While I have been busy in my district this week, it has also been a busy time in Raleigh with the governor signing several bills into law over the past few days.
These laws will reform the state’s ethics rules, protect our coast from oil spill damage and spell out how we should dispose of our state flag, among other things. The governor also visited the National Guard Aviation Facility in Morrisville on Wednesday to sign four bills designed to assist members of our military. This week, I thought I would share some information with you about those bills, as well as some of the other ways we have tried to make North Carolina friendly to the members of the Armed Services. We are proud of our military presence and heritage in this state and I believe our record reflects that.
Thank you as always for your interest in North Carolina and state government. I hope you will contact me if I can be of any service to you.
2010 Laws
Members of the military in North Carolina can now use the military’s emergency data form to set out their wishes for how their bodies are handled if they are killed in service. Previously, the law recognized only a will, a health care power of attorney or a document witnessed by two other adults as legally sufficient directions for how a soldier’s body should be handled after death. Some members of the military did not use these other instruments because they believed their wishes as stated to the military were sufficient. The law (SL2010-191) also officially recognizes the Honor and Remember flag as a symbol to honor and recognize fallen members of the Armed Services.
North Carolina built upon the significant reforms it made last year to military voting with a law that makes it easier for deployed service members to vote. The most recent change in the law (SL2010-192) considers a single application for an absentee ballot from a uniformed voter as an application for all absentee ballots for elections the voter is eligible for in that calendar year. The change is intended to make it easier for deployed soldiers to vote without having to file multiple requests for absentee ballots.
The courts-martial rules for the state National Guard have been updated to more closely follow the system used by United States military courts. The law (SL2010-193) will help ensure that military court proceedings are handled consistently and professionally for our National Guard members.
Banks and other lending institutions are now prohibited from foreclosing on the mortgage of a member of a military who is serving an active duty deployment. A new law (SL2010-190) requires the lender to give the member of the military at least 90 days after the end of the deployment before they can foreclose on the property. The exemption applies only to property purchased before the deployment. The additional time granted is intended to help members of the military find ways to save the property from foreclosure if possible.
Another law (SL2010-39) signed by the governor earlier this year will make it easier for veterans of Operation Desert Storm and the ongoing wars in Afghanistan and Iraq to get specialty license plates noting their service.
2009 Accomplishments
We continue to appropriate funds to the community colleges so the NC Military Business Center can continue its important work. The military business center coordinates and facilitates for small and medium-sized businesses throughout the state seeking to win and complete federal contracts, with a focus on military-related contracts. The center has received $2.5 million over the past two years.
The North Carolina’s Tarheel ChalleNGe Academy, a quasi-military program for high school dropouts, or expellees, received $2 million over the past two budget years. The program is sponsored by the North Carolina National Guard and receives matching funds from the federal government equal to $60 for every $40 of state funds.
Public university students called to active duty may soon be exempted from paying tuition penalties for not completing their degree on time. The University of North Carolina Board of Governors is working to establish a policy that excuses these students from paying the charge if their active duty is the reason for the extra time needed to complete their courses of study.
A new state law will make it easier for members of the military reserves to renew their drivers’ licenses after they receive deployment orders (H.B. 98 – S.L. 2009-274). The law allows members of the Armed Forces to renew their drivers’ licenses upon receipt of deployment orders and gives them a 30-day grace period for an expired license after they are released from military duty outside of the United States.
Legislation meant to ensure that certain special license plates that are available to military veterans are issued to the right people has been signed into law (H.B. 1094 – S.L. 2009-121). The new law is intended to prevent impostors from purchasing military license plates, including plates that indicate the recipient of a Purple Heart, Distinguished Service Cross or Bronze Star. Applicants for these military plates would have to provide proof that they qualify for the plates.
We have helped pass a new law regarding unemployment insurance compensation for certain severely disabled veterans who have been discharged due to a service-connected disability (H.B. 1124 – S.L. 2009-101). Severely injured veterans will now receive unemployment benefits if they lose their job because of a disability incurred or aggravated during active military service or because of the veteran’s absence from work to obtain care and treatment for that disability.
A new state law directs the state’s occupational licensing to help deployed licensees waive or delay payment of fees and continuing education requirements (H.B. 1411 – S.L. 2009-458).This new law will help reservists who are sent off to war to keep from losing the licenses they need to keep their civilian jobs.
North Carolina’s absentee voting laws have been improved under a new state law (S.B. 253 — S.L. 2009-537). The law is specifically intended to improve the ability of military and overseas voters to cast timely ballots. This is incredibly important because it is vital that those defending democracy have the opportunity to participate in the democratic process.
Uniformed public safety officers will now be authorized to wear military service medals during the business week prior to Veterans Day and Memorial Day, the day of Veterans Day and Memorial Day, and the business day immediately following Veterans Day and Memorial Day under a new state law (H.B. 631 – S.L. 2009-240). Employers will maintain the right to prohibit the wearing of service medals if it’s determined they pose a safety hazard to the officer or to the public.
Notes
Heavy equipment maker Caterpillar announced in the past week that it would add more than 825 jobs at two sites in North Carolina. The company plans to build a $426 million plant in Winston-Salem that will eventually employ more than 500 people. It also has plans for a $30 million expansion at its plant in Sanford, where it will add 325 workers. Both projects received state economic development grants.
Furniture maker Ethan Allen Operations Inc. plans to create 90 jobs and invest $250,000 to expand its production capacity in Old Fort. The project was made possible in part by a $270,000 grant from the One North Carolina Fund.
Boral Composites Inc., a sister company to Boral Bricks in East Spencer, plans to open a plant in Rowan County to produce a new “green” product line for homebuilding. The company plans to create 25 jobs and invest $12.8 million. The project was made possible in part by a $50,000 grant from the One North Carolina Fund.
As I’ve said many times before, I hope you will continue to let me know how you feel about the issues that are being debated by the North Carolina Legislature and the challenges you and your family are facing each day.
By working together, we can make Northampton, Vance and Warren Counties and all regions of North Carolina a better place to live, work and raise a family.
Please remember that you can use the General Assembly’s website to look up bills, view lawmaker biographies and access other information. The site also contains detailed information about the state budget and legislative schedules.