YOU DON’T SAY

“Having really good infrastructure in place, having good roads … is great, but we need to convince drivers to operate at the posted speed.”

First Sgt. Christopher Knox, a spokesperson for North Carolina Highway Patrol, on North Carolina’s relatively high share of speeding fatalities. (NC Health News, 8/06/24)

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NCSL Update

Krista Kano, State Affairs Pro, 8/05/24

The Republican edge in state government nationwide is likely to continue, regardless of the outcome of the 2024 presidential election, an associate director of the National Conference of State Legislatures predicted in Louisville on Monday.

“The top of the ticket matters, but it’s not the whole ball game,” Ben Williams said during a discussion focused on potential factors and results of the election on the first day of NCSL’s annual summit in Louisville, Kentucky.

According to Williams, associate director of NCSL’s Elections & Redistricting program, Democrats’ success in presidential elections has not corresponded to what has happened in state legislatures historically.

In 2008, Barack Obama won by 7.3%, but Democrats picked up only 1.3% of legislative seats nationwide. In 2012, he won by 3.9%, and Democrats picked up only 1.4% of seats. Then, in 2016, Hillary Clinton won the popular vote by 2.1%, while Democrats lost 4% of seats. And when President Joe Biden won in 2020 by 4.5%, his party lost 2.2% of seats nationwide.

“Just because you see these national trends does not mean that reflects at the state level,” Williams said.

Further complicating predictions is the unprecedented nature of this year’s presidential race: The sitting president dropped out late in the cycle, and the vice president now faces a former president who just survived an assassination attempt, Williams said.

In addition, Harris has yet to select a vice presidential running mate, and the home state of whomever she picks could see a half-point to 1-point uptick for Democrats. That could have major implications if she chooses, for example, U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly, given Republicans have a one-seat majority in his home state of Arizona, Williams said.

Beyond national politics, “there are local dynamics that are always at play that can make a difference,” Williams added.

As it stands, Republicans control 57 chambers compared with Democrats’ 41 after nearly 50 years of blue dominance in state legislatures that was broken with the onset of the Tea Party in 2010. Only Pennsylvania has chambers controlled by different parties.

Typically, only one party flips a chamber each election, but in some cases, more important than a flip is securing or breaking veto-proof majorities, as in Kansas.

Only nine states have a governor who is of a different party than the legislative majority, a trend common particularly in New England.

Williams said that number is at a historic low and so is likely to increase after November. “Assume you will see more governors of the opposite party,” he said.

Williams also predicted that dramatic swings are unlikely, as 2010 and 2011 were the last years when more than 10 chambers flipped from one party to another.

“We just don’t see those dramatic swings anymore,” he said. “[In] 2018-2019 we saw nine and that was the recent high point. Expect fewer than that.” And because Democrats would have to net nine flips in legislative chambers to take the national lead, it is unlikely they will overcome Republicans, Williams said.

In addition to voting for candidates, most Americans will also vote on statewide issues, according to Helen Brewer, a policy specialist with NCSL’s Elections & Redistricting program.

As of Monday morning, 141 ballot measures were certified at the state level.

The most common focus is taxes, appearing as 40 issues in 18 states, including Georgia’s proposed expansion of the homestead tax exemption.

Elections, particularly the use of ranked choice voting, is also popular, encompassing 30 measures in 22 states. Brewer also included in that category Ohio’s citizen-initiated constitutional amendment for an independent redistricting commission.

Civil and criminal justice is another common theme, accounting for 17 measures in 10 states, such as Arizona’s proposal for mandatory life sentences for child sex trafficking. Five states will consider whether to establish the constitutional right to abortion.

“Every ballot measure related to abortion that has appeared on the ballot since the Dobbs case in 2022 has turned out in favor of pro-abortion advocates,” Brewer said. “We will see if that holds true this year.” Of particular note, she added, is Florida, which requires a 60% supermajority for constitutional amendments. “It will be interesting to see whether that post-Dobbs trend holds true, even in a state with such a high passage threshold,” Brewer said.

 

Speeding Deaths

Jaymie Baxley, NC Health News, 8/06/24

Despite being nicknamed the “Good Roads State,” North Carolina holds the grim distinction of having one of the nation’s highest rates of deadly crashes involving speeding motorists.

A report released last month by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration shows that 660 speeding-related fatalities happened on North Carolina roads in 2022. Texas and California were the only states with more speeding deaths than North Carolina, which has a much smaller population than either of those states.

Speeding was linked to 40 percent of all traffic deaths recorded in the state that year, tying North Carolina with New Mexico for the fourth-highest rate of fatalities related primarily to speed in the U.S. The state with the highest rate is tiny Rhode Island, where 48 percent of fatalities were due to speed.

The report, however, offers little explanation for why the state has more speeding-related deaths than nearly every other state. Notably, NHTSA found that drivers involved in fatal speeding crashes in North Carolina were less likely to be engaged in other dangerous activities, such as drunken driving or driving without a seat belt, than motorists in states with fewer fatalities.

Thirty-six percent of North Carolina’s speeding-related deaths involved alcohol, slightly below the national average of 38 percent. Cases involving people who were not wearing a seat belt accounted for 45 percent of the state’s speeding fatalities, less than the national rate of 48 percent.

First Sgt. Christopher Knox, a spokesperson for North Carolina Highway Patrol, said several factors could be contributing to the state’s relatively high share of speeding fatalities.

One significant issue, he noted, is a shortage of Highway Patrol members. The agency currently has more than 270 vacancies for sworn positions.

“Enforcement is a big part of curbing speed-related fatalities,” Knox said in a phone interview, adding that fines and the threat of time behind bars can be effective deterrents against speeding. “It’s not just about stopping that one person who is speeding before something happens. Hopefully, the punishment they receive for a speeding citation changes their thought process and their driving behavior.”

That’s not to suggest violators are going unpunished in North Carolina. State troopers write about 300,000 tickets a year for speeding, according to Knox. 

“Our members are accountable for their daily efforts to curb traffic fatalities, and so we feel the people we have in place are doing the job they’re supposed to do,” he said. “We just know that we could do even more with more people.”

Another potential factor, ironically, is the state’s extensive and well-maintained road network, which has earned North Carolina its “Good Roads” reputation. 

“Having really good infrastructure in place, having good roads, having large roads, having roads with lots and lots of lanes that allow traffic to operate at the posted speed, is great,” Knox said. “But we need to convince drivers to operate at the posted speed.”

North Carolina ranks second to Texas in the number of miles of roads maintained by a state government, even as Texas has more than five times the number of square miles of land that North Carolina has. The NHTSA report showed that Texas also led the nation in speeding-related fatalities in 2022, with more than 1,500 deaths.

Statistics on speeding deaths are released annually by NHTSA, which bases its findings on data from the national Fatality Analysis Reporting System. To be included in the system, a death must occur within 30 days of a vehicle crash. NHTSA says it waits for death reports to be finalized, a process that can take more than a year, to give “outside sources” enough time to submit “important variable data” that may lead to changes in the annual tally.

2022 is the most recent year for which finalized data on speeding-related fatalities is available. It is also the deadliest year on record for the state, according to an NC Health News analysis of three decades’ worth of statistics published by NHTSA. [Source]

 

School Marketshare

Hannah Vinueza McClellan and Ben Humphries, Education NC, 8/05/24

The total number of private schools in North Carolina remained relatively stable during the 2023-24 school year, according to the annual report released by the Division of Non-Public Education (DNPE) in July 2024. The report estimates that there were 131,230 private school students in 2023-24 — up from 126,768 students the year prior, or an estimated 3.5% increase.

During the 2023-24 school year, there were 881 total private schools in North Carolina — down from 884 in 2022-23, but up from 828 schools in 2021-22. According to the report, religious schools make up approximately 65% of private schools in the state, with independent schools making up the other 35%.

While the number of independent private schools decreased last school year (from 319 to 308), the number of religious schools increased (from 565 to 573).

The data in the report show private schools are not evenly distributed across North Carolina. In 11 counties, for example, there were zero private schools during the 2023-24 school year: Alleghany, Ashe, Camden, Caswell, Edgecombe, Graham, Jones, Martin, Perquimans, Tyrrell, and Washington. In another four counties, there is only one private school: Gates, Greene, Hyde, and Warren. In another 17 counties, there are two private schools: Alexander, Avery, Bertie, Bladen, Caldwell, Cherokee, Chowan, Clay, Jackson, Macon, Mitchell, Northampton, Pamlico, Person, Polk, Swain, and Wilkes.

By comparison, there are 96 private schools in Mecklenburg County and 91 private schools in Wake County.

Marketshare is a term used to describe how many students are served by different sectors of schools, including traditional public, public charters, home schools, and private schools. The impact of school choice expansion on marketshare is being closely watched in North Carolina and around the country.

Public school enrollment increased slightly in North Carolina in 2023-24 — with charter school enrollment increasing by 4.9%, and traditional public school enrollment decreasing by 0.4%. Charter schools are public schools with more flexibility than traditional public schools.

There were 1,358,003 students enrolled in North Carolina traditional public schools at the start of the 2023-24 school year. There were 139,985 charter school students in 2023-24. The estimated student home school population was 179,900, up 3.2% from the year before.
Even with the reported increases in charter, private, and home school enrollment, traditional public schools remain the top choice for 75% of the state’s students and collectively traditional public schools and public charter schools serve 83% of students in the four sectors.

The 2023 budget provided for universal private school vouchers through the Opportunity Scholarship Program by removing all income eligibility requirements for recipients starting with the 2024-25 school year. The budget added $250 million to the Opportunity Scholarship Grant Reserve over the biennium, putting the revised appropriation for the reserve at $618 million through FY 2025.

The budget also eliminated the requirement that a student needs to have previously attended a public school.

After the Senate first proposed the program’s expansion, Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper declared a state of emergency for public education in North Carolina. In the months following, a bipartisan group of education stakeholders have also expressed concerns about the expansion. Primary concerns include the lack of testing accountability at private schools, the impact of the expansion on funding and enrollment at public schools, and that private schools don’t have to serve all students.

With the expansion of vouchers, policymakers on both sides of the aisle have concerns about the disparity in the number of private schools across North Carolina’s counties. In other words, some families have much less opportunity to use a private school voucher, especially in rural counties.

In a Senate committee hearing in May, Sen. Natasha Marcus, D-Mecklenburg, asked, “is it really fair to the taxpayers in those counties whose kids don’t have a school to use them for to pay for families in other counties?”

Not all private schools are eligible to receive state dollars, and at the hearing, legislative staff noted that then 632 of the private schools in the state were eligible, and also that 10-15 counties did not have an eligible private school.

Sen. Michael Lee, R-New Hanover, said, “Increasing the number of Opportunity Scholarships at all levels increases demand and hopefully creates markets in those counties that just don’t have any other options.” [Source]

 

Voter Registration

Ashley Rowe, WRAL News, 8/05/24

In downtown Pembroke, across from the train tracks and a stone’s throw from diners and coffee shops, stands the RNC Community Center. Open since 2022, the community hub is one of a handful nationwide, strategically placed by the Republican National Committee to connect with minority voters.

Robeson County is a majority-minority county, with 60% of the population Native American and Black, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. A notoriously blue, Democrat county throughout the 1970s, 80s, and 90s, Robeson County has been on a steady political shift to the right throughout the past decade or more.

“We never left the Democratic Party, they left us,” said Phillip Stephens, the Robeson County GOP Chairman.

Stephens, a registered Democrat in the 1980s before joining the Republican Party, has been involved in getting Robeson County voters off the Democrat voter rolls for more than a decade.

There are still more Robeson County voters registered as Democrats than Republicans, but a WRAL analysis of State Board of Elections data over the past 20 years found that Republican voter registrations went up 94%, from 7,274 registrations in December 2004 to 14,111 by July 27, 2024. In that same time frame, Democrat voter registrations went down 40%, from 56,516 to 33,949. Unaffiliated registrations went up 327%, from 5,942 to 25,367.

Eight Democrat and Republican insiders who spoke to WRAL Investigates about this Republican registration surge in Robeson County have similar explanations for it. First, they point to Democrats’ faded presence in the county.  As well, they say some conservative Democrat voters felt ideologically disconnected from the party.

“And about 2012, 2014 [Republicans] started to show up,” said state Rep. Jarrod Lowery, R-Robeson. “They started to come to the communities, they started eating in our restaurants, coming to our churches, coming to our events and asking for our votes.”

A WRAL analysis of voter registrations in 25 counties in and around WRAL’s viewing area revealed comparable trends to what’s happened in Robeson County.

Twenty counties have had double- or triple-digit percentage gains in Republican voter registrations from 2004 through mid-July 2024. Local counties with more urban areas and larger populations, like Durham, Orange and Wake, saw the opposite trend, with Democrats making the big gains. However, Democrat voter registration decreased in 17 counties over the past 20 years.

The greatest gains were for registered unaffiliated voters, which grew by triple digits in all 25 local counties that WRAL analyzed. [Source]

Campaign Rallies

Brian Murphy, WRAL News, 8/05/24

Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance has scheduled a rally at Raleigh’s Union Station on Thursday morning, hours before Democrat Kamala Harris and her running mate plan to speak in the area.

Vance, a first-term U.S. senator from Ohio and Donald Trump’s running mate, is expected to speak at 9 a.m. Doors open at 7 a.m. Vance also scheduled a press event at the Charlotte Pipe and Foundry Co. in Oakboro later on Thursday, the Trump campaign announced Monday.

Harris, the presumptive Democratic nominee for president, is scheduled to be in Raleigh on Thursday as part of a tour with her vice presidential pick. Harris is expected to unveil her running-mate selection Tuesday.

The visits to North Carolina come as polls have tightened between Trump and Harris. Harris became the presumptive nominee after President Joe Biden announced on July 21 that he wouldn’t run for reelection.

A Morning Consult poll conducted in late July showed Trump with a 45%-to-44% edge over Harris with other presidential candidates on the ballot. Axios reported that the Trump campaign has begun significant spending on television advertising in North Carolina, which has been considered a notch below the top swing states of Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Georgia, Arizona and Nevada.

It will be Harris’ eighth visit to the state in 2024. Vance hasn’t visited North Carolina since becoming Trump’s vice presidential pick. Trump held a rally in Charlotte on July 24, his first rally after Biden’s announcement. [Source]

Mill Closure

Ryley Ober, Asheville Citizen Times, 8/05/24

Pactiv Evergreen argues it should not have to pay back the full $12 million in economic incentives given to the Canton paper mill by the state before it abruptly shut down in May 2023, leaving more than 1,000 people without a job.
Attorney General Josh Stein filed a lawsuit against the mill’s Illinois-based corporate owner in May, saying Pactiv Evergreen violated the terms of the incentives grant and calling for the funds to be returned. In court filings, attorneys for the company called the move an “unenforceable penalty.”

Defendants Blue Ridge Paper Products LLC and Evergreen Packaging LLC — two previous owners that were part of deals that led to the 2020 merger with Pactiv — moved to dismiss part of Stein’s complaint on July 29 in Wake County Superior Court.

They argue Pactiv “satisfied nearly all of its obligations under the JMAC agreement,” and claim the N.C Department of Commerce’s reading of the contract to recover the entire $12 million in state funds is “illogical” and “unlawful.”

“It is apparent on the face of the JMAC Agreement that the full repayment remedy bears no relation to the actual damages that the department suffered and serves only to punish Pactiv,” the motion reads.

The Department of Commerce arranged the Job Maintenance and Capital Development grant in 2014. The agreement provided Pactiv Evergreen with $12 million in economic development incentives in exchange for a commitment to maintain operations, and at least 800 jobs, at the Canton paper mill through Dec. 31, 2024.

Pactiv Evergreen closed the mill and terminated all its employees in May 2023, a year and a half before the incentivized commitment ended.

The state funds were given in $2 million installment every year from 2016 to 2021, for a total of $12 million, according to Stein’s suit. The lawsuit by Stein alleged the company violated several sections of the agreement, including failing to repay all grant funds after closing operations before the 10-year agreement term ended. The claim also says Pactiv failed to repay a proportionate amount of funds after falling short of employing 800 full-time employees through the end of 2024.

“Taxpayers in North Carolina invested in Pactiv Evergreen to bolster our state’s economy,” Stein, who is also the Democratic candidate for governor, said when he filed the lawsuit in May. “We held up our end of the bargain, and we cannot let Pactiv cut and run away with our state’s money. My office has been working with Pactiv over the last year to address the company’s obligations under the JMAC agreement, but it has become clear that legal action was necessary to hold Pactiv accountable.”

In its partial motion to dismiss, the company claims there is an “obvious conflict” between two of the provisions, one requiring full payment and the other requiring partial payment. It asks the court to dismiss Stein’s claim regarding the full payment provision, saying “there is no legal or factual basis to sustain the relief the Department seeks.”

“Pactiv’s motion fails to offer any compelling reason why it should not have to repay the state the $12 million it owes for closing the paper mill last year,” Nazneen Ahmed, a spokesperson with the AG’s Office, told the Citizen Times Aug. 2. [Source]

eCourts Expansion

WSOC News, 8/05/24

North Carolina’s online court system is expanding to all 100 counties next year. The eCourts system, which rolled out in Mecklenburg County last fall, moved the court system from paper case files to an online program. Leaders said the move was the biggest change in the system in 60 years.

Currently, eCourts serves 38 counties (half of the state’s population), including its three largest cities. On Monday, the court system sent a news release saying eCourts will expand across all 100 counties in 2025.

The launch of the new system hasn’t come without problems. A lawsuit was filed in 2023 claiming the system has several defects that have led to wrongful arrests and violations of constitutional rights. In May, the North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts and its director, Ryan Boyce, were dismissed as defendants.

When Mecklenburg County was moved online in October 2023, a number of setbacks came with the new system. Those included delays in hearings, delays in inmate transfers to the courthouse, and error messages that had court officials scratching their heads. Our partners at the Charlotte Observer reported that lawsuit claims still remain against Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden and Tyler Technologies, the developer of the filing system. Officials estimate 5 million pieces of paper have been saved with 1.3 million electric filings since February 2023. Currently, the eCourts portal averages more than 1.5 million online searches per month. [Source]

 

Gas Facility

Celeste Gracia, WUNC Radio, 8/05/24

Dominion Energy plans to build the Moriah Energy Center, a liquified natural gas storage facility, in Person County to support increasing customer demand. However, some community members oppose the project, arguing the facility will cause toxic air and water pollution.

“My biggest concern is that our homes will be ruined. I’m concerned for the air that we breathe,” said Andrea Childers, who lives near the site of the planned facility. “I am concerned that at some point my home will not be livable anymore.”

The Moriah Energy Center would receive natural gas during periods of excess capacity. It would turn the gas into liquid and store the liquid in large tanks. Dominion proposes the facility to have a storage capacity of 25 million gallons, with the potential to add another 25 million in the future.

The liquid would remain there until periods of high demand, particularly during cold winter days. Then, it would be converted back into gas and sent out to customers.

Dominion Energy spokesperson Persida Montanez emphasized safety is a top priority for Dominion.

“In fact, we have a liquefied natural gas plant that has been operational for nearly 50 years in the heart of Cary,” said Montanez. “We have the track record of being able to operate these facilities safely. The best predictor of future success is past success, and we are an experienced operator.”

Dominion says the plant will support 400,000 Dominion Energy customers in ten North Carolina counties.

One major issue at the heart of this situation is varying opinions over whether natural gas is a form of clean energy.

Person County resident Childers is with No MEC, a local community group that opposes the project. “There’s nothing clean about natural gas. To call (natural gas) clean is a misnomer, if not just false,” said Childers. Childers and other concerned community members voiced their worries at a public meeting last week. The state Division of Air Quality, or DAQ, hosted the meeting to hear public comment on a proposed air permit for the site.

Around 75 people attended the meeting, and almost 40 implored DAQ to deny the permit.

Person County resident Julie Nye said if the permit is approved, it needs to be updated with stronger protective measures, like an independent air quality monitoring system. “I love my little piece of Person County heaven, and I want to be sure that all reasonable precautions are being taken to ensure that it stays that way,” said Nye.

DAQ spokesperson Shawn Taylor said the amount of air pollutants allowed to be emitted will be within federal and state guidelines.

“The air quality permitting process is designed to ensure that facilities that operate in North Carolina do so at safe levels,” Taylor said. “It’s important to remember that it’s not the presence of a pollutant, but really the level that is emitted and the exposure to it that determines the impact on public health.”

Taylor said DAQ will carefully review public feedback and take all comments into consideration. A final decision on the permit is expected in the coming weeks. [Source]

 

Tropical Storm

Martha Quillin, The News & Observer, 8/05/24

Tropical Storm Debby, which made its first landfall in Florida on Monday morning, now begins a slow, circuitous path through the Southeast that’s expected to bring historic rainfall amounts to Georgia and South Carolina and the risk of flash flooding to much of North Carolina through Saturday.

Through Saturday morning, the storm is expected to drop 10 to 20 inches of rain — with local amounts of up to 30 inches — in southeast Georgia, South Carolina’s coastal plain and southeast North Carolina.

Forecasters for the National Hurricane Center said Monday, “This potentially historic rainfall will likely result in areas of catastrophic flooding.”

All but extreme Western North Carolina is expected to see rainfall from the storm, in amounts of 1 to 4 inches west of the Piedmont to as much as 16 inches in the area of southeastern N.C. that includes Wilmington, Jacksonville and Lumberton. Along the coast, dangerous storm surge and wind impacts are expected from Florida all the way to North Carolina through midweek.

Monday, Gov. Roy Cooper signed an Executive Order declaring a State of Emergency ahead of severe weather expected across the state. Tropical Storm Debby has the potential for life threatening flash flooding, riverine flooding, wind gusts up to 40 mph, coastal impacts and other effects.

“This weather has the potential to bring intense rain and flooding to North Carolina and we are preparing for it,” said Cooper. “As the weather becomes more severe, I urge everyone to take precautions and stay safe.” [Source]

Celebration Dispute

Brionna Dallara, The (Waynesville) Mountaineer, 8/05/24

Past and present community leaders, residents, and even theme park actors gathered for Maggie’s 50th birthday party on July 19, though one political figure declined his invitation, claiming town leaders had lied about him.

Rep. Mark Pless, R-Haywood, declined the town’s invitation to the celebration.

“Thank you for the invitation to attend the 50th Birthday Party for Maggie Valley. Under normal circumstances, I would gladly attend; however, we are not under (normal) circumstances,” Pless wrote in an email response to Maggie Valley Mayor Mike Eveland.

“Over the past 2 years and 3 months, you and some of your board members have spread lies about me in the media, told members of the community and residents of Maggie Valley lies about me, and tried every way possible to discredit me and turn the voters in Maggie Valley against me,” Pless said.

“We were celebrating the town and the people of the town. So, to me, everyone should have been there, and should be partaking in that event, it was completely nonpolitical,” said Tim Wise, a town alderman who was elected to the board last year. “It was just, here’s our history, for better or for worse, this is the history of Maggie Valley, and I thought the party was a spectacular success. It was unfortunate that he chose not to come.”

Pless was the only representative who was invited who outright declined the invitation.

Gov. Roy Cooper could not attend due to scheduling issues but sent his regrets in a letter.

Congressman Chuck Edwards was called away at the last minute but sent his representative, who gave a speech and presented the town with a plaque. N.C. State Senator Kevin Corbin was in attendance.

The Mountaineer reached out to Pless but did not receive a response. [Source]

 

Pipeline Transparency

Paul Garber, WFDD Radio, 8/05/24

Environmental activists are hailing the introduction of a measure in Congress designed to enhance safety and transparency involving the transport of natural gas. The bill was recently filed by Democratic Senator Ed Markey of Massachusetts. Among its provisions is the establishment of a national Office of Public Engagement.

Jessica Sims, a Virginia field coordinator for the grassroots Appalachian Voices organization, says adding an engagement office could help local communities get facts more quickly about the risks and environmental impacts of the Mountain Valley Pipeline. “It’s months and months of waiting for that information,” she says. “And we find that to be a great difficulty because those experiencing pipelines coming through their area want to be as well informed, as quickly and as fully as they can.”

The roughly 300-mile pipeline became operational in June. It runs from West Virginia into southern Virginia, and an extension is planned that would cross the border into Rockingham County.

Supporters of the gas pipeline say it will help meet public demand for clean and affordable energy. [Source]

 

Federal Data

The Transylvania Times, 8/05/24

 U.S. Congressman Chuck Edwards has introduced the Show Me the Science Act to require federal agencies to publish the data they use to inform decisions.

A Pew Research study shows only 22% of Americans trust the federal government to do what is right “most of the time,” according to a news release from Edwards’ office. The Show Me the Science Act would provide more transparency in federal rulemaking and improve congressional and public oversight of the rulemaking process, the release said.

“We need greater transparency and accountability in how federal agencies decide to write new rules to make sure that these regulations serve the public’s best interests,” Edwards said. “If an agency can’t prove that the benefits of the rule outweigh the costs, then we shouldn’t saddle the American people and Main Street businesses with additional regulations.” [Source]

Cogentrix Sale

Chris Roush, Business NC, 8/05/24

Charlotte’s Cogentrix Energy, an independent power producer, is being sold to a Houston-based private equity firm focused on energy for $3 billion. Founded in 1983, Cogentrix produces 5.3 gigawatts of energy from 11 natural gas-fired power plants across the country.

The seller is Carlyle, a private equity group that had acquired Cogentrix in 2012 from Goldman Sachs for an undisclosed amount. At the time, Cogentrix was producing 5,000 megawatts. The buyer is Quantum Capital Group.

“We are grateful for Carlyle’s partnership, which has provided us with the tools and capabilities to capture a growing opportunity set within the U.S. power market,” said Cogentrix CEO John Ragan in a statement. After the deal closes, Cogentrix will continue to be led by Ragan and the existing Cogentrix management team.

Ragan joined Cogentrix in 2017. He previously worked at NRG, where he held several positions overseeing diverse regional fleets of power plants, commercial activities and NRG’s carbon capture business. He also served as NRG’s chief operating officer and president of NRG’s Northeast and Gulf Coast regions.

Cogentrix acquired two Texas gas plants in 2021 and two Pennsylvania gas plants in 2020. In North Carolina, it previously owned coal plants in Roxboro, Portsmouth, Rocky Mount, Southport, Kenansville, Elizabethtown and Lumberton. [Source]

 

Excessive Force

Becky Johnson, The (Waynesville) Mountaineer, 8/05/24

Waynesville Police Chief David Adams was among the basic law enforcement training instructors at Blue Ridge Community College when the program came under fire last fall for alleged strong-arm tactics used on trainees.

An investigation by the N.C. Department of Justice Criminal Training Standards Commission found guest trainers “subjected students to oral and physical abuse…which caused multiple significant injuries to students,” according to findings outlined in a letter to the college dated May 2024.

Adams was one of 10 BLET instructors at Blue Ridge Community College caught up in the investigation. However, it does not mean that Adams was involved in or part of the alleged tactics. Adams had been an adjunct BLET instructor at Blue Ridge Community College for 22 years. Complaints over the alleged tactics did not materialize until the fall 2023 training cohort.

Adams will have a chance to clear his name at a hearing before the N.C. Department of Justice Criminal Training Standards Commission later this month. “I look forward to having the opportunity to present before the commission,” Adams said. He did not want to comment further on the case pending the hearing.

The investigation cited the use of “guest trainers” who were versed in martial arts to role-play during training exercises with students.

“The role players used excessive violence against students. Students received direct strikes to the head, and when the strikes were hard enough to displace student protective headgear, the headgear was not replaced, yet strikes to the head continued,” according to the commission’s findings outlined in the May letter.

“This was all done with inadequate oversight, and staff who directly participated in these acts or who failed to correct them remained employed,” the letter stated.

Blue Ridge Community College voluntarily suspended its BLET program in April. Based on the findings of the investigation, the college could face an involuntary suspension of its BLET accreditation for up to five years. [Source]

 

Migraine Treatment

Neal Charnoff, WFDD Radio, 8/05/24

The 5-year, $3.2 million grant comes from the National Center for Complimentary and Integrative Health, part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The money will help fund an eight-week virtual clinical trial that will evaluate non-drug treatment options.

Dr. Rebecca Erwin Wells, an Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist neurologist who teaches at the School of Medicine, says that too many people suffering from the debilitating effects of migraine headaches turn to opioids for relief, which can result in overuse and addiction. Wells says one goal of the research is to open paths toward non-drug approaches for treatment.

“I find that an integrative approach is what can be most effective for many patients,” says Wells. “So I am a firm believer in utilizing all treatment modalities that can be helpful.”

The School of Medicine research team is currently enrolling people with migraine issues in the clinical trial.  Wells says that the virtual format will help widen access and availability for participants. [Source]

 

Housing Award

Aaron Sánchez-Guerra, WUNC Radio, 8/05/24

The largest Latino civic organization in the U.S. named the Durham Community Land Trustees as one of nine finalists to be awarded grant money to support homeownership for Latino residents.

An initiative from UnidosUS called Premio HOME, which stands for Home Ownership Means Equity, held a national competition where housing organizations proposed innovative solutions to America’s housing crisis. As a finalist, the Land Trustees received a grant award of $75,000 for their project proposal titled EcoGrace Durham. The new project will build new, affordable homes that are environmentally sustainable and energy efficient, as well as compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The group’s proposed EcoGrace initiative will build out seven four-bedroom homes scattered throughout Durham’s Southside, East Durham and Hayti neighborhoods. Land Trustees serves low- to moderate-income households who are majority Black and Latino.

Building for EcoGrace is expected to begin as soon as mid-2025. [Source]

NC Insider Legislative Report

LB: LEGISLATIVE BUILDING. LOB: LEGISLATIVE OFFICE BUILDING

HOUSE CALENDAR

Monday, Sept. 9, 2024

House Convenes at 12 P.M.

SENATE CALENDAR

Monday, Sept. 9, 2024

Senate Convenes at 12 P.M.

HOUSE & SENATE: Reconvening allowed under provisions of SB 916, if no sine die adjournment previously adopted.

• Monday, Sept. 9 to Wednesday, Sept. 11
• Wednesday, Oct. 9
• Tuesday, Nov. 19 to Friday Nov. 22
• Wednesday, Dec. 11 to Friday Dec. 13

Legislative Studies and Meetings

LB: LEGISLATIVE BUILDING. LOB: LEGISLATIVE OFFICE BUILDING

Thursday, August 29

• 1 p.m. | Agriculture and Forestry Awareness Study Commission, Ed Emory Auditorium, Kenansville.

N.C. Government Meetings and Hearings

BOLD ITEMS ARE NEW LISTINGS

Tuesday, Aug. 6

• 9 a.m. | The Council of State meets. 1 South Wilmington St, Raleigh.
• 9 a.m. | North Carolina Board of Transportation Meeting, 1 S Wilmington St, Raleigh.
• 1 p.m. | NC Coastal Resources Commission meets, 400 Commerce Ave, Morehead City.
• 1:30 p.m. | The North Carolina Local Government Commission – August Meeting, 3200 Atlantic Ave, Raleigh.

Wednesday, Aug. 7

• 12 p.m. | North Carolina Commission for Public Health meets, 1101 Gorman St, Raleigh.
• 1:15 p.m. | North Carolina Board of Transportation Meeting, 1 S Wilmington St, Raleigh.

Thursday, Aug. 8

• 9:30 a.m. | North Carolina Taskforce for Offshore Wind Economic Resource Strategies (NC TOWERS), ECU’s Coastal Studies Institute 850 NC 345, Wanchese.
• 10 a.m. | Quarterly Meeting of the State Ethics Commission, 424 North Blount St, Raleigh.

Tuesday, Aug. 13

• 11 a.m. | Economic Investment Committee  –  Regular Meeting, 301 N. Wilmington St, Raleigh.

Wednesday, Aug. 14

• 9 a.m. | North Carolina Real Estate Commission Meeting, 1313 Navaho Drive, Raleigh.

Monday, Aug. 19

• 2 p.m. | The Executive Committee of The North Carolina Partnership for Children meets, The meeting will be held via Zoom. You may contact Yvonne Huntley at 984.221.1242 or email at [email protected] for additional information.

UNC Board of Governors

23 S. WEST STREET, SUITE 1800, RALEIGH

Wednesday, Sept. 11

• Meeting of the Board of Governors, TBA.

Thursday, Sept. 12

• Meeting of the Board of Governors, TBA.

Thursday, Oct. 17

• Meeting of the Board of Governors, TBA.

Wednesday, Nov. 13

• Meeting of the Board of Governors, TBA.

Thursday, Nov. 14

• Meeting of the Board of Governors, TBA.

N.C. Utilities Commission Hearing Schedule

DOBBS BUILDING, 430 NORTH SALISBURY STREET, RALEIGH

Tuesday, Aug. 13

• 10 a.m. | Public Hearing – Annual Review of Gas Costs | G-5 Sub 675

Wednesday, Aug. 14

• 7 p.m. | Public Witness Hearing – Application for General Rate Increase for Piedmont Natural Gas Company, Inc. | G-9 Sub 837

Tuesday, Aug. 20

• 6 p.m. | Public Witness Hearing – Application for Transfer of Public Utility Franchise and Approval of Rates of HISCO East, LLC in Carteret County to HISCO I in Carteret County | W-1297 Sub 17, W-1344 Sub 0
• 6 p.m. | Public Witness Hearing – Application for Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity and for Approval of Rates to Provide Sewer Utility Service to Currently Served Cape Ponte Village Subdivision, Additional Phases for the National Park Service, Harkers Island RV Park and a Fe | W-1344 Sub 1

Wednesday, Aug. 21

• 7 p.m. | Public Witness Hearing – Application for General Rate Increase for Piedmont Natural Gas Company, Inc. | G-9 Sub 837

Thursday, Aug. 22

• 7 p.m. | Public Witness Hearing – Application for General Rate Increase for Piedmont Natural Gas Company, Inc. | G-9 Sub 837

Other Meetings and Events of Interest

BOLD ITEMS ARE NEW LISTINGS

Tuesday, Aug. 6

• 9 a.m. | Gov. Roy Cooper to preside over Council of State meeting, North Carolina Department of Transportation – DOT Board Room #150, 1 S Wilmington St, Raleigh.
• 11 a.m. | Gov. Roy Cooper to deliver remarks at ceremony dedicating a highway interchange in honor of former Congressman David Price Chapel Hill Town Hall,405 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd, Chapel Hill.
• 2 p.m. | Gov. Roy Cooper to join U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm to highlight the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to improving grid resilience and reliability and clean energy, Garner.

Friday, Sept. 27

2024 Lumbee Powwow, Lumbee Tribe Cultural Center, 638 Terry Sanford Drive, Maxton., 638 Terry Sanford Drive, Maxton.