“I would vote for that fan over that other guy; I would vote for this piece of plastic over that other guy.”
Comedian and actor Zach Galifianakis, listing the inanimate objects he’d vote for before supporting GOP candidate and Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson. (State Affairs Pro, 10/06/24)
Helene Relief
Dawn Baumgartner Vaughan and Kyle Ingram, The News & Observer, 10/05/24
North Carolina’s state lawmakers return to Raleigh for a one-day session on Oct. 9, and leaders say they will vote on an initial relief package for communities affected by Tropical Storm Helene.
Top Republicans, who control the legislature, put out a joint statement on Friday. Senate leader Phil Berger and House Speaker Tim Moore said they are “preparing to come back next week to vote on an initial disaster relief package.”
“Over the past week, we’ve heard directly from residents in Western North Carolina and have seen the devastation firsthand. Our hearts are broken for the communities that have been ravaged by Hurricane Helene. Despite the destruction, it has been incredible to see how North Carolinians have stepped up to help. We cannot let up on those efforts or forget about the small communities that have been effectively closed off because of this storm,” Berger and Moore wrote.
“The General Assembly is preparing to come back next week to vote on an initial disaster relief package to facilitate the state’s response to Hurricane Helene. We are still working to determine what needs to be included in that legislation. Our thoughts and prayers remain with the victims of this storm and those who have lost loved ones, as well as the aid workers, volunteers, and rescue teams supporting the region,” they said.
The General Assembly also has a weeklong session in November, and could also hold a special session. Lawmakers may wait until more information is known about what the exact needs for communities in crisis for the next round of relief.
Money from the federal government is already on the way, with the White House reporting more than $17 million in housing and other assistance for more than 10,000 households in North Carolina.
In the meantime, at the state level, the Department of Public Instruction has announced what it needs, and the Board of Elections has concerns, too.
Berger said earlier in the week, “It will take time to know the full catastrophic nature of this storm, but the General Assembly stands ready to take the necessary steps to help our neighbors in Western North Carolina.” Legislative leadership, particularly in the Senate, prioritizes its “rainy day” fund in annual budget discussions.
Senate Democratic Leader Dan Blue, of Wake County, said Senate Democrats “look forward to working with Senate Leader Phil Berger and our Republican colleagues to ensure these reserve funds are allocated in a way that will restore stability in our communities as soon as possible.”
House Democratic Leader Robert Reives, of Chatham County, has floated the idea of having a special legislative session to deal with Helene. “House Democrats are thinking of and praying for the residents affected by Hurricane Helene, especially in Western North Carolina but also in Eastern North Carolina where a tornado tore through Rocky Mount. We are committed to doing whatever it takes to help rebuild the region over the long term,” he said in a statement.
Reives said it will take time to plan for “long-term recovery.”
“House Democrats have begun working on a package of relief measures and look forward to working with our Republican colleagues and the Governor’s team to help get it done. We stand ready to do this work in one of our regularly scheduled sessions or during a special session — whatever is necessary,” Reives said.
N.C. Superintendent of Public Instruction Catherine Truitt said what people “are seeing and hearing in WNC is heartbreaking,” and that after talking to school and school district leaders in Western North Carolina, her agency already has a list of requests for lawmakers. That request, which Truitt shared on social media and at a meeting last week, includes about $166 million.
The funding request includes $150 million for building repairs and renovations, school nutrition, equipment, supplies and technology losses. The DPI request notes the amount is “a preliminary figure based on amounts appropriated during Hurricane Florence and estimates based on current needs.” DPI is also requesting up to $16 million for school nutrition staff who were employed for scheduled instructional days that were missed due to Helene. And the agency is requesting school calendar flexibility for impacted school districts.
The State Board of Elections is considering a variety of legislative requests to address Helene’s potential impact on voting. Extra funding for counties hit hard by the storm could be a key part of the request, as well as changes to deadlines for receiving absentee ballots.
“We’re still early in our conversations with the legislature,” Karen Brinson Bell, executive director of the board told reporters on Tuesday. “…We want to be able to give them a very educated request and not just (be) haphazard in what we’re asking for.”
Though the board is still working with county election officials to determine the extent of the damage, Brinson Bell said funding may be needed to help counties pay to reissue ballots lost in the storm or hire on-site assistance for other election tasks. Getting absentee ballots in by the deadline, 7:30 p.m. on Election Day, could be another concern, given that postal service is still disrupted in many western counties and many ballots were likely delivered right before the storm hit.
With about a month left until the election, Brinson Bell said the board may need to consider asking the legislature to extend the deadline for receiving absentee ballots — an issue that has been a point of contention in the past. In previous elections, the state accepted absentee ballots within three days of the election, so long as they were postmarked by Election Day.
However, last year, Republican lawmakers passed a bill eliminating this deadline over the objections of their Democratic colleagues and voting rights activists. Short of asking for a deadline extension, Brinson Bell said there were other steps the legislature could take to help voters affected by Helene get their absentee ballots in on time. One of those changes could be allowing voters to drop off their absentee ballots in-person on Election Day — not just during early voting. “That’s the kind of thing we’re weighing right now,” she said.
The UNC System is still assessing what it might need. “The UNC System will certainly request relief funds at some point, but it’s too soon to evaluate costs when the region is focused on life, safety and health. We also support the state and congressional delegation who are advocating for federal support in North Carolina,” UNC System spokesperson Andy Wallace told The N&O. [Source]
FULL HELENE RESPONSE REPORTING
Response Leadership: (Avi Bajpai, The News & Observer, 10/06/24) U.S. Sens. Thom Tillis and Ted Budd said Friday that an active-duty military leader should be assigned to oversee the rescue and recovery efforts in Western North Carolina. After President Joe Biden approved up to 1,000 U.S. Army soldiers stationed at Fort Liberty to assist with the response to Hurricane Helene on Wednesday, the first 400 active-duty troops arrived in the region on Friday, the Federal Emergency Management Agency said.
In a statement Friday evening, Tillis and Budd said the National Guard along with local, state and federal first responders had been “working tirelessly to respond to this disaster with the resources they have,” but added that the response could be aided by an active-duty military leader being assigned to the effort. “Given the unprecedented extent of the devastation and complexity of search and rescue operations, it would be helpful to assign an active-duty military leader who has extensive experience with operations of this magnitude to lead moving forward,” both senators said.
In a post on social media, meanwhile, Budd said that the deployment of the remaining activated troops from Fort Liberty needed to speed up.
The U.S. Department of Defense said Wednesday that the troops it had authorized to assist with the response were “assembling and moving to the affected areas within the next 24 hours.” On Friday, FEMA announced that 400 active-duty soldiers had arrived in the western part of the state to help deliver critical supplies like food and water to distribution sites, and were “prioritizing survivors in hard-to-reach areas along the route.” FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell, who has been on the ground in Western North Carolina, said in a statement that soldiers from the 18th Airborne Corps, including members of the 82nd Airborne Division and other units from Fort Liberty, were supporting the relief effort.
Harris Visit: (Mary Ramsey, The Charlotte Observer, 10/06/24) Mecklenburg County is now part of the federal disaster declaration issued in the wake of Hurricane Helene, unlocking more aid for homeowners impacted by the storm. Vice President Kamala Harris announced the designation Saturday while in Charlotte to meet with state and local officials about the recovery from Helene. Mecklenburg wasn’t among the 25 counties included in the federal declaration initially — meaning the federal government wouldn’t have helped with home repairs, temporary housing, property damage or other expenses in the same way as communities to the west.
That drew the ire of residents and leaders in north Mecklenburg, where flooding along the Catawba River near Mountain Island Lake damaged multiple homes. “All the water from the mountains makes its way here, or a significant amount,” County Commissioner Elaine Powell said previously. Now, individuals in the county can apply for federal aid.
Additional public assistance will also be available to state and local governments. “We’re going to be getting substantial resources in to help folks,” Harris said Saturday.
Also announced Saturday: $100 million in federal funding to repair and reopen roads and bridges damaged by Helene in Western North Carolina. But some Charlotte-area counties — Iredell, Rowan, Stanly and Union — are still left out of the disaster declaration, according to FEMA’s website.
Those were among counties Gov. Roy Cooper included in his initial request that weren’t included in FEMA’s declaration.
FEMA officials briefed Harris at a Charlotte National Guard base Saturday afternoon on their recovery efforts. She was joined by state and local officials including the mayors of Charlotte and Asheville, Gov. Roy Cooper, state Attorney General Josh Stein and U.S. Reps. Alma Adams and Jeff Jackson.
Harris praised residents and leaders for their response, saying she’s heard stories “about strangers who are helping each other out, giving people assistance in every way that they need, including shelter, food, and friendship, and fellowship.”
“I think that these moments of crisis bring out some of the best of who we can be and who we are,” she said. Harris also met with National Guard soldiers who’ve responded to the storm and helped prepare care packages to send west with the NC Counts Coalition, a nonprofit that’s been sending food, water and hygiene supplies to some of the state’s hardest-hit areas.
Death Toll: (April Laissle, WFDD Radio, 10/06/24)The death toll from Hurricane Helene inched up to 227 on Saturday as the grim task of recovering bodies continued more than a week after the monster storm ravaged the Southeast and killed people in six states. Helene came ashore Sept. 26 as a Category 4 hurricane and carved a wide swath of destruction as it moved northward from Florida, washing away homes, destroying roads and knocking out electricity and cellphone service for millions. It is still unclear how many people were unaccounted for or missing, and the toll could rise even higher.
Power Outages: (Lucas Aulbach, USA Today Network, 10/06/24) More than a week after devastating storms from Hurricane Helene tore through the south, many communities in western North Carolina are still without power. According to a map from Duke Energy, more than 73,000 customers in Buncombe County alone were without power as of 9:30 a.m. Sunday. Buncombe County, in the Appalachian Mountains with a total population of about 270,000 residents as of 2020, is home to hard-hit Asheville and several other North Carolina towns.
Those customers aren’t the only ones waiting for service to return. In Henderson County, directly south of Buncombe County, about 28,000 customers were still in the dark Sunday morning. Throughout North Carolina, Duke Energy estimates just over 197,000 customers were without power — that’s a huge number, but it’s decreased by about 350,000 over a week.
The map provided by Duke Energy said disaster recovery efforts are “in progress” and did not provide an estimated time power would return.
In social media posts Saturday, Duke Energy said its initial restoration efforts had been aimed at the “backbone of its systems” before shifting to help individual homes and businesses. Officials with the company said Friday about 21,000 line workers have been deployed to help restore the grid. “Customers who remain without power will continue to receive updates directly,” the company wrote just after 5 p.m. Saturday.
Insider Event
State Affairs Pro, 10/07/24
We’re looking forward to welcoming readers as our guests at Caffe Luna at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday. We had no way of knowing when we scheduled a panel discussion on the challenges awaiting the 2025 legislature that those challenges would include recovering from historic flooding over such a large swath of Western North Carolina, or that the legislative conversation on how best do that would begin in earnest on Oct. 9. Moderator Colin Campbell of WUNC will help us unravel where storm recovery fits into — or displaces — other state priorities in conversation with Senate Majority Leader Paul Newton and House Deputy Democratic Leader Cynthia Ball. A limited number of tickets — free to subscribers — remain. Registration is required: Caffe Luna, 5:30-7 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 9.
As of Friday evening, 16 counties in western North Carolina were marked red for closed to visitors. Five counties were marked yellow with travel advisories. The five westernmost counties were marked green for welcoming visitors.
Wit Tuttell, executive director of Visit North Carolina, estimates Helene will cut into the $1.8 billion in consumer spending the western part of the Tarheel State draws annually in the fall. The storm could not have come at a worse time for visitors hoping to see the state’s beautiful mountain scenery, Tuttell said.
“We’ve had a tragedy in the mountains,” Tuttell said. “What we don’t want is a second tragedy where a business works really hard, gets back open and then dies because no one comes once they’re open. Not every business is going to open in the same time frame.” He urged visitors to North Carolina to use the map to locate which roads are closed and which are open.
As recovery efforts continue in North Carolina, many out-of-state visitors are unfamiliar with the geographic regions and may want to visit the beach without impeding relief services. Tuttell said early this week his office received calls from people worried about traveling to the Outer Banks. All eastern counties in the state are marked green and welcoming visitors as of Friday evening.
Advertising for tourism in western North Carolina has been momentarily paused. Thousands of online articles have spread valuable information about the devastation in the region, Tuttell said, but it’s been an avalanche of negative coverage he hopes subsequent advertising can help counter.
“It’s really important for us as soon as possible to get back out there and get that positive messaging about parts of the state, not just the mountains,” Tuttell said.
Andy Ellen, North Carolina Retail Merchants Association president and general counsel, said many of the association’s members have done an excellent job of getting their stores up and running. He said 95% of grocery stores in Helene-affected areas were operational as of Thursday evening.
“That means that the Red Cross or United Way or FEMA can divert resources to places where they’re not yet able to get up and running,” Ellen said.
He said there’s been a groundswell of support in sending supplies to the western part of the state, but urged consumers to continue their normal spending patterns and not panic-buy, which causes deficits in necessary supplies. Ellen added that it will take more time in the coming weeks to assess the aftermath of Helene and consider what the Legislature can do to help businesses that have been damaged and disrupted.
Senate Leader Phil Berger and House Speaker Tim Moore said in a news release Friday morning that the General Assembly plans to vote on an initial disaster relief package next week.
Water Shortage
Anne Blythe and Will Atwater, NC Health News, 10/05/24
The Asheville public water system suffered catastrophic damage from the unprecedented flooding and upheaval caused by the remnants of Hurricane Helene. While people throughout the city and Buncombe County have been hungering for answers about when their taps might start trickling again with drinkable water, there’s been a barrage of questions, too, about where they can get nonpotable, or gray water.
In a region overwhelmed by the waters that rushed through the mountains in the past week, the commodity has been difficult to come by for safe personal and household use.
“The French Broad River, the Swannanoa River — all these rivers in our area should be treated as basically a hazmat site,” Stacey Wood, a Buncombe County spokesperson, said during an Oct. 4 storm update. “Please do not touch the water or get near the water if you do not have to. There are other resources. We will make other resources available to you if that is your circumstance.”
“We cannot stress enough that all of this water flowing through our community right now should be treated as [if] it is a hazardous material,” Wood added. Still, toilets need flushing. Other cleanup tasks require water that’s free of mud and storm debris. And the drinkable water is too valuable a resource to send it down the drain into wastewater systems.
“We’ve actually had more difficulty in securing nonpotable water than we have had in potable water,” Lillian Govus, a Buncombe County spokesperson, said during an Oct. 3 briefing with reporters.
Avril Pinder, Buncombe County manager, told reporters during several briefings this week that 10 sites are set up across the county where tankers distribute non-drinkable water for people who bring their own containers. A tanker filled with nonpotable water was quickly emptied at one of those distribution centers, the William W. Estes Elementary School in southern Asheville. But the county continues to hunt for sources of gray water that can be trucked in to help storm-weary residents. [Source]
FULL RECOVERY SUPPLY REPORTING
IV Fluid: (McDowell News, 10/05/24) The nation’s largest maker of intravenous solutions is limiting orders of products due to flooding in McDowell County at its largest plant. In a press release Friday, Baxter International said it was limiting orders of saline, dextrose and peritoneal dialysis solutions to prevent stockpiling and ensure equal access to available products.
“We have implemented allocations to help ensure we are appropriately managing our inventory and minimizing disruption in patient care,” the company said in the release.
Baxter produces 60% of the country’s supply of IV solutions, producing 1.5 million bags per day, according to the American Hospital Association. The company said in a press release it was working with great urgency to reopen, but did not know when full operations would resume. The company has about 500 workers on site to repair the plant, the release said. The company expects that number to double over the next week. Baxter Manufacturing is the largest employer in McDowell County with over 2,500 employees. The company said it is working to get in touch with all of its employees to make sure they are safe.
The company said it would use its global manufacturing network to help mitigate supply issues.
Hospitals in North Carolina are looking for other places to get supplies. “The closure of the Baxter North Cove plant has nationwide impact,” UNC Health said in a statement. “At UNC Health, we are working through ways to conserve what we have in stock now and looking at alternative products we can use in place of the Baxter products.”
Novant Health also said it is working with other sources for hospital products. “Baxter has been one of our trusted vendors for many years, and our thoughts are with their teams as they face this unimaginable disaster,” the statement said. “Like health systems across the nation, Novant Health has been notified that we will not receive our full allocation of Baxter products, so we are working to source products from alternative suppliers.”
Dialysis Supply: (Jaymie Baxley, NC Health News, 10/04/24) DaVita Kidney Care, one of the largest dialysis providers in western North Carolina, has taken steps to reduce the risk of patients missing treatment, deploying backup generators and tankers filled with water to its clinics in the region. While the company temporarily closed a handful of treatment centers in some of the counties hit hardest by Helene, a spokesperson confirmed that only one of those facilities remained closed as of Thursday.
Hendersonville Dialysis Center, a DaVita-owned clinic in Henderson County, experienced significant flooding and may not reopen for several weeks. The clinic had 69 patients receiving in-person treatment in December 2023, the most recent month for which data is available from the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services. For the time being, DaVita plans to transport those displaced patients to a treatment site in Forest City, which is about 40 miles east of Hendersonville in Rutherford County.
Tammy Leahy, vice president of the division that oversees DaVita’s operations in western North Carolina, acknowledged that the crisis might have been much worse if not for the company’s “rapid emergency management response and the extraordinary efforts of our team.”
Medical Personnel: (WFAE Radio, 10/04/24) The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and several state officials gave an update on response efforts in areas that were hit the hardest by Hurricane Helene. North Carolina requested an additional 375 medical, public and disaster response personnel. Teams on the ground have provided 24-hour care in medical tents to keep up with the influx of patients arriving to area hospitals. During a news conference at Mission Hospital, Sen. Thom Tillis said the effort is ongoing.
“We have a certain muscle memory and experience with positioning assets out on the coast,” he said. “This was right out of, I mean, this is a new playbook. For anybody who thinks that any level of government, anybody here could have been prepared precisely for what we’re dealing with here, (they) clearly are clueless.”
Officials also said an additional medical team is headed to western North Carolina to support an urgent care clinic opening.
Dogwood Trust: (David Mildenberg, Business NC, 10/04/24) Dogwood Health Trust, the nonprofit created by the sale of Mission Health, says it is donating more than $30 million in relief funding to help western North Carolina recover from Hurricane Helene. The group’s board approved the funding Thursday. Priority is going for immediate, short-term needs and local organizations. Officials say they are seeking to attract additional capital to the region, including from the federal and state government.
Dogwood is directing $10 million to the Emergency and Disaster Response Fund at the Community Foundation of Western North Carolina, which then will make smaller grants to human service and community-based organizations. Criteria and an application are available on the foundation’s website. More than $20 million will be given to direct-service nonprofits and organizations with connections in local communities, the group said.
Community Colleges: (The Carteret County News-Times, 10/03/24) To help with Hurricane Helene relief efforts, the North Carolina Community College System has launched the Hurricane Helene Community College Response and Recovery Fund. This statewide fund aims to support both the affected colleges and their surrounding communities as they face widespread damage and disruptions. Donations to the fund will provide critical assistance for recovery efforts in the storm’s aftermath, including restoring services and resources essential to students, faculty and staff.
“This fund is about helping our community colleges and their surrounding areas rise again,” said System President Jeff Cox. “By creating a statewide effort, we aim to empower these institutions to lead the recovery efforts, providing not just education but the essential support and hope their communities need during this challenging time.”
Mobile Mortuary: (Jessica Van Egeren, USA Today Network, 10/06/24) A team of forensic pathologists, funeral home directors and DNA specialists is assembled in Charlotte to help state and local officials if the North Carolina death toll from Tropical Storm Helene continues to climb and the challenge of identifying bodies becomes unmanageable.
Suzanne Sellman, a spokesperson with federal Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response, said the Disaster Mortuary Response Team is ready to mobilize as soon as it is needed anywhere in the state. The team arrived in Charlotte on Oct. 2 and 3. The DNA specialists and forensic pathologists, along with refrigerated trucks and mobile mortuaries, will leave Charlotte to begin providing services where needed once the state reaches its “mortuary capacity,” Sellman said.
The state said it could not immediately specify what that capacity is. But “we have subject matter experts working with the state to assess where the help is needed and then provide assistance,” Sellman said. “If the state comes back and says we can’t handle processing the remains or finding the remains, then our team is ready.”
Dare Subpoenas
Dan Kane, The News & Observer, 10/06/24
A federal grand jury has subpoenaed Dare County to produce records related to a former state legislative aide’s two businesses that won a combined $50 million in state money in recent years. Jordan Hennessy is CEO of EJE Dredging Service, a company that won $15 million in 2019 to deepen navigational channels in the Oregon and Hatteras Inlets.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers shut down the work two weeks ago, saying much of the dredging took place outside of the permitted channels.
Hennessy is also a principal in Coastal Affordable Housing, a company that won $35 million in 2022 to build affordable housing in Dare County. The county terminated that contract in April after a provision added in the final version of last year’s state budget prevented town governments from having a say in where the housing would go. Several towns had joined in a lawsuit against the state.
Two FBI agents delivered the subpoenas to Dare County on Thursday morning, said County Manager Bobby Outten. One of the subpoenas is to the county commissioners, the other is to the county’s Oregon Inlet Task Force which had been tasked with solving the dredging needs.
“They are not investigating us,” Outten said agents told him. “They just needed records.”
These are the third and fourth subpoenas connected to Hennessy’s activities, and they indicate federal authorities are expanding their investigation. In June, the grand jury subpoenaed the N.C. Department of Public Safety for information related to Caitlyn’s Courage, a $3.5 million domestic violence prevention program state lawmakers funded in 2020 with COVID-19 relief money.
Hennessy and Marion Warren, a former director of the state Administrative Office of the Courts, had drafted much of that legislation, state records show. Two months later, UNC-Wilmington received a subpoena seeking records related to Warren’s employment as an assistant to the chancellor and executive director of government and external relations. It also demanded records of any payments the university made to Warren, Hennessy, two companies Warren owns, and others connected to a company involved in the domestic violence monitoring program.
Warren is also named in all four subpoenas. Contract documents identify him as a “member-manager” of Coastal Affordable Housing. Two other principals in the company are identified as relevant parties in one of the subpoenas: Aaron Thomas, the CEO of construction company Metcon in Pembroke and Robbie Ferris, a Raleigh architect.
The latest subpoenas require Dare County and the task force to deliver records to a federal grand jury in Raleigh between Oct. 16 and Oct. 18. They demand records related to the two businesses that won funding in Dare County and several other connected companies and individuals, including former state Sen. Bill Cook, a Beaufort County Republican who was Hennessy’s boss when they sought the dredging money from state lawmakers.
Hennessy did not immediately return a call or text for comment. Warren, Cook, Thomas and Ferris also could not be immediately reached. Two weeks ago, the Corps suspended the county’s dredging permits after finding that the vast majority of EJE’s loads were either partially or completely outside the navigational channels. The Corps and the county met last week to develop a plan that would ensure the dredging is compliant, and are continuing to work toward a solution, Outten and Corps spokesman David Connolly said Friday. [Source]
Straddling the line between Hollywood and hometown, comedian and actor Zach Galifianakis revved up a crowd of Josh Stein supporters at a beer hall in Raleigh on Sunday.
Galifianakis is well credentialed on both counts. As an actor, he has starred in Hollywood films such as “The Hangover” and — more on point — 2012’s “The Campaign,” which featured Galifianakis running for the seat of a slick incumbent played by Will Ferrell in a fictional North Carolina congressional district.
Galifianakis, 55, was born in North Wilkesboro and attended North Carolina State. He is the nephew of Nick Galifianakis, who served in the North Carolina House for six years before representing the state as a Democratic congressman from Durham for three terms ending in 1973.
Sunday’s event was part political rally, part food drive for flood victims in Western North Carolina. Stein, the attorney general and Democratic nominee for governor, said that carrying on a campaign while also working to help mountain counties is a balancing act but that both are important.
“You go up there as much as you can; you help as much as you can,” Stein said. “This is our third drive of material to take up to the mountains. But we’ve got to win this election, because part of what’s important about this election is making sure that come next year, we have a governor who shows up to work and can do the job.”
Stein’s opponent in the race, Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, has been shown in news reports to have been routinely absent from some of the lieutenant governor’s primary job responsibilities, including presiding over sessions of the state Senate and serving on the State Board of Education and other boards.
He also missed the Council of State vote on the Hurricane Helene emergency declaration. Robinson has said the vote didn’t matter because the declaration was sure to pass. “It’s inconsequential,” he said.
Galifianakis urged attendees to have hard conversations with people they disagree with before the election. “I think there are people that we can sway on a federal level and statewide,” he said.
He didn’t mince words in expressing his disregard for Robinson.
“I would vote for that fan over that other guy; I would vote for this piece of plastic over that other guy,” Galifianakis said, caressing a plant near the stage.
Waste Discharges
Peter Castagno, Port City Daily, 10/06/24
Judges on the Ninth Circuit of Appeals rejected a petition to increase oversight for two of North Carolina’s biggest industries: hog and poultry farming. Critics argue the decision increases the likelihood of runoff pollution in major storms. Wilmington-based Cape Fear River Watch riverkeeper Kemp Burdette filed a brief last year in support of a lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency for failing to regulate the controlled animal feeding operations — commonly known as “CAFO” — industry under the Clean Water Act.
The Environmental Protection Agency cites agricultural runoff as the leading cause of water impairment to rivers and streams. 20 petitioners — including the North Carolina Environmental Justice Network — argue lenient EPA oversight has allowed almost 10,000 CAFO facilities to discharge millions of gallons of pollutant-laden waste into the country’s public waters for decades. Food & Water Watch represented 30 groups in a 2017 petition to strengthen CAFO waste oversight. The EPA admitted CAFOs may be responsible for unlawful water pollution but rejected the petition last year.
The Ninth Circuit of Appeals upheld the EPA’s decision Wednesday. The EPA argued more information is needed to determine the best means of reducing CAFO pollution. It will conduct a study on the efficacy of its regulations and convene a stakeholder committee including industry groups such as the National Pork Producers Council and American Farm Bureau Association, which backed the EPA as intervenors in the case.
A September Food & Water Watch report estimated North Carolina’s CAFO industry produces 36 billion pounds of animal waste annually, roughly 2.5 times the state’s human waste. At least 50 hog lagoons overflowed during Hurricane Florence; the State Laboratory of Public Health found almost 15% of private wells tested positive for E. Coli and fecal coliform after the storm, compared to 2% beforehand. Food & Water attorney Emily Miller cited the EPA’s agricultural stormwater discharge exemption as a core focus of the suit. The statute allows CAFO facilities to avoid violations if waste discharge into waterways is caused by flooding. The attorney emphasized the impact of the Clean Water Act’s agricultural exemption on North Carolina; state law allows CAFO facilities to spray waste on nearby fields up to 12 hours after a hurricane warning.
“These factory farms are spewing this waste out so their lagoons don’t overflow,” she said. “That is just standing waste on fields that are imminently going to be hit by a hurricane. So those will wash off and flood waters will be containing pathogens, heavy metals, antibiotics, and antibiotic-resistant materials from these fields.”
Department of Environmental Quality deputy communications director Josh Kastrinsky told Port City Daily the agency had not been notified of any lagoon breaches in the tri-county region due to Potential Tropical Cyclone #8 or storms in recent months. He noted Hurricane Helene had caused some breaches in western North Carolina that were being investigated. [Source]
Trump Event
Avi Bajpai and Mary Helen Moore, The News & Observer, 10/04/24
Former President Donald Trump, in his first trip to North Carolina since it was hit by Hurricane Helene, said the federal government’s response to the devastating storm had been “terrible.”
During a town hall with supporters in Fayetteville on Friday night, Trump also praised billionaire Elon Musk, a major supporter of his campaign, for providing Starlink satellite systems to Western North Carolina. He reiterated his campaign promise to launch the “largest domestic deportation operation in American history,” and he vowed to change the name of Fort Liberty back to Fort Bragg, if elected again.
On Thursday, Trump said in a social-media post that he plans to visit Western North Carolina next week, but said he hasn’t set the date because he doesn’t “want to do anything that’s going to interrupt their rescue efforts.”
U.S. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, who moderated the event, also repeated a claim Trump made earlier this week without providing any evidence, that Republican-leaning areas of the state impacted by Helene had been deliberately neglected. “I do believe that they have intentionally, and this is my opinion, not helped out those residents, because it’s red communities that are impacted,” Luna said, adding over the roaring crowd: “Let’s call a spade a spade. Do your job and do better.”
Trump made a similar claim on Monday about North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper and President Joe Biden. Later that day, Biden told reporters that Trump was lying, and said that it was “simply not true” and “irresponsible.”
Trump also praised Musk at length for providing his company’s Starlink systems to restore some internet and cellular access to the western part of the state, where connectivity has been severely limited, if not nearly nonexistent, since the storm swept through the region a week ago. Federal officials were quick to state on Monday that dozens of Starlink systems had already been or were in the process of being shipped to Western North Carolina, and a White House spokesperson pointed out on social media that the systems had “already” been made available.
Trump promised to change the name of Fort Liberty back to Fort Bragg if he is elected, which received a massive roar from the crowd. He then answered questions from the audience about illegal immigration and the since-rescinded COVID-19 vaccine mandate for the military.
Ahead of Trump’s visit, Democrats held a press conference in Fayetteville on Friday morning slamming what they said was the GOP nominee’s “extreme agenda for North Carolina.” State Sen. Val Applewhite, a Fayetteville Democrat, said Trump was “coming here to spread more of his dangerous lies, just like his running mate J.D. Vance who this week refused to admit Trump lost in 2020.”
Fayetteville Mayor Mitch Colvin, meanwhile, said people won’t be able to afford four more years of Trump’s economic policy, equating his proposed tariffs on other countries to tax increases on working families. [Source]
Voter Deadlines
The Associated Press, 10/05/24
With registration deadlines looming, Democrats and civil rights groups are asking election officials in the states ravaged by Hurricane Helene to give voters more time. A judge in South Carolina on Friday extended that state’s deadline to Oct. 14, but prospects are uncertain in the other hard-hit states.
In North Carolina, one of the most fiercely contested presidential battlegrounds, election officials aren’t planning to extend the Oct. 11 voter registration deadline, North Carolina State Board of Elections spokesperson Patrick Gannon said. That could change when the Legislature meets next week to consider adjustments to state election laws.
In Georgia, the other major presidential swing state in the storm’s path, at least 40 advocacy groups wrote Gov. Brian Kemp and Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, both Republicans, urging them to extend the registration deadline in the affected counties by at least a week beyond Monday’s deadline. The groups said the devastation severely limits Georgia voters’ ability to register for the upcoming presidential election, whether online, in-person or by mail.
“If there are any circumstances that would merit extending the deadline, these are those circumstances,” said Amir Badat, a voting rights lawyer for the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, one of the groups requesting the extension.
The Georgia Secretary of State’s office said it’s evaluating what effects the hurricane had on elections offices around the state and is making sure polling places are fully functional for voters, spokesperson Mike Hassinger said. As of Friday, there was no move to alter the registration deadline.
The NAACP Legal Defense Fund sent a similar letter Friday to Florida officials, including Gov. Ron DeSantis and Secretary of State Cord Byrd. DeSantis, a Republican, has issued an executive order making some storm-related election modifications for the 13 counties affected by the hurricane, including changes to early voting sites. But the order did not include an extension for voter registration.
Friday’s decision in South Carolina came after a lawsuit filed by the state Democratic Party. The South Carolina Election Commission said it needed the judge’s order because it didn’t have the authority on its own to change the voter registration deadline. [Source]
Wake School Board
Lexi Solomon, The News & Observer, 10/05/24
A local pastor has garnered millions of views on social media after he was escorted from a Wake County school board meeting in handcuffs this week. John Amanchukwu, a Wake Forest resident and an assistant and youth pastor at Raleigh’s Upper Room Church of God in Christ, spoke at Tuesday’s meeting, accusing board members of violating Senate Bill 49, or “Parents’ Bill of Rights,” by allowing books with “pornographic” content and discussions of gender identity in school libraries.
Amanchukwu told the board he was there to support Lorena Benson, a 15-year-old former sophomore at Raleigh’s Athens Drive High School. Benson complained at a board meeting late last month of incestuous sexual content in a story she said she was forced to read in an English class. She withdrew from the school because of the incident.
“Justice for Lorena Benson!” Amanchukwu repeatedly cried. “Say her name!”
Amanchukwu describes himself as a preacher, activist and author who contributes to the faith division of Turning Point USA, a conservative organization focusing on high school and college students. Like other conservative Wake County residents, he’s previously spoken at school board meetings, recently earning public support from Michele Morrow, the Republican candidate for North Carolina superintendent of public schools. At the end of his remarks Tuesday, Amanchukwu declared he would remain at the podium after his allotted three minutes expired.
Video from Tuesday’s meeting shows Amanchukwu stood at the podium for at least five minutes before being guided away by a Wake County sheriff’s deputy. In a video posted by a bystander, Amanchukwu, surrounded by attendees clad in Michele Morrow T-shirts, talked to the deputy and members of the crowd by the entrance to the boardroom for at least five minutes.
Video shows that Amanchukwu was not handcuffed and was removed from the building at least 10 minutes after his allotted public comment period had ended. After several minutes of discussion with the deputy and officers from the Cary Police Department, at the end of the bystander’s video, the deputy can be seen removing Amanchukwu’s handcuffs. Amanchukwu does not appear to have been charged with any crime, according to a public-records search Thursday.
In a statement shared with The News & Observer, a Sheriff’s Office spokesperson said, “When [Amanchukwu] continued to resist, he was handcuffed briefly, but cooperated soon after, at which time the handcuffs were removed and the member agreed to leave.”
School board Chair Chris Heagarty said Thursday that board members “did nothing that violates that law.” Heagarty otherwise referred to comments he made during the latter portion of Tuesday’s meeting. “What we just saw was a publicity stunt, plain and simple,” he said Tuesday. [Source]
Candidate Forum
Lisa O’Donnell, Winston-Salem Journal, 10/06/24
Candidates at a forum at Galilee Missionary Baptist Church agreed that spending millions of taxpayer dollars to expand a school voucher program is damaging public schools. There was one exception.
Michele Morrow, a Republican running for state superintendent of public instruction, mostly sidestepped the question, which asked candidates for their stance on private school vouchers and how they would increase funding for public schools. Morrow spent her allotted two minutes addressing funding.
“Does money matter? Absolutely. But you know what matters most is how you’re spending it, and I intend, as superintendent, to figure out where is the money going because 50 cents of every dollar that you are sending to the state and 33 cents of every dollar you are sending to the county is going right now to your K-12 school system. So the question is, why is that not ending up in teacher salaries?” she said.
“I absolutely believe at this point that the money being spent on vouchers is not coming out of the school budget. It’s coming out of that rainy day fund,” Morrow said.
Morrow’s opponent, Mo Green was invited but did not attend the forum because of a scheduling conflict. The forum was sponsored by the Minster’s Conference of Winston-Salem, the Black Political Awareness League and Forsyth County Association of Educators.
Most of the other questions did not directly involve public education. On community gun violence, Morrow said she favored creating school cultures that promote civility and order. “It will be a priority,” she said. [Source]
Transit Week
WFAE Radio, 10/04/24
Charlotte city buses and trains will be free from Sunday, Oct. 6 through Saturday, Oct. 12 as the city celebrates “Customer Appreciation and Try Transit Week.” In addition, CATS will host a series of special events throughout the week.
Bus and train riders will also have a chance to win a year of free rides on Charlotte’s public transit system. Riders can enter their name into the giveaway by downloading the CATS-Pass app on any mobile device and creating an account. [Source]
Campus Grant
The Washington Daily News, 10/03/24
Hyde County Schools and the Hyde County Board of Commissioners have announced receiving a $36 million grant for the Mattamuskeet Rising project. The Mattamuskeet Rising initiative aims to revitalize the Mattamuskeet School campus, modernizing its facilities and expanding its capabilities to serve as a hub for both students and the community. The comprehensive project includes upgrades to the school’s physical infrastructure, increased access to cutting-edge educational resources, and athletic facilities designed to foster economic, academic, and social development in Hyde County.
Dr. Melanie Shaver, Superintendent of Hyde County Schools, expressed her gratitude, stating, “We are grateful to NCDPI, the NC General Assembly, and Superintendent Truitt for these funds to ensure that our facilities are in good repair, and a source of pride for our students, staff, and community. It was wonderful to partner with the Hyde County Board of Commissioners and our County Manager to provide the best for our community and students.” [Source]
Mecklenburg Wealth
Charlotte Business Journal, 10/05/24
An analysis by The Business Journals of data from the U.S. Census Bureau and Internal Revenue Service shows that more than a dozen counties in the state each saw a net gain of more than $100 million in adjusted gross income between 2021 and 2022 when comparing in-and-out-migration patterns.
Large and small counties, such as Wake County in the Triangle and Lincoln County in the Charlotte region, are included in the group. Meanwhile, coastal counties such as Brunswick, New Hanover and Pender saw significant gains as well. On the other hand, Mecklenburg County — the second-largest county in the state behind Wake — saw a net loss of $38.8 million in adjusted gross income from 2021 to 2022. It was among 13 counties statewide that posted a net loss in income from migration. [Source]
Greensboro Manager
DJ Simmons, WFDD Radio, 10/04/24
The Greensboro City Council announced Friday it approved hiring Nathaniel “Trey” Davis as the new city manager. Davis will succeed Interim City Manager Chris Wilson, who has served in the role since the abrupt resignation of Taiwo Jaiyeoba earlier this year. Davis has been an assistant city manager since 2019. He previously served as a patrol officer in the Greensboro Police Department. [Source]
Song Fundraiser
Théoden Janes, The Charlotte Observer, 10/06/24
A week ago, North Carolina’s Eric Church — the 10-time Grammy-nominated singer responsible for country-music hits like “Springsteen” and “Drink in My Hand” — had no plans to release new music in 2024. Then Hurricane Helene swept through his home state, leaving many of the parts he’s most familiar with totally devastated. And in response, at midnight Friday, the 47-year-old native of Granite Falls released a surprise single he said was dedicated to “the unsung heroes, the people who show up when the world’s falling apart.” But Church added an even bigger twist: He signed over all of his publishing royalties for “Darkest Hour,” according to a news release, “to the people of North Carolina.” Royalties from “Darkest Hour” will be funneled to and distributed by Church’s Chief Cares Fund. The charity also will be assisting “in all states and communities affected from Appalachia to the Gulf,” the news release said. [Source]
Straddling the line between Hollywood and hometown, comedian and actor Zach Galifianakis revved up a crowd of Josh Stein supporters at a beer hall in Raleigh on Sunday. Galifianakis is well credentialed on both counts. As an actor, he has starred in Hollywood films such as “The Hangover” and — more on point — 2012’s “The Campaign,” …
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“I’m sure there are people who feel stranded out there, but right now is not the time to start throwing arrows.” Former Gov. Pat McCrory, on the increasingly politicized response to Hurricane Helene. (WRAL News, 10/02/24) School Grades Matthew Sasser, State Affairs Pro, 10/02/24 A presentation on low-performing school districts to the North Carolina State …
“It is a traumatic event, and I want you to remember that there is no right or wrong way to feel at this time.” NCDHHS Secretary Kody Kinsley, reminding citizens in the western counties not to underestimate the emotional toll a natural disaster can take. (State Affairs Pro, 10/01/24) Storm Destruction Jeffrey Collins, The Associated …
