Pardon Our Dust
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Agriculture
THE CAROLINA JOURNAL: U.S. Appeals Court upholds union restrictions in 2017 N.C. Farm Act
The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled in favor of provisions in North Carolina’s 2017 Farm Act dealing with labor unions. Judges ruled the state can ban lawsuit settlements that force farm owners to recognize unions and collect their dues.
Economic Development
WRAL TECH WIRE: NC business recruiters aim for record 100k jobs, $112B in investment for 2023
To say 2023 could be a sensational one for North Carolina’s economy business recruiting is not an exaggeration. No brag, just potential fact. So says Christopher Chung, head of the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina.
TRIANGLE BUSINESS JOURNAL: VinFast, Wolfspeed dominate Triangle’s economic development news
2022 was the year of the mammoth project in the Triangle. But it remains to been seen if the transformative projects will come to fruition with thousands of new jobs.
Education
THE CAROLINA JOURNAL: School choice in N.C. set to continue significant growth in 2023
The rapid growth of school choice options brought on by the pandemic shows no signs of letting up as the calendar turns over to 2023. Recent statistics show that for the 2021-2022 school year, there were 115,311 students enrolled in K-12 private schools, 160,528 in homeschools, and another 132,909 enrolled in public charter schools.
NORTH STATE JOURNAL: Leandro, learning loss, masks, safety: North Carolina K-12 year in review
Over the course of 2022, K-12 public education was marked by fights over required masking, continued protests over inappropriate materials, plummeting test scores, the flipping of school boards in the general election, and multiple movements to revamp state education policy.
Energy
THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER: Duke Energy had problem with power source equipment pre-blackout, officials confirm
Before rolling blackouts across the Carolinas on Christmas Eve, some equipment that Duke Energy relies on to generate power for millions either stopped producing energy or produced less than expected, officials have confirmed.
Government
WCNC: These NC laws go into effect on Jan. 1, 2023
People across the Carolinas are ringing in the new year this weekend and looking ahead to what’s to come in 2023. With the new year comes new laws in North Carolina that go into effect on Jan. 1.
AP NEWS: New rules to extend North Carolina emergencies begin in 2023
The new year will place new hurdles in the path of North Carolina’s current and future governors before states of emergency they issue can extend into months or even years, as happened during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Healthcare
NORTH CAROLINA HEALTH NEWS: What’s coming in 2023 in NC’s health care scene? Here’s what we’ll be tracking.
This year will be the first legislative “long session” since 2019 that won’t feature heavy reliance on video hearings and remote work as the pandemic recedes from people’s lists of concerns. The General Assembly will return in mid-January to swear in dozens of new representatives and senators. Then they’ll leave town and won’t return until several weeks later when they’ll really knuckle down to work until midsummer.
WFAE: COVID-19 hospitalization levels for NC’s oldest old exceed pre-vaccine period
During the first week of December, hospitals were once again admitting hundreds of North Carolinians for COVID-19 and other respiratory diseases. But while much of the media coverage has focused on pitiable small children coughing and struggling for air, it turns out many of the new admissions have really white hair: Nearly three in 10 of those being checked into hospitals were older than 80.
TRIANGLE BUSINESS JOURNAL: NC’s debate over Medicaid expansion, CON reform enters new stage
North Carolina’s slow crawl toward Medicaid expansion made progress in 2023. But barriers remain, and a big one has to do with how health care systems are managed by the state.
Politics
WRAL: Slimmer margins, new faces likely to affect NC lawmakers’ 2023 agenda
The new session of the state legislature gets underway this month, and it’s likely to bring more proposals on culture-war issues than we’ve seen in the last few years. Several new lawmakers could make some old battles less partisan this session.
AP NEWS: AG: Meadows won’t face voter fraud charges in North Carolina
Mark Meadows, the former White House chief of staff to President Donald Trump, won’t face voter fraud charges related to his 2020 registration and absentee vote in North Carolina, the state’s attorney general announced Friday.
SPECTRUM NEWS: N.C.’s new members of Congress will be sworn in Jan. 3; here’s who they are
There will be a lot of fresh faces in North Carolina’s Congressional delegation starting in 2023. Longtime Reps. G. K. Butterfield and David Price, along with Sen. Richard Burr, are retiring. Rep. Ted Budd will now be Sen. Budd when the newest members of the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives are sworn in Jan. 3.
Technology
THE CAROLINA JOURNAL: State reps ask Cooper to ban TikTok from N.C. government devices
Two Republican state representatives are asking Gov. Roy Cooper to issue an executive order targeting TikTok. A Dec. 28 letter to Cooper seeks an executive order banning the popular social media platform from government devices.
Transportation
NEUSE NEWS: NCDOT Accomplishments Cover Land, Sea, Air
The N.C. Department of Transportation accomplished feats in 2022 that will improve the lives of North Carolinians and visitors to our state for decades to come.
As the state, nation and the world emerged from the pandemic, NCDOT resumed its place as a national leader with its transportation projects, initiatives, and campaigns.
WRAL: NC drivers to spend more on gas in 2023 under new tax rate
The new year means new tax rates. For North Carolina drivers, that will mean higher gas prices. The state’s gas tax will go up 2 cents, starting on Sunday, Jan.1.