Legislative Update for the Week of February 18

Budget Update

Joint Appropriations subcommittees continued to meet this week to review matters pertaining to their portion of the budget.  In Health and Human Services, the committee heard from a number of non-profits receiving state funding, including the Autism Society and Easter Seals UCP.  Justice and Public Safety heard reports pertaining to the Department of Justice, including legal services generally, the Medicaid Fraud unit, and the Justice Reinvestment Act.  The Education subcommittee also reviewed basic budget information including the Children with Disabilities headcount (online here) and charter school data, which includes percentage of children with disabilities by school (online here).

 Bill Updates

 HB 5, Temporary Funding/Group Homes and Special Care Units (Dollar, Burr).  HB 5 allows individuals in group homes who are no eligible for Personal Care Services due to the change in law and individuals in Special Care Units who have reduced Personal Care Services due to the change in law to access the $39.7 mil allocated in last year’s budget for residents of Adult Care Homes who lost Personal Care Services due to the eligibility changes.  It was approved by the Senate Appropriations committee and the full Senate this week.  The bill will now proceed back to the House for a concurrence vote due to changes to the bill that were made in the Senate.

HB 29, Methemphetamine/Offense/Penalties (Horn, Faircloth, Tolson, Stevens).  HB 29 provides enhanced penalties for the offense of manufacturing methamphetamine when a child, person with a disability or elder resides or was present at the property used for the manufacturing.  HB 29 was approved by the full House this week.  It will next be considered by the full Senate, where it has been referred to the Senate Judiciary I committee.

SB 4, No NC Exchange/No Medicaid Expansion (Apodaca, Brown, Rucho).  SB 4 seeks to prohibit Medicaid expansion and a state-federal partnership health benefit exchange.  The Senate voted this week not to concur with the House changes made to SB 4.  The bill has been referred to a conference committee of Sens. Apodaca, Rucho, Hise and Brown, and Reps. Burr, Dollar, Avila and Brisson.

SB 14, Increase Access to Career/Technical Education (Tillman, Brown, Soucek).  SB 14 establishes (i) college, (ii) career, and (iii) college and career endorsements to high school diplomas to encourage students to obtain requisite job skills and to reduce the need for remedial education in institutions of higher education. These endorsements shall reflect courses completed, overall grade point average, and other criteria as developed by the State Board of Education.  SB 14 also directs the State Board of Education to identify schools with unmet recruitment needs for career and technical education teachers and to coordinate placement of NC Teacher Corps members in those schools.  The bill was the first bill signed into law this session, SL 2013-1.

New Legislation Filed This Week

HB 109, Require Safety Helmets/18 & Under (Torbett, Speciale).  HB 109 seeks to eliminate the requirements of a safety helmet for adults on a motorcycle if (1) the operator has held a motorcycle license for more than 12 months or successfully completed the course of instruction offered by the Motorcycle Safety Instruction Program; and (2) is covered by an insurance policy providing for at least $10,000 in medical benefits for injuries incurred as a result of a crash while operating or riding on a motorcycle.  The bill would also allow adult passengers to ride without a helmet if the operator meets the above requirements and the passenger has at least $10,000 in medical benefits for injuries incurred as a result of a crash while riding on a motorcycle.  It has been referred to the House Transportation committee, and the Judiciary B subcommittee if favorable.

HB 120, Building Inspections/Local Consistency (Hager, W. Brawley, Cotham, Arp)/SB 108 (Apodaca, Hunt, Ford).  HB 120 would require approval from the NC Building Code Council before a unit of local government can require building inspections of One- and Two-Family dwellings in addition to those required by the Building Code and also specifies the frequency and effective dates of Code updates.  The bill specifies that the Building Code Council shall review all applications and approve or disapprove in a timely manner but it does not dictate any guidelines upon which such decisions should be made.

HB130, Mental Health Workers’ Bill of Rights (Bell).  HB 130 contains language from bills filed in past sessions and seeks to enact a bill of rights in Chapter 122C for mental health workers.  It has been referred to the House Health and Human Services committee.

SB125, Public Meetings/Records Laws Violations (Goolsby, Apodaca).  SB 125 would make violations of the public records and open meetings laws a Class 3 misdemeanor. It was filed in the Senate on Thursday and has not yet been referred to committee.

 

Legislative Update for the Week of February 11

Budget Update

Joint Appropriations subcommittees met this week to give an overview of the budget process and background for new members. The HHS subcommittee meetings were the most eventful, with Secretary Wos presenting on Wednesday, and State Auditor Beth Wood presenting on Thursday on the Medicaid audit.  Handouts are online.  The committees were given a calendar that projects a Governor's budget by March 18; Senate budget consideration from April 15 - 30, with votes the week of May 6; House budget consideration from May 13-24, with votes the week of May 27; and a final budget passed by June 13 after conference consideration the first two weeks of June.  The subcommittees will meet next week to hear reports on non-profits funded through the state budget.

Bill Updates

HB 4 (Howard, Warren, Starnes, Setzer), Unemployment Insurance Fund Solvency and Program Changes.  HB 4 modifies the state's Unemployment Insurance program to reduce the amount of benefits and length of time that benefits are available to the state's unemployed; and to remove a number of good cause qualifications for benefits, including provisions that allow for benefits when an individual must leave employment because of disability or other health concern; disability or health concern of a minor child, aged or disabled parent, or disabled immediate family member; or inability to accept work during a particular shift because of concerns related to child care, elder care, or care of a disabled family member. HB 4 cleared the legislature this week and has been sent to the Governor for his signature.

HB 74 (Murry, Moffitt, Samuelson, Bryan), Periodic Review and Expiration of Rules will provide for automatic expiration for all rules unless re-adopted within ten years after effective dates. The bill proposes expiration dates per title of the Administrative Code during 2016-2019 for existing rules. HB 74 was discussed but not voted upon in the House Regulatory Reform committee last week.  Reps. Murry and Samuelson presented the bill, stating that the bill was intentionally broad but they are taking suggestions and are open to ways to improve the bill.  One suggestion was to allow members of the public to flag rules for review, with the intent of narrowing the number of rules to be reviewed upfront.

SB 4, No NC Exchange/No Medicaid Expansion (Apodaca, Brown, Rucho).  SB 4 seeks to prohibit Medicaid expansion and a state-federal partnership health benefit exchange.  SB 4 was approved by the House Health and Human Services committee and the full House last week.  Rep. Lewis (R-Harnett) joined a unanimous group of House Democrats in voting against the bill.  The bill now returns to the Senate for a concurrence vote due to minor changes in the language, and then will be on to the Governor for his signature.

New Legislation Filed This Week

HB 99, Caregiver Relief Act (Adams, Hall).  The Caregiver Relief Act would extend protections and leave under the Family Medical and Leave Act to eligible employees to care for a sibling, grandparent, grandchild, stepparent, or parent‑in‑law.  It has been referred to the House HHS committee, Judiciary and then Appropriations.

HB 100, Healthy Family & Workplaces/Paid Sick Days (Adams, Hall).  This legislation would provide for paid sick days for all employees.  It has been referred to the House Commerce committee, and then to Judiciary.

HB 102, Online Voter Registration (Alexander).  HB 102 would add a fillable online form for voter registration in NC.  It has been referred to the House Elections committee, and then Appropriations.

SB 91, Prohibit Expunction Inquiry (Daniel, Goolsby, Kinnaird).  SB 91 would prohibit an employer or educational institution from requiring an applicant for employment or admission to disclose information concerning any arrest, criminal charge, or criminal conviction of the applicant that has been expunged. It has been referred to the Senate Judiciary II committee.

Legislative Update for the Week of February 2

Week 2 of the 2013 session was another active week at the General Assembly.  Joint Appropriations meetings were held this week to hear a report on projected revenues and a brief overview of state budget allocations.  Appropriation subcommittees (i.e., HHS, JPS, Education, etc.) will start meeting next week to hear from the departments and to give members an overview of past budget allocations.  However, we don't expect to see an actual budget from the Senate (they get the first crack this year) until after April 15.

Unemployment Insurance and (No) Medicaid Expansion continued to make their way through the legislature this week.  Both are scheduled for votes next week. Also set for February 18: The Governor will give the state of the state address.

Bill Updates

HB 4 (Howard, Warren, Starnes, Setzer), Unemployment Insurance Fund Solvency and Program Changes.  HB 4 modifies the state's Unemployment Insurance program to reduce the amount of benefits and length of time that benefits are available to the state's unemployed.  It also removes a number of good cause qualifications for benefits that exist under the current state law, including provisions that allow for benefits when an individual must leave employment because of disability or other health concern; disability or health concern of a minor child, aged or disabled parent, or disabled immediate family member; or inability to accept work during a particular shift because of concerns related to child care, elder care, or care of a disabled family member. HB 4 was approved by the full House and the Senate Finance committee this week.  It is worth noting that Representative Glazier moved to to amend the bill on the House floor to continue the good cause qualifications based on disability or sickness and family hardship.  Although the Amendment failed, four Republican Representatives (Arp, Blust, Catlin and Jordan) joined all but one Democrat in voting for the amendment.  The bill is expected to be approved by the Senate next week.

HB 5 (Dollar, Burr), Temporary Funding Extension for Group Homes, allows group homes to access the $39.7 million allocated in the state budget for temporary, short‑term financial assistance to Adult Care Homes on behalf of a resident who loses eligibility for Medicaid covered personal care services (PCS) after an independent assessment.  HB 5 passed the House unanimously last week but remains in the Appropriations committee in the Senate.

HB 68 (Torbett), Establish Ombudsman/Foster Care/ Gaston County, seeks to establish a pilot ombudsman program for children in foster care in Gaston County. It has been referred to the House Committee on Government.

HB 70 (Brandon), North Carolina Health Plan, seeks to establish a state-funded insurance plan for those without health insurance in 2017, when the Affordable Care Act allows states to offer their citizens alternatives to the Health Insurance Exchanges. The bill directs the Department of Insurance and the Department of Health and Human Services to study the issues and propose statutory changes to facilitate the operation of the NC Health Plan, and report to the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Health and Human Services no later than March 1, 2014. It has been referred to the House Insurance committee, with re-referrals to HHS, Finance and Appropriations.  Representative Brandon filed the bill in response to SB 4, which will prevent medicaid expansion for adults under the ACA.

HB 74 (Murry, Moffitt, Samuelson, Bryan)/SB 32 (Hartsell), Periodic Review and Expiration of Rules will provide for automatic expiration for all rules unless re-adopted within ten years after effective dates.  The bill proposes expiration dates per title of the Administrative Code during 2016-2019 for existing rules. HB 74 has been referred to the House Regulatory Reform committee and SB 32 has been referred to the Senate Program Evaluation committee.

SB 4, No NC Exchange/No Medicaid Expansion (Apodaca, Brown, Rucho).  SB 4 seeks to prohibit Medicaid expansion and a state-federal partnership health benefit exchange.  SB 4 was approved by the Senate this week despite a request from the Governor's office to slow the measure down. It is scheduled to be heard in the House Health and Human Services committee on Tuesday at 10 am.

SB 10 (Apodaca, Hunt, Rabon), Eliminate Obsolete Boards and Commissions, proceeded through the Senate this week. In addition to seeking to overturn the current Democrat-appointed members of several boards and commissions, it seeks to eliminate all special Superior Court judge positions, except for the three business court positions.   The bill will now proceed to the House.

SB 45 (Randleman), Incapacity to Proceed Amendments, is legislation previously sponsored by then Rep. Randleman that would amend the state criminal law regarding individuals who do not have the capacity to proceed in a criminal matter.  It has been referred to the Senate Judiciary I committee.

The Legislature is back in action!

The legislature roared back into session on Wednesday this week.  Despite only being in town for two working days, they managed to file dozens of bills and pass major policy decisions out of committee.  We will be back with weekly updates throughout the session. For now, here is a brief summary of legislation filed this week related to the work of Disability Rights NC.

HB 4 (Howard, Warren, Starnes, Setzer)/SB 6 (Rucho, Rabon, Brock), Unemployment Insurance Fund Solvency and Program Changes.  HB 4 modifies the state's Unemployment Insurance program to reduce the amount of benefits and length of time that benefits are available to the state's unemployed.  It also removes a number of good cause qualifications for benefits that exist under the current state law, including provisions that allow for benefits when an individual must leave employment because of disability or other health concern; disability or health concern of a minor child, aged or disabled parent, or disabled immediate family member; or inability to accept work during a particular shift because of concerns related to child care, elder care, or care of a disabled family member.  The bill was filed on the first day of session on Wednesday, approved by the Finance committee on Thursday morning, and by the full House on Thursday afternoon.

 

HB 5 (Dollar, Burr), Temporary Funding Extension for Group Homes, allows group homes (meaning any facility that (i) is licensed under Chapter 122C of the General Statutes, (ii) meets the definition of a supervised living facility under 10A NCAC 27G .5601, and (iii) serves adults whose primary diagnosis is mental illness or a developmental disability but may also have other diagnoses) to access the $39.7 million allocated in the state budget for temporary, short‑term financial assistance to a group home on behalf of a resident who loses eligibility for Medicaid covered personal care services (PCS) after an independent assessment.  It was filed on the first day of session on Wednesday, and approved by the Appropriations committee on Thursday morning.  It is scheduled to be heard in the full House on Monday night. 

 

SB 4/HB 16, No NC Exchange/No Medicaid Expansion (Apodaca, Brown, Rucho/Burr, Avila, Hollo, Collins).  SB 4 seeks to prohibit Medicaid expansion and a state-federal partnership health benefit exchange.  SB 4 was filed on the first day of session on Wednesday, and approved by the Senate Insurance committee on Thursday.  It will be heard by the full Senate on Monday night.  On a somewhat related note, Governor McCrory and Secretary Wos spoke about a Medicaid Audit completed by the state auditor this week, indicating that their first order of business was to get the Medicaid program administrative costs under control, and possibly leaving the door open on Medicaid expansion.

 

HB 20 and HB 21 (Moore), Joint Session State Board of Education Confirmation, seeks to approve appointments by the Governor to membership on the State Board of Education that are subject to confirmation by the General Assembly in joint session. The appointees will fill vacancies in Regions 1 and 7, Rebecca H. Taylor and Gregory M. Alcorn, as well as appoint one at-large board member William W. Cobey, Jr.  HB 20, which seeks the joint session, was passed by the House on Thursday and sent to the Senate. HB 21, which names the new members, will be heard in the House Education committee next Tuesday.

 

HB 53 (Tillis, Moffitt, Murry), NC Right to Work/Secret Ballot Amendments.  HB 53 proposes constitutional amendments be placed on the ballot in October 2013 to amend the state constitution to prohibit collective bargaining.

 

HB 56 (Howard), Amend State Contract Review Laws, directs the Attorney General, in consultation with the Dept. of Administration, to establish procedures for the review of contracts; notice to the Dept. of Administration of contracts exceeding $1 mil.; and for the Dept. of Administration to adopt procedures for the identification and record-keeping of contracts.  It is based on recommendations of the Program Evaluation Division.

HB 58 (Howard), Nonprofit Grants/Increase Accountability, would require the Office of State Budget and Management to implement additional rules for grants to nonprofits, including a requirement of concrete, measurable benchmarks against which to measure success; and the Identification of program performance measures that will be used to compare quantifiable outputs and outcomes against the benchmarks established in contracts pursuant to this subdivision; criteria for when grant monies may be withheld; periodic reporting requirements; and also limits the amount an agency can withhold for its own oversight to 2%.  Note that “grants” as defined in the statute do not include any payment by the Medicaid program. It is based on recommendations of the Program Evaluation Division. 

SB 10 (Apodaca, Hunt, Rabon) and SB 34 (Hartsell), Eliminate Obsolete Boards and Commissions, is a considerably scaled down version of the bill filed last year.  It does seek to eliminate the Committee on Dropout Prevention. SB 34 differs from SB 10 in that it additionally recommends that the Chief Justice abolish the Actual Innocence Commission, as the Innocence Inquiry Commission has been established.

SB 12 (Tillman), Appoint Superintendent of Public Instruction, seeks a constitutional amendment for the Governor to appoint the state superintendent, rather than be elected by the state.

SB 39 (Tillman, Goolsby), Restore Partisan Judicial Elections, would require all state Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, superior and district court judges to run by party affiliation.

SB 42 (Daniel, Tillman, Tucker), Charter School/Government Unit, provides that a charter school is a governmental unit for the purpose of a lease or transfer of personal or real property between a charter school and another governmental unit.