YOU DON’T SAY
“Shameful, that’s what it is. Pure shameful. And you should be ashamed.”
Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, in response to attempts from reporters to ask him questions after a medal ceremony. (WRAL News, 7/10/24)
Matthew Sasser, State Affairs Pro, 7/10/24
The inaugural Medal of Valor was bestowed upon Craven County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Lyndsey Moses-Winnings during a ceremony at the General Assembly on Wednesday.
On Oct. 1, 2021, Craven County officers responded to an involuntary commitment order at a residence. The suspect fired a handgun, critically wounding Deputy Zachary Bellingham. Moses-Winnings disarmed the shooter and got the deputy out of the home. Bellingham was left paralyzed from the incident.
Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson said he hoped the Medal of Valor ceremony was the first of many before minting Moses-Winnings with the medal.
“There’s bad news all around us, but the good news is that there are good people out there,” Robinson said. “Many of them wear a uniform and a badge.”
Lawmakers passed legislation in the 2023 budget to grant the Medal of Valor.
“This is the kind of thing we should be talking about in North Carolina,” House Speaker Tim Moore said. “Just know that we will do anything we can in the House to continue to support law enforcement. I can tell you it’s one of those great things that’s bipartisan; it’s bicameral, both the Senate and the House are in lockstep.”
Supreme Court of North Carolina Chief Justice Paul Newby thanked Robinson for his continued support of law enforcement.
“It’s one thing to have the know-how,” Newby said. “It’s something else to put it into practice, and to put it into practice in a way that puts your own life on the line. That’s what this Medal of Valor will recognize.”
State legislators with law enforcement experience were in attendance, including Reps. Charles W. Miller, R-Brunswick, and Bill Ward, R-Pasquotank, and Sen. Norman W. Sanderson, R-Pamlico.
“Heroes are just ordinary people who have been called to do heroic things,” Sanderson said.
Rep. Mike Clampitt, R-Swain, who’s a retired firefighter, and Rep. Frank Sossamon, R-Granville, also attended the ceremony.
“We will also keep those who have sacrificed and paid dearly for it at the top of our priorities, because you were willing to pay everything for us, and we are willing to pay that back to make sure you have everything you need from here on out,” Robinson said to the injured deputy who sat near Moses-Winnings during the event.
Robinson Questions
Will Doran, WRAL News, 7/10/24
In a rare public appearance Wednesday, Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson declined to speak with reporters and decried attempts to ask him questions as “pure shameful,” as his security detail shuffled him into an elevator leaving the building.
Robinson’s official calendar shows no events scheduled for the rest of the year, and he rarely attends sessions of the state legislature, where he serves as Senate president and is technically in charge of presiding over that chamber.
Robinson has made numerous headlines since the last time he held a press conference, in March. He planned a campaign fundraiser with leaders of a church investigated for child abuse and slavery. He has appeared to endorse political violence, telling a church audience during a campaign stop that “some people need killing.”
So when Robinson was at the legislature Wednesday — for a ceremony honoring a Craven County law enforcement officer for bravery — reporters attempted to ask him about some of those issues.
“You want to come out here and besmirch that lady’s award by coming out here and asking me that silly question?” Robinson said as he left without answering questions. “That’s what you got out of this? There’s your answer. Shameful, that’s what it is. Pure shameful. And you should be ashamed.”
During a virtual news conference on Wednesday, Democrats described the comment that “some people need killing” — and previous violent rhetoric — as dangerous. Robinson has previously said he’d fill the government’s “britches with some lead” if they tried to take his firearms. He has also suggested that people be ready to fight the FBI if the agency comes knocking.
“Mark Robinson makes North Carolina less safe,” North Carolina Democratic Party Chairwoman Anderson Clayton said. “… It’s jarring and irresponsible for the sitting lieutenant governor and the Republican nominee for governor to say something so reckless and so clearly intended to incite violence.”
Spokespeople representing the lieutenant governor’s office and Robinson’s campaign didn’t immediately respond to a request for additional comment.
House Speaker Tim Moore, a Cleveland County Republican who’s running for a seat in Congress this year, also attended Wednesday’s ceremony and spoke with reporters about various political topics afterward. He wouldn’t comment on Robinson’s specific comments, except to say he stands by Robinson as the Republican candidate for governor. [Source]
State Affairs Pro, 7/09/24
The Republican Governors Association launched its first ad in support of Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson in North Carolina’s gubernatorial election on Wednesday, announcing in a news release it has made an initial seven-figure investment to air the ad on cable, broadcast and digital platforms. The group says the ad highlights Attorney General and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Josh Stein’s “weak position” on immigration issues.
Michael Lonergan, communications director for Robinson’s campaign, said he wasn’t surprised the Republican Governors Association would focus on immigration because Stein said North Carolina has no sanctuary cities even as some Democratic sheriffs refuse to cooperate with ICE.
“The attorney general likes to bill himself as the state’s top cop when it’s convenient for him,” Lonergan said.
Meanwhile, the Stein campaign said in a news release it raised a record-breaking $13.79 million in the second quarter of 2024. The campaign has raised almost $33 million over the cycle and has nearly $16 million on hand, it said. It launched statewide television ads in June criticizing Robinson’s position on abortion.
“We’re grateful to the thousands and thousands of North Carolinians who chipped in to support Josh Stein’s campaign for a safer, stronger North Carolina,” Jeff Allen, Stein’s campaign manager, said in the news release.
Manufacturing Sites
Brian Gordon, The News & Observer, 7/09/24
To grow North Carolina’s manufacturing sector, state leaders say they must continue to offer employers something that has become rarer in recent years: available and attractive sites.
A post-COVID surge in U.S. industrial projects has meant fewer quality sites on the market nationwide. In North Carolina, Toyota, VinFast and Wolfspeed have claimed three “megasites” — defined as being at least 1,000 contiguous acres — while a half-dozen tracts of similar scope remain open.
To win manufacturers that desire less than 1,000 acres, the North Carolina General Assembly directed $10 million in last year’s budget to create the Selectsite Readiness Program, which legislators tasked with identifying and supporting 15 smaller “selectsites.”
Despite offering less space, these sites could still be large enough to accommodate multiple industrial projects — or one big tenant.
State law assigned the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina to lead the program, and its first step was to pinpoint the top 15 sites. EDPNC chose a consulting firm called Site Selection Group to coordinate the search. From a pool of 64 applicant selectsites, the firm winnowed down candidates over the first half of 2024. Some had immediate disqualifying flaws like utility system issues or incorrect acreage. Each site was also given a “technical suitability” score, with factors including size and utility infrastructure, as well as a “workforce” score based on nearby labor and a score for “operational cost.”
Lastly, the consultants visited the final 23 sites and eliminated eight more candidates.
On July 3, EDPNC released the report. The chosen 15 locations will, under state law, benefit from “preferred development and marketing.”
Resources include funding site preparations and bolstering surrounding infrastructure, expediting the permitting process, and helping local governments acquire the land. The sites named in last week’s report are a mix of privately owned, publicly owned, or both. They range in size from 74 acres in Union County to 672 acres in Richmond County. [Source]
Ruling Reaction
Luciana Perez Uribe Guinassi, The News & Observer, 7/09/24
A state court ruled Monday that the State Health Plan acted “fairly” in granting the 2025 contract to administer its health plan to Aetna over Blue Cross NC. “The preponderance of the evidence showed that the Plan conducted the procurement carefully and thoughtfully, fairly and in good faith, and that its decisions were properly within its discretion. It also showed that the vendors’ proposals were evaluated and scored carefully, accurately, and fairly,” wrote Administrative Law Judge Melissa Owens Lassiter, who reviewed the complaint by Blue Cross NC.
The decision puts an end to a yearlong legal battle — unless Blue Cross NC, which filed the case in the North Carolina Office of Administrative Hearings, takes further action.
Blue Cross NC did not reply Monday to a question on whether it would appeal the decision, but said in a written statement through spokesperson Laura Eberhard that “while we are disappointed in the court’s ruling, we are gratified that the court reviewed the serious questions we raised about the State Health Plan’s 2022 RFP process.”
According to state law, the decision of the judge can be appealed by either party in the case to the state’s superior courts. Any decision there could also be appealed.
Blue Cross already filed a petition for judicial review in Durham County Superior Court in February, but that was put on hold while Lassiter considered the case as part of a process in the North Carolina Office of Administrative Hearings.
Aetna, which has been arranging to take over the State Health Plan, can continue with its preparations.
Regardless of whether further appeals are made, Sam Watts, the SHP director, told The News & Observer prior to the ruling that “there’s a zero percent chance that State Health Plan members are going to go to their doctor on January 1 — no matter what the judge says — and not have access to their health care.” According to SHP spokesperson Dan Way, as of late May, the SHP has spent about $1.9 million on the OAH case.
Jim Bostian, North Carolina market president for Aetna, said in a written statement Monday that the company is “thrilled to begin serving those who teach, protect and otherwise serve North Carolina.”
“Since the contract decision was first announced in December 2022, we have been working on the impending, seamless transition at full speed all while demonstrating in court that the transition to Aetna is in the best interests of the State Health Plan and its members,” Bostian said in a statement shared by spokesperson Pat Ryan. Bostian said that to date more than 800 Aetna employees have contributed nearly 60,000 work hours to implementation and that Aetna was on schedule to begin serving the State Health Plan on Jan. 1, 2025.
The State Health Plan covers about 740,000 teachers, state employees and retirees and their dependents. Billions of state funds are involved with the contract, said Matt Sawchak, attorney for Blue Cross NC. “With high stakes comes high responsibility,” he said. “Blue Cross was the lowest bidder on this RFP and it offered the most robust network of providers, especially in rural areas, and yet it was not chosen.”
Aetna, as of late May, had so far spent $39 million on the transition, according to Ryan. The majority of this money has been spent developing IT infrastructure specific to the plan’s needs, including needs required in the technical scoring component of the bid, Ryan wrote in an email.
Ryan also said that Aetna has hired about 385 employees dedicated to the State Health Plan so far and in the time since the contract award, has contracted with 4,734 additional providers who are now active or in the process of being on-boarded. Following inquiries in late May, neither Aetna or Blue Cross provided how much the OAH case had cost them. The open enrollment period to enroll in the State Health Plan for 2025 begins in late September. [Source]
Health Plan Future
David Mildenberg, Business NC, 7/10/24
An administrative law judge’s ruling that Aetna can take over management of the N.C. State Health Plan got lots of publicity this week. But it’s a minor matter compared with the financial pressures facing the plan, which insures more than 740,000 state employees and retirees.
In April, state officials shared their projections that the plan would lose astounding amounts of money over the next three years: $323 million in fiscal 2025, $452 million in 2026 and $1 billion in 2027. They concluded that the plan’s cash balance would be a negative $829 million in mid-2027.
The person with the main assignment to address this problem is the State Treasurer, which starting in January is likely to be either Republican Brad Briner, an investment manager, or Democratic candidate Wesley Harris, a Mecklenburg County state representative.
Dale Folwell, who has had the job since 2017, is stepping down after his failed gubernatorial bid. He has pressed, mostly unsuccessfully, for state lawmakers to invest a few hundred million dollars to strengthen the plan. He’s also spent years criticizing hospital systems and drug companies for their pricing policies.
Harris and Briner need to get elected before they share really tough news on what must happen at the State Health Plan. But they offered some ideas this week.
Harris cited “legislative assistance,” namely more state funding and offering better pay and benefits to attract younger, healthier state employees. ”The problems are in no way unsolvable, but we have to have a commitment to investing in our state employees to make that happen,” he says.
State government job vacancies have exceeded 20% for several years because of inadequate compensation, notes Ardis Watkins, executive director of the State Employees Association of North Carolina, or SEANC. Many of the vacancies involve workers in the corrections and health care sectors, but Watkins says there are openings throughout state government.
Harris adds, “The only way to really lower total healthcare costs is to either create a more healthy society in general, or lower the risk profile of the plan.” He adds that the treasurer’s office can best influence that by focusing on “preventative care and making sure that those with insurance are utilizing their insurance for yearly check-ups.”
Briner agrees on the latter point, noting that many private-sector insurance plans charge higher premiums for people who don’t attend an annual physical. In 2019, Folwell introduced a program that provides premium incentives for plan members who stop smoking. In 2021, the state changed its policy that formerly awarded healthcare benefits for life for state employees after five years of service. Briner says revising the state’s pharmacy-benefit manager contract with CVS could produce savings of more than $50 million a year starting in 2026. He’s also encouraged by the plan’s pilot program with Wilmington Health that could cap the state’s obligation at a set level per employee. “It’s going well and we’ve got to do more things like that,” he says. Meetings with stakeholders are also sparking ideas to improve the plan, he says.
SEANC has endorsed Harris in the general election, but it remains to be seen if they will invest as much this year as they did for Folwell. He received more than $500,000 in SEANC support in 2020. [Source]
Daycare Reports
Steve Harrison, WFAE Radio, 7/10/24
Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, the Republican candidate for governor, said Tuesday that a Greensboro daycare owned by his wife never had any bad reports from the state.
The Department of Health and Human Services, however, indicated that the Precious Beginnings Child Development Center attempted to falsify information starting in 2005.
Robinson helped his wife, Yolanda Robinson, run the daycare center, which they later sold.
In Nov. 2005, DHHS wrote in a report that a false training certificate was on file for a staff member. It said: “The operator made attempts to falsify information. A ‘false’ BSAC training certificate was on file for a staff [member] who works with school age children.”
Two years later, the department said that the Robinsons had produced credentials allowing them to operate the center — even though the state had no record of issuing them. That was also the case with documents the center presented showing the completion of criminal background checks.
A June 2007 report said: “Files for the owner and the husband of the owner contain North Carolina Early Childhood Credential Certificates when the Work Force Unit of the Division of Child Development does not have record of having issued credentials. Additionally, Criminal Records Qualifying letters are on file for the owner and the husband of the owner. The Criminal Records Unit of the Division does not have record of having ever received criminal records forms nor issuing qualifying letters to you or your husband.”
The state said it might terminate the daycare’s ability to operate if the problems weren’t fixed. Yolanda Robinson sold the center in 2007.
The News & Observer first reported on the documents last week.
Robinson spoke at an event for Latinos in Charlotte on Tuesday. WFAE asked him about the DHHS reports.
He denied there were any problems with the daycare center and said “people are slinging mud at the wall.”
“There were no falsified documents, nothing nefarious,” he said. “We simply sold it because my wife got burned out and decided to move on and do something else.”
When asked again about the DHHS documents, Robinson said it didn’t happen. “No, we didn’t have any bad reports on our daycare,” he said.
After that, a member of Robinson’s campaign stopped the line of questioning and referred questions to a campaign spokesperson, Mike Lonergen.
Lonergen described the report as “a Democrat oppo dump” and said it’s “just another attempt by the left to dig up old news instead of addressing the massive failures of Joe Biden, who is clearly unfit for office, and his top North Carolina cheerleader Josh Stein.”
Lonergen said focusing on the 2005 and 2007 reports is “cherry-picking a few minor violations and clerical errors.” He said it ignores “superior” ratings the daycare also received. “The voters of North Carolina need leaders that will address the problems facing them every day – like rising violent crime, a massive border crisis, inflation and more – and have more important things to worry about than the latest Democrat smear,” Lonergan said. [Source]
New Hanover Fundraising
Peter Castagno, Port City Daily, 7/10/24
The North Carolina Republican Party is planning to spend over $2 million in advertisements to maintain its position in New Hanover County in the 2024 election amid a recent overhaul to the state’s campaign finance laws and an influx of donations from the casino and gaming industries.
District 7 has been a top focus of the state’s Republican and Democratic parties in recent elections, but a Monday Axios report projects 2024 spending to surpass past races. The North Carolina GOP is prepared to spend $2.28 million of initial advertisements on Senator Michael Lee’s race to hold the District 7 seat against David Hill. The first ad went live on Tuesday.
Port City Daily reached out to Lee’s campaign about the advertising strategy but did not receive an answer by press.
Jill Hopman, the chair of the New Hanover County Democratic party, said she wasn’t surprised by the GOP’s planned spending for District 7. She said the local party is far more active and organized than it was in 2022 and has begun canvassing with plans to engage every precinct in the county.
“We have an excellent candidate this cycle in Dr. David Hill, a pediatrician and active community member,” she said. “And we live in a very purple, bellwether county. Michael Lee pretends to be a moderate, but his legislative actions prove otherwise.”
Lee and his 2022 opponent Marcia Morgan both raised over $1.5 million during the last election, the majority of which came from state party groups. Lee won with 51.22% of the vote to Morgan’s 48.78%.
Ann Webb, policy director of the nonprofit Common Cause, told PCD she believes it will be more difficult to track both parties’ political spending in the 2024 election due to recent campaign finance changes. Last month, lawmakers overrode Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto to pass House Bill 237, which contains major changes to the state’s campaign finance laws. [Source]
Drowning Program
Jennifer Fernandez, NC Health News, 7/11/24
In 2022, North Carolina lost 29 children in accidental drownings, up from 20 the year before, the latest available state data shows. It was the second highest number of deaths since 2013. There were 33 in 2014.
Nationally, the number of children who die by unintentional drowning each year could fill 11 school buses, according to Step into Swim, an initiative of the Pool & Hot Tub Alliance that is focused on teaching children to swim. Learning to swim from a qualified instructor reduces the risk of drowning by 88 percent among children ages 1 to 4, according to Step into Swim.
After decades of decline, the number of drowning deaths in the United States has been ticking up in the past few years. More than 4,500 people nationwide died by drowning each year from 2020 to 2022, according to a report released in May by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That’s 500 more per year than in 2019. Drowning rates likely increased during the COVID-19 pandemic because people spent more recreational time in or near water, and the availability of supervised swimming settings was limited, according to the May CDC report.
For the Tar Heel state, drowning deaths are a big concern, said Susan Braman, former manager of the Greensboro Aquatic Center and executive director of the Learn To Swim program in Guilford County. “North Carolina has a lot of water between the coast and the lakes,” she said. “And the statistics are alarming.”
“If you have a child who does not know how to swim, the likelihood that that child grows up to be an adult who can’t swim is very good,” said Jon Klein, board chairman and president of Swim For Charlie, a Durham-based nonprofit that is working on expanding its free swim safety program to school districts across the state. Klein, a retired family physician, has long advocated swimming safety to parents of his young patients.
Klein helped launch Swim For Charlie in 2020 as a way to address that concern and to honor his good friend, Charlie van der Horst.
More than 2,100 second graders in the Orange and Durham county school systems have learned basic swimming and water safety skills since the program started in 2020.
Van der Horst died in June 2019 from a cardiac event while swimming the 8 Bridges Hudson River Swim. He was a longtime competitive open water swimmer.
Van der Horst started the first HIV clinic at UNC, Klein said. He also mentored a generation of virologists from around the world. He also petitioned the General Assembly to stop requiring that physicians be present for executions. He marched with the Rev. William Barber to support expanding Medicaid, which the state did last year — a decade after the option became available.
Swim For Charlie added eight schools and three pools last year. It has grown from 194 participants to 1,150. This fall, the program is expected to grow to more than two dozen schools and reach about 1,800 students, Klein said. The goal is to add more school districts across the state.
Swim For Charlie prioritizes low-income and minority students because they are among groups traditionally at a higher risk of drowning. CDC data shows that rates of drowning deaths are consistently highest among non-Hispanic Black or African Americans and non-Hispanic American Indian or Alaska Natives. [Source]
Monroe Mayor
WSOC News, 7/10/24
There was some fiery debate at a local city council meeting Tuesday night over a proclamation from the mayor honoring the reversal of Roe v. Wade.
Now, Mayor Robert Burns is in hot water and the City of Monroe is changing how it makes similar moves in the future. The controversy began several weeks ago when Burns issued a proclamation on June 24 commemorating the two-year anniversary of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade. There was backlash from some residents on social media and support from others.
Some of those supporters could be heard in the video of Tuesday’s council meeting, which got heated when several councilors motioned to strip some powers from the mayor’s office — including his ability to form committees.
“So why is that not an item on the agenda?” asked Mayor Pro Tem David Dotson.
“Why does it need to be an item on the agenda?” responded Councilmember Julie Thompson.
“Because the public has a right to know what you’re here to talk about,” Dotson replied.
Thompson then attempted to explain the procedure, finishing her comments with “I really don’t appreciate the interrogation.”
Burns told Channel 9′s Evan Donovan he knew the proclamation would alienate some of Monroe’s residents. “I unapologetically am pro-life: from the womb to the tomb, as we say,” he said. Burns claims he cleared the proclamation through the city’s attorneys — as he’d done previously — and even removed some language, including Bible verses. Burns said proclamations do not represent the city’s view, just his.
“It’s never represented the entire city, it’s never,” he said. “How does putting out a proclamation about someone’s birthday represent an entire city? Right? And so I am representing a group of people who voted for me.”
Some people who did not vote for Burns have posted their opposition on social media. One trans woman, Kara Murphy, said Burns is the mayor and should represent everyone in Monroe.
“It’s sucking up all the oxygen out of the room,” she said. “People want to be able to go to their city council meeting and hear about development, or land use, or law enforcement, or education, or anything else that they might actually be involved in that isn’t, you know, these big culture war issues.”
Burns understands the criticism — but said that’s not him. “They believe that in city government, it should be more neutral. And I personally have no idea how to be neutral. And that is my stance on everything,” he said.
The council voted to censure Burns, which North Carolina law describes as an “official condemnation for inappropriate or illegal actions committed by a public official while holding a position of trust.”
The council also voted to remove the ability of the mayor’s office to form committees or issue proclamations without the approval of council.
After the vote, Mayor Burns posted on Facebook that he regrets nothing, “A line in the sand has been drawn,” he said. “Unfortunately it had to be done this way.” [Source]
ACC Lawsuit
The Associated Press, 7/10/24
Clemson’s request to dismiss an Atlantic Coast Conference lawsuit that was filed in response to the school challenging the conference bylaws in court was denied Wednesday by a judge. The case stems from Clemson’s attempt in March to release itself from the ACC’s grant of rights and a potential $140 million exit fee if it were to leave the conference. Clemson sued the ACC in South Carolina to strike down the grant of rights and avoid the exit fee if it were to leave.
The ACC countersued the next day.
Clemson wanted that countersuit thrown out, or at least paused — stayed — but a judge ruled only a North Carolina court can decide interpretation and enforcement of the bylaws.
Clemson disputed jurisdiction in the case and argued that it cannot be sued in North Carolina because it had not waived sovereign immunity. The court disagreed. North Carolina Chief Business Court Judge Louis A. Bledsoe III cited Clemson’s ongoing participation in league meetings and administration of affairs within North Carolina, including competitions, as having waived immunity.
Bledsoe did, however, grant the school’s motion to dismiss ACC claims of relief for breach of contract and a declaration of its grant of rights as valid and binding contracts. Clemson did not challenge their enforceability, the ruling noted, just the scope.
The ACC celebrated the ruling in a statement and said it reinforces what it has always said — that North Carolina courts are the proper place to enforce and interpret agreements. “This recognizes the ACC’s consistent position that the 2013 and 2016 Grant of Rights are valid and enforceable agreements that each of our members entered into voluntarily, with full knowledge of their terms,” the statement added.
The ACC has also sued Florida State on similar grounds. Bledsoe has stayed that lawsuit pending the school’s appeal to the North Carolina Supreme Court of his ruling that denied its motion to dismiss the case. [Source]
Hope Mills Server
Lexi Solomon, CityView, 7/09/24
The Hope Mills Board of Commissioners have decided to host its own records management system server for its police officers after the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office abruptly terminated its long-standing agreement with the town.
According to a news release from the town, Hope Mills had contracted with the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office since 2011 to share a records management system server and information technology services. The contract had been renewed annually over the past 13 years, until the sheriff’s office notified the town last week that it would not renew the contract, Mayor Jessie Bellflowers told CityView.
The sheriff’s office offered the town a 90-day contract so the Hope Mills Police Department could transfer data from its servers, the release states. That contract began July 2, according to the release.
The Hope Mills Board of Commissioners held a special meeting Friday to address the issue. Mayor Pro Tem Kenjuana McCray was not present to vote but called in to the meeting. The board unanimously approved spending just under $300,000 on a contract with CentralSquare, a Florida-based software company. Police Chief Stephen Dollinger said the police department already works with CentralSquare for its record management system, but did not clarify further its relationship with the company.
Town Manager Chancer McLaughlin said the town was not required to issue a request for proposals because that requirement can be waived “in emergency situations.” According to the UNC School of Government, local governments can, but are not required to, issue requests for proposals for information technology purchases. The proposed budget ordinance amendment for the town’s fiscal year 2024-25 budget states the cost will come from the town’s fund balance. [Source]
Stanley Records
Kara Fohner, The Gaston Gazette, 7/10/24
The town of Stanley has adopted a public records policy that charges a special service fee for access to public records that take time to produce. The new policy, which was approved at a City Council meeting on June 25, will charge an $18 an-hour service fee for any time expended on a public records request that takes more than four hours. In addition, the town will charge 10 cents per page for black and white copies, 50 cents per page for color copies, $3 per page for certified copies, and $7 for any records provided on a flash drive.
The special service charge will be in addition to the fees for copies. For fees $50 or more, the requester must submit 50% of the estimated fees before the request will be fulfilled.
Attorney Mike Tadych, who works with the North Carolina Press Association, said that more and more municipalities are implementing fees for public records, but the law is not settled on whether or not these fees are legal. “More and more public agencies are attempting to arbitrarily impose special service fees of this sort. We’re pretty sure that they exchange notes and that’s why they seem to be becoming more prevalent,” Tadych said.
Tadych said that Governor Pat McCrory’s administration attempted to implement a similar rule, and the North Carolina Press Association challenged the rule in court. “We fought the McCrory Administration on this issue, and the Cooper Administration came in and settled the case by agreeing that they wouldn’t play this game,” Tadych said.
In a written statement, Mayor Steven Denton said that this is the first time Stanley has adopted an official public records request policy. “This decision was driven by our limited staffing and the substantial time and resources required to fulfill these requests,” he said. “The new policy was developed to align with the policies and best practices of many other municipalities, ensuring that we can continue to provide timely and efficient access to public records while maintaining the high standard of service our community deserves.”
Denton said that the town of Stanley in past years has had no system that tracked the number of public records requests the town received, but he feels there has been an increase in the last year.
Stanley is not the only Charlotte-area municipality that charges for public records. Stanley’s policy is similar to the town of Huntersville, which also instituted an $18 per hour fee for requests that take more than four hours.
Honeywell Expansion
Chase Jordan, The Charlotte Observer, 7/10/24
Honeywell is buying a liquefied natural gas system from Air Products for $1.8 billion in an all-cash transaction, the companies announced on Wednesday. The Charlotte-based electronics manufacturing giant will be able to expand energy transformation for its customers after the purchase, according to a joint news release.
Honeywell will take over Air Products’ technology and equipment business for liquefied natural gas production. The process cools gas to a liquid state. This is Honeywell’s fourth deal announced this year as part of its capital development strategy. Three of those deals were for over a billion dollars.
Honeywell currently operates a pre-treatment solution for liquefied natural gas customers. The company will add Air Products’ in-house design and manufacturing of coil-wound heat exchangers and related equipment, according to the news release. Honeywell Forge and Experion platforms, pre-treatment and liquefaction using digital automation technologies will be unified, according to the company.
Vimal Kapur, chairman and CEO of Honeywell, said in a statement that natural gas is a critical lower-emission fuel that will help meet increasing demands for global energy. He also said the purchase will strengthen the company’s energy transition portfolio. [Source]
Our state faces a shortage of doctors and nurses, leaving many North Carolinians without access to primary care services. Blue Cross NC is bridging that gap by supporting the health care workforce to improve access to care. We’re helping doctors focus more of their time on patients by easing the administrative burden and providing clinical support. Through our industry-leading Blue PremierSM program, participating doctors and hospitals have earned almost $438 million in shared savings, allowing them to expand their practices and serve more patients. By improving access and supporting our state’s health care workforce, we’re giving more North Carolinians the opportunity to be healthy.
Hendersonville Housing
Felicia Sonmez, Blue Ridge Public Radio, 7/09/24
An affordable housing development in Hendersonville is progressing in its bid for $600,000 in federal funding, as the region continues to grapple with the twin challenges of a booming population and a soaring cost of living.
The Asheville Regional Housing Consortium voted Monday to recommend funding the 60-unit Apple Ridge development with money from its federal allocation. Asheville City Council will take up the spending request at its July 23 meeting. The developer plans to build single-family homes and apartments.
Asheville’s Economic Development Program Director Nikki Reid said Monday that it was “very clear” the Apple Ridge development is the furthest along among four projects that submitted funding proposals. She noted that the developer, Housing Assistance Corporation, had already “secured their other sources of funding.”
“The committee really wanted to prioritize this project for funding based upon the overall merits of the project and project readiness,” Reid said during the meeting. “… This project was ready to go.”
The regional consortium is responsible for applying for and managing U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) funding for affordable housing. It consists of the City of Asheville and Buncombe, Henderson, Transylvania and Madison counties. For the 2024-2025 fiscal year, the consortium has been allocated about $1 million under HUD’s HOME Investment Partnerships Program. If approved, the $600,000 will subsidize development costs for the Housing Assistance Corporation. [Source]
Nursing Programs
Jessie Pounds, Greensboro News & Record, 7/10/24
UNCG and N.C. A&T both have big plans for the millions in state money they’re set to receive for the expansion of their nursing programs, part of an effort to combat current and future nursing staffing shortages in North Carolina. Each of the UNC System nursing programs submitted individual proposals, and all 12 programs will receive money, according to UNC system spokesman Andy Wallace.
UNCG has announced its intention to increase enrollment in its undergraduate nursing program by over 50 percent over the next two years, and to start a new prelicensure master’s of science in nursing program — pending approval from the NC Board of Nursing.
Debra Barksdale, dean of UNCG’s school of nursing, said the school plans to use money from the more than $2.4 million state grant to hire more faculty and staff to handle the expansion, and to provide relevant faculty development. She said they expect student tuition dollars will allow the new program and the expansion to become self-sustaining, but this money will allow them to get started.
The plans for expanding the bachelor’s degree program and for pursuing the new master’s program are direct results of the grant, Barksdale said. At nearly 93%, UNCG has the highest percentage among UNC system schools for bachelor of nursing graduates staying in North Carolina and working in the state two years after graduation, according to information Barksdale shared.
The building opened in January 2021 to students and teachers, but on Aug. 12, 2021, university leaders made it official. The new building features 39 labs, 14 classrooms, nine research suites, and a community engagement center.
There’s already greater demand than supply for nurses today in North Carolina, and that’s expected to grow. According to information from the UNC system, North Carolina is projected to be short as many as 18,600 nurses by 2033. Contributing factors include increasing patient demands from North Carolina’s aging population, a retirement wave across nursing faculty, and professional burnout.
Meanwhile, at NC A&T, nearly $2.4 million in funding from the state grant will go to a few different related projects, according to Tiffany Morris, director of A&T’s school of nursing. It’s a different approach to expansion, focused on problem-solving and capacity building, rather than an immediate addition of seats.
They are aiming to simultaneously break down barriers to entry and completion for students and to increase how much clinical training they can provide. That last point has been a limiting factor for the school for admitting more students, Morris said. [Source]
Toyota Investment
The Associated Press, 7/10/24
Toyota says it’s investing in Ionna, teaming with seven other automakers to support the company’s implementation of its charging network for battery electric vehicles across North America. The investment announced Wednesday gives Toyota and Lexus customers access to the public network of DC fast chargers Ionna will start deploying later this year.
Toyota currently has two mass-market battery EVs in the U.S. and Canada. They are the Toyota bZ4X and the Lexus RZ. The company is looking to offer 30 battery EV models worldwide across its Toyota and Lexus brands and make up to 3.5 million battery EVs annually by 2030.
Ionna, based in Durham, North Carolina, plans to install at least 30,000 charge ports in North America by 2030. Stations will include both CCS and NACS connectors to support all battery EV drivers.
The majority of electric vehicles currently have one of two types of plug styles to connect to public fast-charging stations. The first is called the Combined Charging System, or CCS, and the second is the North American Charging Standard, or NACS, used by all Tesla vehicles. The White House is lending its support to an auto industry effort to standardize Tesla’s electric vehicle charging plugs for all EVs in the United States, part of a broad effort to stimulate their sales to help combat climate change.
Other automakers supporting Ionna include BMW, GM, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Mercedes-Benz and Stellantis. [Source]
Legislative Sessions, Studies and Meetings
LB: LEGISLATIVE BUILDING. LOB: LEGISLATIVE OFFICE BUILDING
LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS:
WHAT HAPPENED IN THE HOUSE
Wednesday, July 10, 2024
- Placed On Cal For 07/29/2024
- HB 155 (Sossamon) TITLES FOR OFF-ROAD VEH./LOW SPEED VEH. INSP
- HB 556 (Wheatley) TENANCY IN COM./E-NOTARY/SMALLCLAIMS CHANGES
- HB 690 (Warren) NO CENTRL BANK DIGITAL CURRENCY PMTS TO STATE
WHAT HAPPENED IN THE SENATE
Wednesday, July 10, 2024
- Re-ref Com On Rules and Operations of the Senate
- SB 445 (Daniel) RECORDING OF COURT-FILED DOCUMENTS
- Ref To Com On Rules and Operations of the Senate
- SB 166 (Krawiec) 2024 BLDG. CODE REGULATORY REFORM
HOUSE COMMITTEE MEETINGS
Tuesday, July 23
- 9:00 A.M. | House Select Committee on Oversight and Reform, Auditorium.
HOUSE CALENDAR
Wednesday, July 29, 2024
- House Convenes at 12:00 P.M.
SENATE CALENDAR
Wednesday, July 29, 2024
- House Convenes at 12:00 P.M.
HOUSE & SENATE: Reconvening allowed under provisions of SB 916, if no sine die adjournment previously adopted.
- Monday, July 29 to Thursday Aug. 1
- Monday, Sept. 9 to Wednesday, Sept. 11
- Wednesday, Oct. 9
- Tuesday, Nov. 19 to Friday Nov. 22
- Wednesday, Dec. 11 to Friday Dec. 13
N.C. Government Meetings and Hearings
BOLD ITEMS ARE NEW LISTINGS
Thursday, July 11
Monday, July 15
- 1:30 p.m. | NC Dept. of Agriculture – 3RD QUARTER BOARD OF AGRICULTURE MEETING, 4400 Reedy Creek Road, Raleigh.
Tuesday, July 16
- 10:30 a.m. | North Carolina Spiritous Liquor Advisory Council – 3rd Quarter Meeting, 2 West Edenton St, Raleigh.
Wednesday, July 17
- 9 a.m. | The North Carolina Real Estate Commission Meeting, 1313 Navaho Drive, Raleigh.
Thursday, July 18
- 8 a.m. | North Carolina Medical Board Meeting – July 2024 Meeting, 3127 Smoketree Court, Raleigh.
- 9:30 a.m. | North Carolina Turnpike Authority meets, 1 S. Wilmington St, Raleigh.
Thursday, Aug. 1
- 6 p.m. | The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Air Quality Public Hearing on Moriah Energy Center Draft Air Quality Permit, Vance-Granville Community College, 200 Community College Road, Henderson.
Tuesday, Aug. 6
- 9 a.m. | The Council of State meets. 1 South Wilmington St, Raleigh.
UNC Board of Governors
23 S. WEST STREET, SUITE 1800, RALEIGH
Wednesday, July 24
- T.B.A. | The UNC Board of Governors, UNC System Office.
Thursday, July 25
- T.B.A. | The UNC Board of Governors, UNC System Office.
N.C. Utilities Commission Hearing Schedule
DOBBS BUILDING, 430 NORTH SALISBURY STREET, RALEIGH
Thursday, July 11
- 10 a.m. | Expert Witness Hearing – Application for General Rate Increase for HH Water, LLC | W-1318 Sub 1
Monday, July 22
- 2 p.m. | Expert Witness Hearing – Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC and Duke Energy Progress, LLC 2023 Biennial CPIRP | E-100 Sub 190
- 2 p.m. | Expert Public Witness Hearing – Joint Application of DEP and NCEMC for CPCN to Construct a 1360MW Electric Generating Facility in Person County, NC | E-2 Sub 1318, EC-67 Sub 55
- 2 p.m. | Expert Witness Hearing – Application for CPCN for 850 MW Natural Gas-Fired Combustion Turbine Electric Generating Facility Located at 8320 NC Highway 150 E, Terrell, NC 28682 in Catawba County | E-7 Sub 1297
Other Meetings and Events of Interest
BOLD ITEMS ARE NEW LISTINGS
Thursday, July 11
- Gov. Roy Cooper to join Vice President Kamala Harris at a campaign rally, Greensboro.
Saturday, July 20
- 7 p.m. | North Carolina Democratic Party Unity Dinner, Raleigh Convention Center.
Saturday, July 27
- 9 a.m. | North Carolina Federation of Young Republicans Convention, The Farm at 95, Selma.
