I apologize for getting this out late. Here's an update on newly filed bills and action on bills previously filed from last week.
Bills Previously Filed with Action Last Week:
HB 2, Protect Health Care Freedom (Barnhart, Stam, Hollo, Murry sponsors). This bill seeks to prevent the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (i.e., healthcare reform legislation) provision that mandates individual health insurance. It also mandates that the Attorney General shall either join or bring a lawsuit challenging this provision. The Governor vetoed this bill on Saturday. Stay tuned on whether the legislature will seek an override vote.
SB 8, No Cap on Number of Charter Schools (Stevens sponsor). This bill eliminates the existing cap of 100 charter schools and makes a number of changes to the existing statute governing charter schools. The bill was referred to the House Committee on Education last week, where it is scheduled to be heard tomorrow at 10 am.
Newly Filed Bills:
HB 223, Health Families & Workplaces/Paid Sick Days (Adams Sponsor). This legislation seeks to ensure that all workers have paid sick days for the own medical needs as well as the health needs of their family members. It was introduced in the House last week and referred to the Committee on Commerce and Job Development.
HB 229, Rural Operating Assistance Program Changes (Owens Sponsor). HB 229 will allow regional public transportation authorities, upon written agreement with the counties, to apply for Elderly and Disabled transportation and assistance funds to which the member counties are entitled to receive. The bill was filed in the House last week and referred to the House Committee on Transportation.
HB 233, Department of Correction/Ex-Offenders (Pierce, Bryant, M. Alexander, Frye Sponsors). This bill was a recommendation of the Joint Select Committee on Ex Offender Reintegration into Society. HB 233 designates the Department of Correction (DOC), Office of Research and Planning (ORP), as the single State agency responsible for the coordination and implementation of ex-offender reentry policy initiatives, including the StreetSafe Task Force, the Justice Reinvestment Initiative of the Council of State Governments (CSG), and the recommendations of the Joint Select Committee on Ex Offender Reintegration into Society. The ORP is also directed to work with local communities to form a minimum of 10 local reentry councils to supervise and coordinate innovative responses to reintegration at the local level and to use the existing services of programs, e.g., the Criminal Justice Partnership Program; and to form an advisory group that represents the population it proposes to serve, including, but not be limited to, the formerly incarcerated, people with criminal records, and at risk youth, as well as agencies that serve all of the above. The bill also directed the DOC to continue its efforts to assist offenders in successfully reentering society and to enable them to avoid further criminal behavior, including monitoring and maximizing the access to the partnerships with the Division of Motor Vehicles regarding identification cards and licenses and the community colleges regarding education and job readiness, and by maximizing work release slots for minimum custody inmates approaching release. The bill was filed in the House on March 3d and has not yet been referred to a Committee. A companion Senate bill, SB 221 (Hartsell, Dannelly, E. Jones Sponsors), was also filed in the Senate. Disability Rights NC followed the committee on Ex-Offender Reintegration and advocated for services for ex-offenders with mental illness in particular.
HB 234, Juror Qualifications/Disabilities (Glazier, S. Stevens, Parfitt, Samuelson Sponsors). HB 234 seeks to amend the current Juror Qualifications statute to remove the ability to hear as a requirement to serve as a juror. It also seeks to amend the statute regarding Requests to be Excused from Jury Duty to allow potential jurors with a disability to request to be excused if the person feels that their disability could interfere with their ability to serve as a juror. Disability Rights NC is working with the sponsors to support the bill. We believe the bill will remove a requirement from the Juror Qualification statute that is illegal under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act. The bill was filed in the House on March 3d and has not yet been referred to a committee.
HB 237, Economic Impact/Regulatory Legislation (Dollar, Rhyne, McElraft, Folwell Sponsors). HB 237 seeks to require economic impact statements on all bills that propose regulatory changes, similar to the fiscal notes that agencies prepare during rulemaking. The bill goes hand-in-hand with SB 22, APA Rules: Increasing Costs Prohibition, which seeks to curtail any state regulations that have a fiscal impact. SB 22 sets a high standard for when regulations may be promulgated for health and safety – it must be an unforeseen threat to the public health, safety, or welfare. The bill was filed in the House on March 3d and has not yet been referred to a committee.
SB 166, No Adult Left Behind (Hartsell). SB 166 seeks to establish a “No Adult Left Behind” initiative led by the Commission on Workforce Development, acting as the lead agency, geared toward achievement of major statewide workforce development goals. The goal of the Initiative is to increase the percentage of North Carolinians who earn associate degrees, other two year educational credentials, and baccalaureate degrees. The bill was filed last week and will be heard in the Senate Committee On Education/Higher Education on Wednesday at 10 am.
SB 167, Expand Capitated Waiver (Hartsell Sponsor), the Senate companion bill to HB 127, (Insko, Barnhart, Alexander Sponsors), allows DHHS to expand the 1915(b)/(c) Medicaid waiver to any additional local management entity catchment area upon demonstrating to the satisfaction of the General Assembly that the expansion (i) is allowable under Medicaid, (ii) will result in savings to the State, and (iii) will provide outcomes equal to or better than those that could be achieved without the proposed expansion. It was filed in the Senate last week and was Referred to the Senate Committee on Health Care.
SB 217, Promote Funding Availability (Hartsell, Dannelly, E. Jones Sponsors). SB 217 is another recommendation of the Joint Select Committee on Ex Offender Reintegration into Society. The bill directs the Governor's Crime Commission of the Department of Crime Control and Public Safety to increase its efforts to promote funding availability to local and nonprofit groups engaged in ex offender reintegration services based on evidence based practices, and shall establish offender reentry as a funding priority. The bill was filed in the Senate last week but has not yet been referred to a committee.
SB 219, OSP/ Hiring of Ex-Offenders (Hartsell, Dannelly, E. Jones, Ed Sponsors). SB 219 directs the Office of State Personnel to develop a protocol for State agencies to collect and track application and hiring rates of ex offenders and to develop proposed policies identifying the specific occupational categories for which a conviction is a bar to employment. The proposed policies shall require that for those occupational categories, the hiring authority may require disclosure of prior conviction on application; however, for all other occupational groups, the proposal shall provide that State hiring authorities shall not, during the hiring process, make an inquiry regarding a conviction on the initial application for employment and shall only take into consideration a conviction after the applicant has been selected as a finalist for that position. The bill has been filed in the Senate but not yet referred to a committee.
Bills Previously Filed with Action Last Week:
HB 2, Protect Health Care Freedom (Barnhart, Stam, Hollo, Murry sponsors). This bill seeks to prevent the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (i.e., healthcare reform legislation) provision that mandates individual health insurance. It also mandates that the Attorney General shall either join or bring a lawsuit challenging this provision. The Governor vetoed this bill on Saturday. Stay tuned on whether the legislature will seek an override vote.
SB 8, No Cap on Number of Charter Schools (Stevens sponsor). This bill eliminates the existing cap of 100 charter schools and makes a number of changes to the existing statute governing charter schools. The bill was referred to the House Committee on Education last week, where it is scheduled to be heard tomorrow at 10 am.
SB 22, APA Rules: Increasing Costs Prohibition (Brown, Rouzer sponsors). SB 22 seeks to limit new agency rules by amending GS 150B-19 to add that an agency may not adopt a rule that results in additional costs on persons subject to the rule unless the rule adoption is required to respond to a serious and unforeseen threat to the public health, safety, or welfare, an act of the General Assembly or United States Congress, a change in federal or State budgetary policy, a federal regulation, or a court order. The bill is now in the House and was heard in the House Agriculture/Natural Resources Committee last week. The Proposed Committee Substitute heard and approved in the House committee included language defining "substantial estimated additional costs" and added a sunset of July 1, 2012. There was ample testimony from members of the committee about concerns about this legislation. A former state health director also spoke about his concerns about limiting rulemaking related to public health, safety, or welfare only to serious and unforeseen threats. A letter from administrative law professors raising similar concerns was also mentioned during the committee hearing.
HB 223, Health Families & Workplaces/Paid Sick Days (Adams Sponsor). This legislation seeks to ensure that all workers have paid sick days for the own medical needs as well as the health needs of their family members. It was introduced in the House last week and referred to the Committee on Commerce and Job Development.
HB 229, Rural Operating Assistance Program Changes (Owens Sponsor). HB 229 will allow regional public transportation authorities, upon written agreement with the counties, to apply for Elderly and Disabled transportation and assistance funds to which the member counties are entitled to receive. The bill was filed in the House last week and referred to the House Committee on Transportation.
HB 233, Department of Correction/Ex-Offenders (Pierce, Bryant, M. Alexander, Frye Sponsors). This bill was a recommendation of the Joint Select Committee on Ex Offender Reintegration into Society. HB 233 designates the Department of Correction (DOC), Office of Research and Planning (ORP), as the single State agency responsible for the coordination and implementation of ex-offender reentry policy initiatives, including the StreetSafe Task Force, the Justice Reinvestment Initiative of the Council of State Governments (CSG), and the recommendations of the Joint Select Committee on Ex Offender Reintegration into Society. The ORP is also directed to work with local communities to form a minimum of 10 local reentry councils to supervise and coordinate innovative responses to reintegration at the local level and to use the existing services of programs, e.g., the Criminal Justice Partnership Program; and to form an advisory group that represents the population it proposes to serve, including, but not be limited to, the formerly incarcerated, people with criminal records, and at risk youth, as well as agencies that serve all of the above. The bill also directed the DOC to continue its efforts to assist offenders in successfully reentering society and to enable them to avoid further criminal behavior, including monitoring and maximizing the access to the partnerships with the Division of Motor Vehicles regarding identification cards and licenses and the community colleges regarding education and job readiness, and by maximizing work release slots for minimum custody inmates approaching release. The bill was filed in the House on March 3d and has not yet been referred to a Committee. A companion Senate bill, SB 221 (Hartsell, Dannelly, E. Jones Sponsors), was also filed in the Senate. Disability Rights NC followed the committee on Ex-Offender Reintegration and advocated for services for ex-offenders with mental illness in particular.
HB 234, Juror Qualifications/Disabilities (Glazier, S. Stevens, Parfitt, Samuelson Sponsors). HB 234 seeks to amend the current Juror Qualifications statute to remove the ability to hear as a requirement to serve as a juror. It also seeks to amend the statute regarding Requests to be Excused from Jury Duty to allow potential jurors with a disability to request to be excused if the person feels that their disability could interfere with their ability to serve as a juror. Disability Rights NC is working with the sponsors to support the bill. We believe the bill will remove a requirement from the Juror Qualification statute that is illegal under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act. The bill was filed in the House on March 3d and has not yet been referred to a committee.
HB 237, Economic Impact/Regulatory Legislation (Dollar, Rhyne, McElraft, Folwell Sponsors). HB 237 seeks to require economic impact statements on all bills that propose regulatory changes, similar to the fiscal notes that agencies prepare during rulemaking. The bill goes hand-in-hand with SB 22, APA Rules: Increasing Costs Prohibition, which seeks to curtail any state regulations that have a fiscal impact. SB 22 sets a high standard for when regulations may be promulgated for health and safety – it must be an unforeseen threat to the public health, safety, or welfare. The bill was filed in the House on March 3d and has not yet been referred to a committee.
SB 166, No Adult Left Behind (Hartsell). SB 166 seeks to establish a “No Adult Left Behind” initiative led by the Commission on Workforce Development, acting as the lead agency, geared toward achievement of major statewide workforce development goals. The goal of the Initiative is to increase the percentage of North Carolinians who earn associate degrees, other two year educational credentials, and baccalaureate degrees. The bill was filed last week and will be heard in the Senate Committee On Education/Higher Education on Wednesday at 10 am.
SB 167, Expand Capitated Waiver (Hartsell Sponsor), the Senate companion bill to HB 127, (Insko, Barnhart, Alexander Sponsors), allows DHHS to expand the 1915(b)/(c) Medicaid waiver to any additional local management entity catchment area upon demonstrating to the satisfaction of the General Assembly that the expansion (i) is allowable under Medicaid, (ii) will result in savings to the State, and (iii) will provide outcomes equal to or better than those that could be achieved without the proposed expansion. It was filed in the Senate last week and was Referred to the Senate Committee on Health Care.
SB 217, Promote Funding Availability (Hartsell, Dannelly, E. Jones Sponsors). SB 217 is another recommendation of the Joint Select Committee on Ex Offender Reintegration into Society. The bill directs the Governor's Crime Commission of the Department of Crime Control and Public Safety to increase its efforts to promote funding availability to local and nonprofit groups engaged in ex offender reintegration services based on evidence based practices, and shall establish offender reentry as a funding priority. The bill was filed in the Senate last week but has not yet been referred to a committee.
SB 219, OSP/ Hiring of Ex-Offenders (Hartsell, Dannelly, E. Jones, Ed Sponsors). SB 219 directs the Office of State Personnel to develop a protocol for State agencies to collect and track application and hiring rates of ex offenders and to develop proposed policies identifying the specific occupational categories for which a conviction is a bar to employment. The proposed policies shall require that for those occupational categories, the hiring authority may require disclosure of prior conviction on application; however, for all other occupational groups, the proposal shall provide that State hiring authorities shall not, during the hiring process, make an inquiry regarding a conviction on the initial application for employment and shall only take into consideration a conviction after the applicant has been selected as a finalist for that position. The bill has been filed in the Senate but not yet referred to a committee.
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