NC Rep. Harry Warren: This Week in Raleigh

NC Rep. Harry Warren

♦ Almost all General Assembly activity froze in place last week in Raleigh, as ice, snow and below freezing temperatures forced the cancellation of almost all committee meetings, furloughed some staff and forced skeletal sessions in the House and Senate.  A few members came in for one thing or another, then returned home; fewer still were here for the entire week. Although it was announced last week that Monday’s session would be a “no vote” session, I still went to Raleigh as I had meetings scheduled each day with staff attorneys and “stakeholders” pertaining to several bills that I am currently working on and preparing for submission.

This past week I filed House Bill 90 School Calendar Flexibility/Rowan County(http://www.ncleg.net/Sessions/2015/Bills/House/PDF/H90v1.pdf). This is a local bill that would give the Rowan Salisbury School System the flexibility to set their own school calendar start and end dates. As a local bill, this would not require the Governor’s signature; it would only require passage through the House and the Senate to become law. While I have no doubt that I will be able to advance it through the House, the Senate may prove difficult as the Senate has historically snubbed all bills, local and public, that seek to give LEAs responsibility for their own calendar. Nevertheless, we shall give it a go and see what we can get done! Nothing ventured, nothing gained!

Other bills that I am a Primary Sponsor of are:

H22 (=S15) Enhance Unemployment Insurance Program Integrity and Reporting – This bill seeks to ensure the UI program integrity in regards to reporting procedures.

http://www.ncleg.net/gascripts/BillLookUp/BillLookUp.pl?Session=2015&BillID=H22

H23 (= S17) DES Board of Review

http://www.ncleg.net/gascripts/BillLookUp/BillLookUp.pl?Session=2015&BillID=H23 This bill staggers the terms of the three members appointed to the Unemployment Commissions Board of  Review. The Governor’s only Veto last year was a bill that contained a similar provision in it regarding the appointment to the Board. This one is slightly different and hopefully, the Governor will appreciate the bill a little more.

H24 (= S16) Unemployment Insurance Law Change

http://www.ncleg.net/gascripts/BillLookUp/BillLookUp.pl?Session=2015&BillID=H24 This bill makes several important and significant changes to the U.I. program. Several of the new provisions will:

1. a)Require that an applicant provide a photo ID when applying for benefits
2. b)Change the duration of benefits from a minimum of 5 up to 20 weeks to a minimum of 12 weeks to 20 weeks, based on the State’s unemployment rate
3. c)Permit the DES to garnish an employer’s credit card receipts for unpaid taxes
4. d)Requires the Department of Motor Vehicles to share certain information with the Department of Employment Services

As I mentioned, I am working on several other bills and will be sharing them with you as they become ready to file.

Special Notice

I will be holding my first Town Hall meeting of this session on Friday, February 27^th from6:00pm to 7:00pm at the County Commissioner’s Chambers, located at 130 West Innes Street in downtown Salisbury. These non-partisan events are held monthly to report back to you and to hear from you. If you can work it into your schedule, I would love to see you there. Representative Carl Ford is scheduled to join me and will be extending an invitation to his constituents in District 76.

The following is a report of the past week by the NCACC  (North Carolina Association of County Commissioners), reprinted with their permission:

Legislature on ice after winter stormA winter storm that dropped a significant amount of ice and snow throughout North Carolina on Monday and Tuesday put a severe freeze on activity at the General Assembly this week. Only seven bills were filed in the House, including two more local school calendar bills, and 20 bills were filed in the Senate this week.

The weather limited both chambers to mostly non-voting sessions, and while Joint Appropriations committees and policy committees were scheduled to meet throughout the week, most were cancelled due to the weather. On Thursday the Senate did take a final vote on S15 (Unemployment Insurance Law Changes), passing the bill 40-6. The bill makes several changes to the laws regarding unemployment insurance (UI) benefits and contains much of the same language that was approved by the General Assembly last year and then vetoed by Governor Pat McCrory. The bill is now in the House and has not yet been referred to a House committee.

Barring additional weather delays, the General Assembly should pick up activity next week. The House returns Monday at 1:00pm while the Senate reconvenes at 4:00pm on Tuesday.  Joint Appropriations committees will continue discussing budgetary items and policy committees will begin debating substantive legislation.

House makes changes to S14On Wednesday, the House Appropriations committee approved several amendments to S14 (Acad. Standards/Rules Review/Coal Ash/Funds), a Senate bill that directs or reallocates funds for various programs and issues that began in the last legislative session. The bill reallocates $100,000 from the Department of Public Instruction to the Office of Administrative Hearings for a State Board of Education lawsuit against the State’s Rules Review Commission. The bill also allocates $275,000 for the Academic Standards Review Commission and $630,000 to the Department of Public Safety to support the Coal Ash Management Commission as part of last session’s Coal Ash Management Act.

The House added funds for the State’s Health Information Exchange for providers and a provision giving the Department of Public Instruction flexibility in reallocating the Board of Education’s lawsuit funds. The House changes also clarify and extend the hazardous dam inspection process under the Coal Ash Management Act and allow State officers to serve on the governing board for the State’s new Economic Development Partnership. The bill is scheduled to be considered on the House floor next Tuesday.

Here is a recap of last week, as summarized by the MVA Public Affairs NC Legislative Update. This will include links to some current stories that you might have missed and a complete list of committee meetings scheduled for this week and for the near future.

Committee meetings are open to the public, so if you would like to attend one that is focusing on a subject of interest to you, feel welcome to attend. Meeting schedules are subject to change (sometimes at the last minute), so be sure to confirm the schedule on the General Assembly website or by contacting the office of the Committee Chair, before you make the two hour drive to Raleigh. If you would like to attend a meeting, but can’t make it to Raleigh, you can still “attend” many of the meetings by listening online.  You must first determine in what room the committee is meeting.  If the committee meets in either room 544 or 643, you can listen online.  To access the audio version of a meeting, go to: www.ncleg.net, click on “audio” on the bar near the top, then select either “Finance Committee Room (Room 544)” or “Appropriations Committee Room (Room 643)” to listen.

ON THE FLOOR

This week, the Senate passed S15, Unemployment Insurance Law Changes.

COMMITTEES

Senate Workforce and Economic Development Committee

The Committee met on Wednesday, February 18th.  The Legislative Program Evaluation Division gave a status update on the implementation of reform efforts to the workforce development system. The system is comprised of 17 programs administered by various state agencies. These include programs such as employment services, technical and vocational education. Members also received a presentation on the structure, organization and operation of independent occupational licensing agencies. The Committee will meet again on Wednesday, February 25th at 1:00pm.

House Appropriations Committee

The Committee met on Wednesday, February 18th and approved S14, Acad. Standards/Rules Review/Coal Ash/Funds.  The bill makes funds available to cover litigation expenses of the Rules Review Commission, makes funds available to fund the operations of the Academic Standards Review Commission, and clarifies the appropriation of funds from the Coal Combustion Residuals Management Fund.  Four amendments were adopted by the Committee making technical corrections, loosening some restrictions on non-coal-ash impoundments, allowing joint appointments to the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina board and other State boards and commissions, and releasing funding for the Health Information Exchange.

IN THE NEWS

Charlotte Observer: American Airlines: Fuel tax break a top priority

Raleigh News & Observer: NC iCenter wins Harvard nod

Charlotte Observer: VP Joe Biden and DOT chief Anthony Foxx push transportation proposal

Triangle Business Journal: Film execs: We need to increase the film grant in North Carolina

Raleigh News & Observer / Charlotte Observer: Criminal charges in spills to cost Duke Energy $100 million

Raleigh News & Observer: NC House committee OKs funding bill

WRAL: Coleman, Forest to run again for lieutenant governor

Raleigh News & Observer: Sen. Tamara Barringer of Cary considering run for statewide office in NC

CALENDAR

Thank you for the opportunity to represent you in Raleigh and for the privilege of working on your behalf for the betterment of North Carolina for us, our children and the future.

Harry

Representative Harry Warren

N.C. House of Representatives

District 77, Rowan County

611 Legislative Office Building

Raleigh, North Carolina 27603

(919) 733-5784

Harry.Warren@ncleg.net