July 29, 2019

NC Legislative Update: July 2019 #4

David Ferrell, Michelle Frazier, George Smith, III

Maynard Nexsen

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The House and Senate continued moving legislation this week as they attempt to wind down the session. Both chambers were in town Monday through Wednesday. The House will be back next week, however the Senate is not planning to return to Raleigh until August 6th. The Senate is waiting on the House to attempt an override of Governor Cooper’s veto of the budget. A vote on the override is not expected for several weeks since various members have planned to be away, and Republicans will need all 65 of their members plus seven Democrats to successfully override the veto.

Temporary Spending Bill

The legislature sent House Bill 961 to Governor Cooper’s desk this week. The bill ensures that the State can spend federal grant money in light of the budget stalemate. The bill contains provisions that are usually included in the budget, and legislators feared that the continuing resolution that is currently in place would not allow the State to spend federal dollars. The bill largely involves grants received by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), but also contains authorization to spend money on disaster relief, low income energy assistance, suicide prevention, and agriculture assistance. The State is currently operating on a statutory continuing resolution that keeps last year’s budget in place until a new budget is adopted. The statutory continuing resolution does not allow for non-recurring money to be spent, which jeopardized federal funding. The authorization in House Bill 961 will allow those dollars to be drawn down and spent.

Literacy Assessment Controversy

13 Senate Democrats are calling for a special committee to look into the three-year, $8.3 million contract award for the K-3 Read to Achieve reading assessment system. The current system uses an in-person system called mCLASS, owned by Amplify, but State Superintendent Mark Johnson will be moving to a computer–based assessment system called Istation. Superintendent Johnson had formed an evaluation committee within the Department of Instruction (DPI) to pick a system that they felt best met the reading assessment needs. The committee recommended that the State stay with Amplify and continue using mCLASS. Despite this, the Superintendent choose to cancel the RFP and award the contract to Istation. Amplify has contested the award, and some groups have called for the Attorney General and State Auditor to investigate the award. Teachers and school administrators are also worried about the switch, citing logistical problems with training to use a new system so close to the beginning of the school year. Superintendent Johnson has proposed delaying the implementation until the middle of the school calendar. The Senate rejected a House-backed bill this week that would allow local school administrations the option to choose which system they want to use.

WRAL: https://www.wral.com/after-weeks-of-controversy-records-show-nc-superintendent-chose-different-reading-test-than-recommended/18507166/

WRAL: https://www.wral.com/senate-democrats-call-for-legislative-review-of-dpis-istation-pick/18531540/

Liquor Privatization

The House Alcoholic Beverage Control Committee heard House Bill 971 this week, which would privatize the sale of alcohol in the State. Currently, individuals have to go to a government-run ABC store to purchase alcohol. Representative Chuck McGrady, who has pushed this idea for several years, told the committee that the move would raise hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenue. The bill would allow convenience stations and grocery stores to sell bottles of alcohol. Permits would be limited to 1,500, which would triple the number of places selling alcohol since only 500 ABC stores are in operation currently. The bill is supported by the restaurant, lodging, and retail industries, while religious groups opposed the bill. Some religious groups pointed to other laws that have passed this year which expand alcohol sales, claiming that the legislature has already done enough. Representative McGrady did not asked the Committee to vote on the bill, saying that he would be surprised if it even passed next year.

WRAL: https://www.wral.com/lawmaker-proposes-scrapping-abc-stores-allowing-retailers-to-sell-liquor/18528148/

Smokable Hemp

The House Judiciary Committee and Finance Committee both voted to make smokable hemp illegal last week. However, when hearing the 2019 Farm Act this week, the House Judiciary Committee reversed course and voted to legalize smokable hemp. This year’s Farm Act contains a lengthy hemp section, in response to federal law changes last year that opened the door for states to legalize hemp production and hemp derived products. The Senate version of the bill allowed for smokable hemp products, which are some of the most profitable uses of the plant. However, many members of the House have had concerns with smokable hemp and claimed that it is a backdoor way to legalize marijuana. Law enforcement groups have even said that smokable hemp will prevent them from obtaining the probable cause needed to enforce other crimes. Representative Jimmy Dixon, who led the charge against smokable hemp, is the one who recommended that it be added back into the bill. There is still some skepticism as to whether the bill can pass the House floor with smokable hemp attached. Other sections of the bill dealing with environmental issues will likely subtract some Democrats from supporting it.

WRAL: https://www.wral.com/house-lawmakers-change-course-on-smokable-hemp/18529805/

2019 Session Laws

The following 160 bills have become law this session:

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DISCLAIMER: Because of the generality of this update, the information provided herein may not be applicable in all situations and should not be acted upon without specific legal advice based on particular situations.

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Maynard Nexsen

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David Ferrell

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Michelle Frazier

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George Smith, III

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Maynard Nexsen on:

NC Legislative Update: July 2019 #4

Temporary Spending Bill

Literacy Assessment Controversy

Liquor Privatization

Smokable Hemp

2019 Session Laws

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