The Republican majority in the General Assembly engineered a legislative speed round in the short session this year, wrapping up in late June. The main action was a slate of constitutional amendments approved for referendum in the upcoming midterm elections. Designed to boost turnout among the Republican base, GOP leaders put their Democratic colleagues in a bind by forcing them to vote against such popular measures as “victims’ rights” and hunting and fishing, or play along with the game.
The other major legislation was the Farm Bill, which insulates pork protectors from nuisance lawsuits filed by neighbors who don’t want their homes fouled by the smell of pig feces. The bill passed, but prompted one GOP defection — from Rep. John Blust, who is retiring at the end of the session.
The midterm election forecasts a major shakeup in the Guilford County delegation. A court order resulted in the lines being completely redrawn, prompting Blust’s retirement. The voter mix in the new districts looks good for House incumbents Majority Whip Jon Hardister (R), John Faircloth (R), Cecil Brockman (D), Pricey Harrison (D) and Amos Quick (D), while the new District 57 favors Democrat Ashton Clemmons.
The redrawn Senate map catalyzes even more dramatic changes. Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger’s district no longer includes Guilford. And while Republican Trudy Wade and Democrat Gladys Robinson continue to hold districts 27 and 28 respectively, parts of the county will have entirely new representation. The eastern end of Guilford County has been drawn into District 24, which favors Republican incumbent Rick Gunn, and the southwest corner of High Point is now part of the new District 26, favoring Senate Majority Whip Jerry Tillman.
SEN. PHIL BERGER
(R-GUILFORD, ROCKINGHAM) DISTRICT 26
About the District: Phil Berger’s piece of the state covers the entirety of Rockingham County, with a few fingers dipping into northern Guilford. A handful of precincts carve out territory in the suburban northwest quadrant of Greensboro.
Committee assignments: Senate president pro tem; Joint Legislative Commission on Governmental Operations (chair); Legislative Services Commission (chair)
Terms: 9
Bills: 0
Highlights:
Nothing on paper this term from the senate president pro tem, but he is currently the most powerful politician in North Carolina, considering that he has a supermajority to override any veto by the governor. Compared to House Speaker Tim Moore (R-Cleveland), he has a smaller membership, so he can maintain tighter control. Most importantly, he appoints the chairman of the rules committee, who determines what legislation gets a hearing. Pretty much every piece of legislation that is enacted into law has Berger’s fingerprints on it. And everything he backs is fast-tracked — all three of his bills in the 2017-18 session passed into law.
SEN. TRUDY WADE
(R-GUILFORD), DISTRICT 27
About the district: Wade’s district begins in the northeast corner of Guilford County and wraps around Greensboro, circumventing central High Point and picking up a few Greensboro precincts in the northwest.
Committee chairs: Appropriations on Agriculture, Natural and Economic Resources (co-chair); Commerce and Insurance (co-chair)
Terms: 3
Bills: 0
Highlights: Sen. Wade kept quiet during the short session, sponsoring or co-sponsoring exactly zero bills. In the long session, two of the bills she sponsored made it into session law: the Teaching Excellence Bonus Expansion and the Veterinary Practice Omnibus Bill, a piece of signature legislation for the veterinarian that initiates a study on mixing doses of different animal pharmaceuticals, and reiterates that a ferrier — or horseshoe-fitter — is not a vet.
SEN. GLADYS ROBINSON
(D-GUILFORD), DISTRICT 28
About the district: Robinson’s minority-majority district covers about two-thirds of Greensboro and extends into central High Point.
Committee chairs: None, but she sits on Healthcare; Education/Higher Education; Finance; Health and Human Services; Appropriations on Health and Human Services; Appropriations/Base Budget; Select Committee on Nominations
Terms: 4
Bills: 4, two as primary sponsor
Highlights:
SB 809 — Greensboro Criminal Justice Advisory Committee: Still toiling in the minority party, Robinson floated this exception for the city of Greensboro to the state’s draconian policy regarding footage form police-worn body cameras. This bill allows for members of a citizens’ police review board to view “limited personnel information concerning the disposition of disciplinary charges against a police officer….”
Status: Died in committee
SB 708 — Honor NC A&T’s Championship Football Team: Sen. Robinson got exactly one bill passed in this short session: a resolution that officially congratulated the Aggies after they won the Celebration Bowl, passed during special session in February.
Status: Passed House on Feb. 8
SEN. JOYCE KRAWIEC
(R-FORSYTH, YADKIN), DISTRICT 31
About the district: D-31 covers the suburban/rural doughnut of Forsyth County, including parts of Lewisville, Clemmons and Kernersville, along with affluent, Republican-leaning neighborhoods like Buena Vista on the west side and portions of Ardmore and areas around Baptist Hospital in the southwest. The district also covers the entirety of Yadkin County.
Terms: 2.5
Committee chairs: Appropriations on Health and Human Services (co-chair); Health Care (co-chair)
Bills: 13, six as primary sponsor
Highlights:
SB 630 — Revise IVC Laws to Improve Behavioral Health: One of Kraweic’s sponsored bills that hung over from the last session was pulled from committee on June 13 and passed by June 22: a mental-health bill “pertaining to involuntary commitment in order to improve the delivery of behavioral health services in North Carolina.”
Status: Signed by Gov. Cooper on June 22
SB 750 — Health-Local Confinement/Vet. Controlled Sub.: This bill, read into session law in June 25, addresses healthcare in prisons — specifically opening it up to Medicaid funds while clarifying some responsibilities and procedures: when a prisoner dies, whether in the jail or in the hospital, it places responsibility on corrections, among other tweaks, and gives corrections officers a raise. In the outside world, it tightens regulation on prescription drugs, and adds veterinarians to the list of professions required to take continuing education on opiates.
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Roy Cooper on June 25
SB 751/HB 996 — Winston-Salem/Real Property Conveyances (with Lowe, Conrad, Hanes, Lambeth, Terry): Kraweic and her cohort in the Forsyth delegation submitted a couple of bills from the Winston-Salem wish list, one of which passed into law and one which was sent to committee. This one, subtitled “An act authorizing the city of Winston-Salem to sell real property for the purpose of increasing the supply of affordable housing for low- and moderate-income persons,” was an attempt to increase affordable-housing stock in the city.
Status: Passed House on June 7, and died in committee after being referred to Senate
SB 768 — People First Language 2018: “People first” language seems to be the accepted form of “political correctness” without arousing so much bile. The bill removes the words “mental retardation” in favor of “intellectual disability” in state code, and cleans up other antiquated language throughout.
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Roy Cooper on June 22
SEN. PAUL LOWE JR.
(D-FORSYTH), DISTRICT 32
About the district: D-32 covers almost all of Winston-Salem, with the exception of a carve-out of affluent, Republican-leaning neighborhoods like Buena Vista along the Country Club Road corridor, as well as with more liberal-leaning areas of Ardmore in the city’s southwest quadrant. The district trails Business 40 to the east and picks up the heart of Kernersville.
Terms: 1.5
Committee chairs: None
Bills: 14, two as primary sponsor
Highlights:
SB 704 — Universal Voter Registration: Thwarted in the long session, Sen. Lowe repackaged SB 646 and resubmitted it nine months later, in January. The bill provides for “automatic voter registration” at the DMV and at all state universities and community colleges, and for a marketing campaign to let voters know about it.
Status: Died in committee
SB 791 — Revise Marijuana Laws: Lowe’s pot bill allowed up to four ounces to be regarded as a misdemeanor and expunged the records of anyone arrested for holding that amount.
Status: Died in committee
SB 785 — Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Special Plate: As evidence of the powerlessness on the Democrat side of the aisle, Sen. Lowe was unable to pass a bill that created a special license plate for Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity. He was also unable to nail down a vanity plate for the Order of the Eastern Star.
Status: Died in committee
SB 806 — Up Minimum Wage with COLA/Const. Amendment: As primary sponsor, Lowe’s contribution to the slate of amendments to be added to the state constitution set the state minimum wage to $8.80/hour and pegged an annual adjustment to the consumer price index.
Status: Died in committee
SB 812 — Universal Voter Registration: Yep, Lowe filed another voter-registration bill in June, a cut-and-paste job from the ones filed in January and April 2017.
Status: Died in committee.
REP. PRICEY HARRISON
(D-GUILFORD) DISTRICT 57
About the District: Harrison’s district covers a northeastern section of Greensboro that extends in a southern arc out to Sedalia in the east.
Committee assignments: Environment (vice-chair)
Terms: 7
Bills: 62, seven as primary sponsor
Highlights:
HB 945/SB 727 — Rape Evidence Collection Kit Tracking Act: In March, the state Department of Justice released the 2017 Sexual Assault Collection Kit Law Enforcement Inventory Report, which showed there at 15,160 untested rape kits in North Carolina. This bill established a statewide sexual assault kit tracking system and requires tracking of all untested kits.
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Roy Cooper on June 25
HB 968 — Legislative Response to Emerging Contaminants: Harrison co-sponsored this bill to establish stricter requirements for dischargers of pollutants to the state’s air and water. The bill also provides more funding for the departments of Environmental Quality and Health and Health & Human Services. Lawmakers filed it on May 17, two weeks before introducing HB 1067, which makes polluters responsible for contamination financially responsible for cleanup and is also making its way through committee.
Status: Died in committee
REP. AMOS L. QUICK, III
(D-GUILFORD) DISTRICT 58
About the District: Quick’s district is predominantly black and radiates southeast from the heart of downtown Greensboro.
Committee assignments: Quick is the Democratic freshman vice-chair and he sits on committees for Appropriations; Appropriations, Capital; Commerce and Job Development; Education K-12; Homelessness, Foster Care, and Dependency; Judiciary III
Terms: 1
Bills: 20, seven as primary sponsor
Highlights:
HB 1059 — Healthy Mother & Child/Shackling Prohibition (with Brockman and Harrison): This bill would have prohibited the use of “restraints on a prisoner or detained known to be pregnant, including during labor, transport to a medical facility, delivery, postpartum recovery, and the postpartum period” except under “extraordinary circumstance.” In the case where a corrections official might make a determination to use restraints, they must use the “least restrictive manner necessary” and file written findings with a 10-day period.
Status: Died in committee
HB 1075 — Restore Teaching to an Honored Profession: If passed, this bill would require that NC A&T University is selected to participate in the North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program as one of six North Carolina institutions of higher education, would be able to issue forgivable loans to students on track to complete teacher certification. The bill would also reinstate education-based salary supplements for certain school employees, fund professional development and establish a master teacher pilot program.
Status: Referred to the Appropriations Committee on June 1, and failed to receive a hearing
REP. JON HARDISTER
(R-GUILFORD) DISTRICT 59
About the district: District 59 is the most rural district in Guilford County, covering its eastern third. In the north, it covers whiter, wealthier Greensboro neighborhoods but wraps around most of the city.
Committee assignments: Hardister is the majority whip, one of the most powerful leadership positions, and sits on Alcoholic Beverage Control (vice-chair); Appropriations (vice-chair); Appropriations, Capital (chair); Banking (vice-chair)
Terms: 3
Bills: 15, nine as primary sponsor
Highlights:
HB 1080 — Guilford County Animal Control Records (with Blust, Brockman and Quick): Lawmakers can’t introduce new legislation after a cutoff date each session but often circumvent this rule with a practice called “gut and replace” which entails replacing portions of bills that have already been through committee hearings with new language. This bill authorizes a new citizen review structure for the Greensboro Police Department at the behest of Greensboro City Council. The Greensboro Criminal Justice Advisory Commission will have access to the same confidential data about police disciplinary actions that the previous citizen review board received, but is granted a broader mandate, including working with the police department to identify concerns and opportunities for progress.
Status: Ratified into law on June 25
REP. CECIL BROCKMAN
(D-GUILFORD) DISTRICT 60
About the District: Brockman’s district covers most of the southeast quadrant of High Point, a southwest section of Greensboro and slices of a few suburban townships: Friendship, Jamestown, Morehead and Sumner.
Committee assignments: Education K-12 (vice-chair)
Terms: 2
Bills: 21, four as primary
Highlights:
HB 1044 — General Assembly/Prevent Workplace Harassment (with Quick): With women’s stories resonating with the general public in the era of #MeToo, Rep. Carla Cunningham (D-Mecklenburg) sponsored a bill on May 31 that would require the General Assembly to develop a mandatory ethics training on workplace harassment and all other forms of workplace discrimination, to adopt “effective and clear” sanction policies for harassers and develop a confidential complaint filing process for all lawmakers, officers and legislative employees. The process is currently non-confidential. All female lawmakers in the NCGA Joint Legislative Democratic Women’s Caucus sign on in support of the bill which also writes in specific protections for interns, pages and unpaid volunteers who tend to be young adults or high school students.
Status: Referred to the Committee on State and Local Government II on May 31, and failed to receive a hearing
HB 1068/SB 789 — School Performance Improvement Study Commission (with Harrison and Quick): The bill establishes a commission tasked with studying “alternative models to replace the Innovative School District as a method of improving school performance in low-performing schools.” The commission will deploy teams of “exceptional” administrators and teachers from high-performing schools to identified low-performing schools to provide consultations and team-based training. They will also use “specialized professional development programs” for teachers and administrators in identified low-performing schools.
Status: Died in committee
REP. JOHN FAIRCLOTH
(R-GUILFORD) DISTRICT 61
About the District: Faircloth’s district envelops the lower half of Brockman’s, extending from the lower half of Deep River township in the northwest to the southern border of High Point township and then east in an L-shape, containing most of Jamestown, along with unincorporated parts of the county.
Committee assignments: Appropriations (chair); Ethics (chair); House Select Committee on School Safety (vice-chair); Judiciary II (vice-chair)
Terms: 4
Bills: 19, 10 as primary sponsor
Highlights:
HB 277 — Naturopathic Study: Faircloth’s bill established a work group to make recommendations for “appropriate oversight and regulation of the practice of naturopathic medicine” in the state in an effort to protect citizens from “deception, fraud, and damage to their health status.” The NC Association of Naturopathic Physicians will select two naturopathic doctors and the NC Medical Board will select a medical doctor with knowledge of the practice to join the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services in the work group. The group is mandated to return findings and recommendations on or before Jan. 15, 2019.
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Roy Cooper on June 22
REP. JOHN M. BLUST
(R-GUILFORD) DISTRICT 62
About the District: Blust’s territory emanates from the northwest corner of Guilford County to parts of west Greensboro and north High Point.
Committee assignments: Finance (vice-chair); House Select Committee on Judicial Redistricting (vice-chair); Judiciary II (chair)
Terms: 9 (1 in Senate)
Bills: 6, four as primary sponsor
Highlights:
HB 1039 — School Self-Defense Act: On May 31, Blust introduced a bill that would allow public-school faculty and staff to carry handguns on school grounds in order to respond to “acts of violence or an imminent threat of violence” so long as those employees comply with several criteria such as completing 16 training hours and a maintaining a concealed carry permit. The bill would set aside $500,000 to establish a School Faculty Guardian program responsible for active shooter trainings. Any school could opt out of this state allowance.
Status: Died in committee
REP. EVELYN TERRY
(D-FORSYTH) DISTRICT 71
About the district: D-71 is centered in the southeast quadrant of Winston-Salem, but also covers downtown. It includes Winston-Salem State University, Salem College and the UNC School of the Arts. The district includes a narrow, westward corridor hugging Business 40 that reaches to Hanes Mall Boulevard.
Committee assignments: Homelessness, Foster Care and Dependency (vice-chair)
Terms: 3
Bills: 21, four as primary sponsor
Highlights:
HB 1072/SB 782 — NC Adopt Equal Rights Amendment/Funds (with Harrison): Would ratify the Equal Rights Amendment to the Constitution, holding: “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex. The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.”
Status: Died in committee.
REP. ED HANES
(D-FORSYTH) DISTRICT 72
About the district: Covering the northern urban portion of Winston-Salem, D-72 is bisected by University Parkway, a de facto racial and economic dividing line in the city. The district includes Smith Reynolds Airport and Wake Forest University.
Committee assignments: Energy and Public Utilities (vice-chair)
Terms: 3
Bills: 21, five as primary sponsor
Highlights:
HB 1030 — UNC-Chapel Hill/Monument Relocation (with Harrison): Hanes isn’t a primary sponsor on this bill; he and Rep. Pricey Harrison, a fellow Democrat in Guilford County, are cosponsors. Even so, his role in his ill-fated legislation bears mention. After the violent Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, calls for the removal of the Confederate “Silent Sam” monument on the campus of UNC-Chapel Hill escalated. The monument is a flashpoint of political tension: In February, a group of anonymous faculty members threatened to take it down, evoking the specter of a similar direct action in Durham. And in late April, doctoral student Maya Little dumped red ink mixed with her own blood on the monument, drawing death threats. Notably, Silent Sam is not subject to a pending decision by the Confederate Monuments Study Committee on the fate of three monuments on the State Capitol grounds. HB 1030 could have potentially defused a volatile issue, authorizing UNC-Chapel Hill Chancellor Carol Folt to temporarily relocated the monument to an indoor site on campus and eventually move it to a new, permanent site.
Status: Died in committee
HB 1048 — Require Equal Access to Advanced Classes: Requires public schools to provide access to advanced classes for all students who score Level 5 on end-of-grade tests in third through seventh grades.
Status: Died in committee.
REP. DEBRA CONRAD
(R-FORSYTH) DISTRICT 74
About the district: D-74 covers the northern suburban-rural doughnut of Forsyth County, including Tobaccoville, Rural Hall and Belews Creek. The district reaches a finger into affluent, Republican-leaning areas on the west side of Winston-Salem south of Robinhood Road.
Committee assignments: Commerce and Job Development (chair); Education — K-12 (chair); Appropriations, Education (vice-chair)
Terms: 3
Bills: 35, 13 as primary sponsor
Highlights:
HB 1057 — Dissolve Airport Commission of Forsyth County (with Hanes, Lambeth and Terry): Authorizes the Forsyth County Commission to restructure the Airport Commission of Forsyth County.
Status: Ratified and enacted as law on June 27.
HB 646 — Amend PED Statutes (with Faircloth, Harrison): Clarifies state law to make it understood that the Program Evaluation Division of the Legislative Services Commission has the authority to evaluate nonprofits that receive state funds.
Status: Became law without Gov. Roy Cooper’s signature on June 26
HR 1102 — Study Best Practice/Advanced Ed Opportunities (with Hanes): Establishes a House study committee “for promoting access to advanced educational opportunity in our public schools for economically disadvantaged students who demonstrate high academic achievement.”
Status: Adopted by House on June 28
HB 978/SB 749 — Powell Bill for Parks/Tobaccoville (with Krawiec): Would authorize the use of federal funds for the village of Tobaccoville to use for the planning, construction and maintenance of parks and recreation facilities.
Status: Died in committee
REP. DONNY LAMBETH
(R-FORSYTH) DISTRICT 75
About the district: D-75 covers much of the southern suburban-rural doughnut of Forsyth County, including Clemmons and a wide swatch of the county’s southeast corner that also covers outlying areas of Kernersville. The district also includes a finger that reaches into Winston-Salem from the southwest, covering Hanes Mall and the Ardmore neighborhood.
Committee assignments: Appropriations (chair); Health (chair); Health Care Reform (chair); Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Health and Human Services (chair); Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Medicaid and NC Health Choice (chair)
Terms: 3
Bills: 25, 16 as primary sponsor
Highlights:
HB 403 — Medicaid and Behavioral Health Modifications: Modifies the state Medicaid program, including making provisions for a prepaid health plan for individuals with behavioral health challenges or intellectual developmental disabilities.
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Roy Cooper
HB 651 — State Pension/Ret. Health Ben. Fund Solvency: Establishes an unfunded liability solvency reserve.
Status: Signed into law by Gov. Roy Cooper on June 22
HB 1045 — Health-Local Confinement/Prison HealthConnex: Amends state law to require local jails to notify the medical examiner and coroner when an inmate in its custody dies, regardless of the physical location of the inmate at the time of death, and requires the jail administrator to file a report with the state Department of Health and Human Services. Currently, the law only requires notification if the inmate dies in the jail. If such a law were in place in 2014, the Forsyth County jail would have been required to report the death of Jen McCormack, an inmate who died after being rushed to Baptist Hospital.
Status: Died in committee after favorable hearing before the Health Committee, which Lambeth chairs, on May 31.
REP. JULIA HOWARD
(R-FORSYTH, DAVIE) DISTRICT 79
About the district: D-79 includes the western tip of Forsyth County, including Lewisville, along with the entirety of Davie County.
Committee assignments: Banking (chair); Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Unemployment Insurance (chair)
Terms: 15
Bills: 14, five as primary sponsor
Highlights:
HB 931/SB 717 — UI Technical Changes: Makes technical changes to the state’s unemployment insurance law.
Status update: Signed into law by Gov. Roy Cooper on June 25
HB 1003 — Hunt or Trap Fox/Coyote Forsyth/Davie (with Conrad, Lambeth): Would establish open season on foxes and coyotes with weapons and traps in Davie County and portions of Forsyth County outside Winston-Salem.
Status: Died in committee.
Major legislation of 2018
- NC Farm Act of 2018 (SB 711)
Sen. Brent Jackson, a Republican lawmaker from Sampson County, filed SB 711 to insulate North Carolina hog farmers against nuisance lawsuits filed by neighboring property owners in reaction to a federal court judgment against Smithfield Foods and a hog farm operated by Murphy-Brown LLC. The bill prompted impassioned protests by Rep. John Blust (R-Guilford) and Rep. Billy Richardson (D-Cumberland). Gov. Roy Cooper vetoed the legislation, writing, “North Carolina’s nuisance laws can help allow generations of families to enjoy their homes and lands without fear for their health and safety. Those same laws stopped the Tennessee Valley Authority from pumping air pollution into our mountains.” Cooper continued, “Our laws must balance the needs of businesses versus property rights. Giving one industry special treatment at the expense of its neighbors is unfair.” The bill became law on June 27 after the General Assembly overrode the governor’s veto.
How they voted:
Yes: Sen. Phil Berger (R-Guilford), Sen. Joyce Krawiec (R-Forsyth), Sen. Trudy Wade (R-Guilford), Rep. Debra Conrad (R-Forsyth), Rep. John Faircloth (R-Guilford), Rep. Jon Hardister (R-Guilford), Rep. Julia Howard (R-Forsyth), Rep. Donny Lambeth (R-Forsyth)
No: Sen. Paul Lowe (D-Forsyth), Rep. John Blust (R-Guilford), Rep. Cecil Brockman (D-Guilford), Rep. Ed Hanes (D-Forsyth), Rep. Pricey Harrison (D-Guilford), Rep. Amos Quick (D-Guilford)
Excused absence: Sen. Gladys Robinson (D-Guilford)
2. Constitutional amendment requiring voter ID (HB 1092)
HB 1092 allows North Carolina voters to decide by referendum in November whether to amend the state constitution to require that voters present photo ID before voting. Voter ID was part of the omnibus election law passed in 2013, which was later struck down by the federal courts in a ruling that accused state lawmakers of “target[ing] African Americans with almost surgical precision.”
How they voted:
Yes: Sen. Phil Berger (R-Guilford), Sen. Joyce Krawiec (R-Forsyth), Sen. Trudy Wade (R-Guilford), Rep. John Blust (R-Guilford), Rep. John Faircloth (R-Guilford), Rep. Jon Hardister (R-Guilford), Rep. Julia Howard (R-Forsyth), Rep. Debra Conrad (R-Forsyth), Rep. Donny Lambeth (R-Forsyth)
No: Sen. Paul Lowe (D-Forsyth), Rep. Cecil Brockman (D-Guilford), Rep. Ed Hanes (D-Forsyth), Rep. Pricey Harrison (D-Guilford), Rep. Amos Quick (D-Guilford), Rep. Evelyn Terry (D-Forsyth)
Excused absence: Sen. Gladys Robinson (D-Guilford)
3. Constitutional amendment enshrining right to hunt and fish (SB 677)
You got that right: The General Assembly is putting a constitutional amendment before voters to determine whether the state constitution should guarantee the right to hunt, fish and harvest wildlife (“subject only to laws enacted by the General Assembly and rules adopted pursuant to authority granted by the General Assembly…”). In other words: Feds, butt out. Bet you didn’t know the right to hunt was imperiled. This is pretty much designed to try to goose the Republican base turnout in November to mitigate the damage from a feared blue wave.
How they voted:
Yes: Sen. Phil Berger (R-Guilford), Sen. Joyce Krawiec (R-Forsyth), Sen. Trudy Wade (R-Guilford), Sen. Paul Lowe (D-Forsyth), Rep. John Blust (R-Guilford), Rep. Cecil Brockman (D-Guilford), Rep. Debra Conrad (R-Forsyth), Rep. John Faircloth (R-Guilford), Rep. Ed Hanes (D-Forsyth), Rep. Jon Hardister (R-Guilford), Rep. Julia Howard (R-Forsyth), Rep. Donny Lambeth (R-Forsyth), Rep. Amos Quick (D-Guilford)
No: Sen. Gladys Robinson (D-Guilford), Rep. Pricey Harrison (D-Guilford)
4. Constitutional amendment capping the state income tax at 7 percent (SB 75)
The ballot measure fulfills a Republican goal of constraining spending and limiting the size of state government.
How they voted:
Yes: Sen. Phil Berger (R-Guilford), Sen. Joyce Krawiec (R-Forsyth), Sen. Trudy Wade (R-Guilford), Rep. John Blust (R-Guilford), Rep. Debra Conrad (R-Forsyth), Rep. John Faircloth (R-Guilford), Rep. Jon Hardister (R-Guilford), Rep. Julia Howard (R-Forsyth), Rep. Donny Lambeth (R-Forsyth)
No: Sen. Paul Lowe (D-Forsyth), Sen. Gladys Robinson (D-Guilford), Rep. Cecil Brockman (D-Guilford), Rep. Ed Hanes (D-Forsyth), Rep. Pricey Harrison (D-Harrison), Rep. Amos Quick (D-Guilford), Rep. Evelyn Terry (D-Forsyth)
5. Constitutional amendment establishing Board of Ethics and Election Enforcement (HB 913)
The ballot measure would create the equivalent of a state board of elections with eight members, with no more than four from any one political party. Four members would be appointed by the House and four from the Senate. The governor has traditionally determined the balance of power on the state board of elections. Coming after Democrat Roy Cooper’s arrival at the Executive Mansion in 2017, the amendment represents a power grab by the Republican-controlled General Assembly.
How they voted:
Yes: Sen. Phil Berger (R-Guilford), Sen. Joyce Krawiec (R-Forsyth), Sen. Trudy Wade (R-Guilford), Rep. John Blust (R-Guilford), Rep. Debra Conrad (R-Forsyth), Rep. John Faircloth (R-Guilford), Rep. Jon Hardister (R-Guilford), Rep. Julia Howard (R-Forsyth), Rep. Donny Lambeth (R-Forsyth)
No: Sen. Paul Lowe (D-Forsyth), Rep. Cecil Brockman (D-Guilford), Rep. Ed Hanes (D-Forsyth), Rep. Pricey Harrison (D-Harrison), Rep. Amos Quick (D-Guilford), Rep. Evelyn Terry (D-Forsyth)
Excused absence: Sen. Gladys Robinson (D-Guilford)
6. Constitutional amendment to strengthen victims’ rights (HB 551)
The ballot measure would amend a section of the state constitution outlining the rights of victims of crime. As an example of the kind of tweaking the amendment undertakes, a victim’s “right as prescribed by law to be informed of and to be present at court proceedings of the accused” is replaced with the “right, upon request, to reasonable and timely notice of all criminal and juvenile proceedings.” Similar to the ballot initiative enshrining the right to hunt and fish, the “victim’s rights” amendment seems designed to encourage turnout by a key GOP constituency through an appeal to “law and order.”
How they voted:
Yes: Sen. Phil Berger (R-Guilford), Sen. Joyce Krawiec (R-Forsyth), Sen. Paul Lowe (D-Forsyth), Sen. Gladys Robinson (D-Guilford), Sen. Trudy Wade (R-Guilford), Rep. Cecil Brockman (D-Guilford), Rep. Debra Conrad (R-Forsyth), Rep. John Faircloth (R-Guilford), Rep. Jon Hardister (R-Guilford), Rep. Julia Howard (R-Forsyth), Rep. Donny Lambeth (R-Forsyth), Rep. Amos Quick (D-Guilford)
No: Rep. Pricey Harrison (D-Guilford), Rep. Evelyn Terry (D-Forsyth)
Not voting: Rep. John Blust (R-Guilford), Rep. Ed Hanes (R-Forsyth)
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