Pardon Our Dust
We recently launched this new site and are still in the process of updating some of our archived content. Some details of this article may be incomplete, links may be broken, and other elements may not display properly yet. We appreciate your patience and understanding.
Your weekly North Carolina political news report.
Agriculture
WRAL: Law enforcement fears NC’s effort to boost hemp industry could essentially legalize marijuana
North Carolina agriculture officials envision hemp as a major cash crop for the state, but law enforcement officials told lawmakers Thursday that the push to boost the industry could essentially legalize marijuana because of the difficulty in telling the two cannabis plants apart.
THE POST AND COURIER: Rivers in SC and NC are still feeling the effects of Hurricane Florence
Months after the drenching storm pummeled the Carolinas, rivers are still showing effects from Hurricane Florence. The storm, which hit as a Category 1 near Wrightsville Beach, N.C., on Sept. 14, was remarkable in part for how much water it carried.
Economic Development
SHELBY STAR: Greenheck to expand, add 400 new jobs
Greenheck Fan Corp. has announced an expansion project that will bring 403 new jobs and $59 million in capital investment to Cleveland County over five years.
Environment
THE NEWS & OBSERVER: 3 NC Schools win awards for thir environmental efforts
Three North Carolina schools, including one in Wake County and one in Durham, received Green Ribbon School awards Wednesday from the U.S. Department of Education for their environmental conservation efforts.
Abbotts Creek Elementary School in Raleigh, Immaculata Catholic School in Durham and Douglas Byrd High School in Fayetteville are among 35 schools nationally who were honored for “reducing environmental impact and utility costs, improving health and wellness and ensuring effective sustainability education.”
Healthcare
INSURANCE NEWS: Medicaid Expansion Not in N.C. Senate Budget Proposal
The Republican leadership in the N.C. Senate in Raleigh unveiled their proposed 2019-21 state budget Tuesday that – as expected – does not expand the state’s Medicaid program.
TRIANGLE BUSINESS JOURNAL: NC legislators threaten to cut hospital’s reimbursement over governance change
What started as a scuffle between an eastern North Carolina hospital and the UNC system Board of Governors is now threatening to cut that hospital’s operating budget – and possibly the health care access of thousands in the eastern reaches of the state.
Politics
THE NEWS & OBSERVER: Senate and House disagree on raises for teachers, other state employees
The North Carolina Senate’s proposed budget is out, and its proposed raises for teachers and other state employees are different from what the House proposed in its own budget. Senate Republicans released their spending plan Tuesday.
THE WASHINGTON POST: North Carolina businessman will challenge Sen. Thom Tillis in Republican primary
Sen. Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican who has been criticized by the right for at times parting ways with President Trump, has drawn a primary challenger in his 2020 reelection race.
Transportation
THE NEWS & OBSERVER: NC Senate approves higher fees for electric cars and new ones for plug-in hybrids
A bill that would increase registration fees for electric cars and levy a new one on plug-in hybrid vehicles failed to get out of committee in the state Senate, but the proposal lives on in the Senate’s version of the budget.
CHARLOTTE BUSINESS JOURNAL: Section of I-77 toll lanes in Lake Norman area opening this weekend
Drivers on Interstate 77 in the Lake Norman area will have their first chance this weekend to test out the newly built toll lanes.