Agriculture
CBS17: This pest is a hitchhiker - and could ruin NC's $92B agriculture industry, officials say
While traveling this summer, don’t let this pesky bug hitch a ride with you. The North Carolina Department of Agriculture says the Spotted Lanternfly “poses a significant threat to [North Carolina’s] $91.8 billion agriculture industry.”
WRAL: Women leading way as hemp revival sweeps North Carolina
Franny's Farm is a place where practical magic and science meet. Owned and operated by Franny Tacy and her husband and CEO Jeff Tacy, Franny's is an active hemp farm in Leicester, and one of the grower sites for North Carolina State University's Industrial Hemp Pilot Research Program.
Economic Development
MEBANE ENTERPRISE: ABB announces $40 million investment in Mebane plant
On Wednesday afternoon in downtown Raleigh, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper, alongside multiple City of Mebane and Orange County officials, announced a $40 million expansion of ABB Incorporated’s business operations in Mebane.
WINSTON-SALEM JOURNAL: North Carolina ranks third on CNBC's list of top states for business
North Carolina has gained another high ranking from a business-climate study. This time, the state is listed third in CNBC’s 13th annual America’s Top States for Business. It trailed Virginia and Texas.
Environment
WNCT9: 13,452 sign petition for N.C. to ban use of pesticides that allegedly kill bees
Tuesday at Gov. Roy Cooper’s office, a state environmental non-profit group says it dropped off a petition with 13,452 signatures asking the state to ban the use of pesticides that it says kill bees.
Healthcare
THE NEWS & OBSERVER: Medicaid expansion is at the heart of the budget fight. Here's what is means for NC.
While Gov. Roy Cooper and many Democrats are intent on expanding Medicaid to provide health insurance to hundreds of thousands of North Carolinians, Republicans in the legislature fear Medicaid expansion becoming a fiscal disaster for the state and the country.
NORTH CAROLINA HEALTH NEWS: Budget stalemate gumming up health care policies, priorities, bills
As the days tick by since Gov. Roy Cooper vetoed the state budget and there’s little movement on resolving some of his issues with the spending plan delivered by the Republican-led legislature, some lawmakers and advocates are working to mitigate the effects of the stalemate on vital health care policies and priorities.
Government
THE SENTINEL: North Carolina partisan gerrymandering state trial begins
A North Carolina state court trial on whether legislative districts are illegal partisan gerrymanders starts just weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled it wasn't the purview of federal courts to decide if boundaries are politically unfair.
CNN: Greg Murphy wins GOP nomination in North Carolina congressional race
North Carolina state Rep. Greg Murphy will win the Republican nomination in North Carolina's 3rd Congressional District special election, CNN projects, setting up a general election fight with Democratic nominee Allen Thomas this fall. Murphy, who serves in the state Legislature and is a urologic surgeon, led his primary challenger, first-time candidate Joan Perry, throughout the night, capturing just shy of 60% of the vote with 100% of precincts reporting Tuesday.
Transportation
GIZMODO: North Carolina Is Eyeing a Hyperloop One System for the Research Triangle
North Carolina is the latest state to throw its hat into the Hyperloop One ring. Today, Virgin Hyperloop One announced that North Carolina’s Regional Transportation Alliance (RTA) was launching a pre-feasibility study to connect the cities of Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, and the RDU International Airport.
