an agreement over how to spend and raise state funds. The compromise deal lays out a 3.3 percent increase in teacher pay for the coming year, and raises pay for most other state employees by $1,000. 

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed with a lower court ruling stating that 28 legislative districts in North Carolina are gerrymandered along racial lines. A three-judge panel is now contemplating the next steps, including when and how the state can rectify these unconstitutional districts.

The North Carolina House outlined a $22.9 billion spending plan that calls for about $350 million in tax cuts. It allots funding for pension adjustments for state retirees and $181 million for teacher raises. 

A 3 a.m. vote at the state legislature last week resulted in the sudden transfer of $1 million from education, nutrition and cultural programs to pilot programs combating opioid addiction. The money was taken exclusively from districts represented by Democrats.

The Supreme Court announced this morning that it will not review North Carolina’s controversial 2013 voter ID law. 

The North Carolina Senate released their $22.9 billion spending plan earlier this week. The budget has significant implications for the state’s education system. It shifts how teacher raises are allocated and proposes a $600 million increase in education spending.

Last week’s jam-packed and dramatic legislative schedule would have been a welcome distraction this week for political reporters in the General Assembly. They mourned the loss of veteran political reporter Mark Binker, an irreplaceable friend and colleague, who passed away suddenly at the age of 43.

Governor Roy Cooper’s political battle continues with the Republican-led General Assembly. The state House and Senate voted this week to override Cooper’s veto of a bill to consolidate the state elections and ethics boards.

Two weeks after the repeal of House Bill 2, several new proposals are working their way through the General Assembly. A group of House Republicans filed a bill that aims to ban same-sex marriage in North Carolina. The bill claims the U.S. Supreme Court ruling legalizing same-sex marriage is “null and void in the state of North Carolina.”

The replacement bill for House Bill 2 has been signed into law by Gov. Roy Cooper. Cooper called House Bill 142 a compromise between state lawmakers from both sides of the aisle. 

State lawmakers have advanced a measure that would remove some judicial appointment powers from Gov. Roy Cooper.

They also continued touting a bill that would change opiate prescription guidelines and proposed, yet again, to send 16-year-olds and 17-year-olds who are alleged to have committed nonviolent crimes to juvenile courts instead of being tried as adults.

Host Frank Stasio talks with WUNC Capitol Bureau Chief Jeff Tiberii about this week’s activity at the legislature.

Gov. Roy Cooper has rolled out his budget proposal for the next two years. The governor emphasized setting aside money for teacher salary increases, expanding Medicaid, and investments in economic development. The recommendation is largely a symbolic gesture as Republican majorities in the legislature will ultimately approve the state budget. Meanwhile, a bipartisan effort to repeal House Bill 2 has stalled because of opposition from both parties.