As you may know, the 2006 short session of the North Carolina General Assembly ended three months ago, but the work continues in our district and in Raleigh.
I’m extremely proud of the progress we made on education, health care, our economy and reducing crime during the short time we were in Raleigh this summer. My colleagues and I in the Legislature continue to work in Raleigh on numerous issues, which will be studied by committees during the interim, and we’ll make recommendations for legislation prior to the start of next year’s session.
The General Assembly will reconvene on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 at noon. During the interim, you can contact me via email at michaelw@ncleg.net or by calling my Raleigh office at (919) 733-5662 or in Gaston at (252) 536-8013. My legislative office in Raleigh is staffed on a part-time basis by Mary Capps, my Legislative Assistant. You can also find additional information on the General Assembly at www.ncleg.net.
Education Programs Receive First Lottery Money
The new N.C. Education Lottery made its first ever transfer of proceeds to education on October 19, seven months after the games began. The state lottery commission will make periodic transfers to the Education Lottery Fund. At least 35 percent of net lottery revenues must be used for education initiatives such as pre-K programs, reducing class size, school construction and college scholarships for needy students. The recent $95 million transfer represents 35.6 percent of the $233.1 million total the lottery collected since July 1 and another $12 million generated before that date. The lottery also made a $50 million transfer in late June, but that went into a reserve account.
All counties across the state will begin receiving these new funds in the near future. Northampton, Vance and Warren counties are expected to receive the following amounts as part of this first installment of new education funds from the lottery:
County Funding for School Construction/ Pre-K Education
Northampton $105,078/ $281,866
Vance $276,355/ $ 98,054
Warren $ 98,909/ $ 97,468
Funds for reducing class size and college scholarships will be announced in the future.
State law requires that at least 50 percent of the total proceeds from the lottery be paid out in prizes, no more than 8 percent for administrative costs, 7 percent to retailers and the remaining 35 percent go to education. Of the funds for education, 50 percent goes to cutting class size in early grades to 18 students per teacher and to the More at Four program for at-risk pre-kindergarten children, 40 percent for school construction, and 10 percent for need-based scholarships for college, university and community college students in North Carolina. North Carolina’s lottery dedicates a higher percentage of lottery proceeds toward education than most others in the nation.
The N.C. Department of Public Instruction (DPI) will manage the distribution of the funds for the various education programs except the college scholarships, which will be handled by the North Carolina State Education Assistance Authority.
Prescription Drug Assistance for Seniors: North Carolina Rx
Governor Mike Easley has announced a new prescription drug assistance program for North Carolina seniors. The program, funded for 2 ½ years with $24 million from the Health and Wellness Trust Fund, aims to help qualifying seniors pay some or all of their Medicare Part D premiums. It also hopes to encourage some of the estimated 240,000 eligible seniors in our state who have not signed up for Part D to help them navigate the federal drug program and its medication management program involving pharmacists identifying potentially adverse drug interaction.
Under the new federal Medicare Part D program, which began last January, North Carolina seniors can choose from a variety of prescription drug insurance plans. For 2007, there will be 51 plans offered to North Carolina seniors. To participate in Part D, seniors must select a plan and pay the monthly premium. Plan premiums range in cost, from $17.80 to $85.90 per month for 2007.
North Carolina Rx will help pay premiums for seniors with incomes up to 175 percent of the poverty level ($17,150 for an individual and $23,100 for married couples). The plan also increases the amount of assets seniors may have and still qualify for assistance to $20,000 for an individual and $30,000 for married couples. Qualifying seniors who are at least 65 years old and on Medicare will receive a credit of $18 per month to help pay their premium. Approximately 50,000 North Carolina low-income seniors are expected to sign up for this benefit.
A special web site, www.ncrx.gov and a toll-free hotline, 1-888-488-NCRX (6279), have been set up to provide information about the new North Carolina Rx program and coverage.
Wal-Mart has also announced that it is now selling generic prescription drugs for $4 in North Carolina. The plan, which covers generic or non branded, drugs for a 30-day supply, is open to anybody with a valid doctor’s prescription. No insurance is required. Pharmacies in both Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club stores will offer the low-cost prescriptions on 314 medications. To view a complete list of eligible medications, go to: www.walmart.com/pharmacy. Target will match the $4 Wal-Mart prescriptions and Kmart is offering 184 generics for $15 for a 90-day supply.
School Safety Measures to be Reviewed
In the wake of recent school violence across the nation, Governor Mike Easley has asked Secretary Bryan Beatty of the Department of Crime Control and Public Safety and Attorney General Roy Cooper to coordinate a comprehensive review of North Carolina’s school safety programs. Beatty and Cooper will work with the Department of Public Instruction (DPI), the State Board of Education and the Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention to assess current efforts and determine if additional measures should be taken to better protect the state’s school students.
As part of the effort, Easley also asked the State Board of Education and DPI to ensure school superintendents across the state begin an immediate review of their district’s safety plans for completeness and coordination with local emergency response agencies. Easley also asked Health and Human Services Secretary Carmen Hooker-Odom to provide assistance due to the emotional impact the recent school violence incidents may have on students. In addition, the Governor urged Beatty and Cooper to examine the use of technology and protocol measures, student and faculty response as well as the communication between classroom and administrative offices to perceived problems. Easley has asked Beatty and Cooper to report back to him with recommendations for needed improvements as quickly as possible.
I look forward to reviewing the reports for our local schools and will work with the Governor, his administration and other legislators to implement any needed school safety measures to ensure our students are safe.
Committee Work Continues
Even though the Legislature is not in session, we’re still busy at work in Raleigh on numerous study committees, which are meeting during the interim and will make recommendations for legislation when the General Assembly reconvenes next January. I’m serving on the following committees/commissions:
Topics being studied include high school graduation and drop out rates, school construction needs, the rising cost of health care and increasing access to affordable care, landfills, Internet predators, and issues related to senior citizens and aging. Below is an update on several recent committee meetings.
The House Select Committee on High School Graduation and Drop Out Rates has held several meetings in Raleigh, with plans for meetings around the state, as it studies ways to ensure students receive a quality education and graduate. The committee is looking at the benefit of raising the current compulsory attendance age above 16 years old, the effectiveness of high school reform efforts in recent years, effective education programs in other states, and the economic, social and criminal impact on a student’s life if they drop out of school.
Education Week Magazine recently cited a national study showing North Carolina’s high school graduation rate at 66 percent. Among African American males it is 49 percent and Hispanic males graduate only 47 percent. North Carolina is ranked 45th in the nation in the percent of ninth graders who graduate four years later, with only 41 percent entering college and 19 percent graduating with an associate or bachelor degree within six years. Our state’s dropout rate also has a tremendous impact on our economy and society. A high school dropout in 2000 had less than a 50 percent chance of getting a job. That figure drops to 25 percent for African-American students. The dropout’s job will earn less than half of what the same job earned 20 years ago. Wages are increasing only for those with at least a college education, and a lack of education is increasingly correlated with incarceration and a dependence on welfare.
Governor Easley and legislators have created several new programs in recent years aimed at increasing high school graduation rates and encouraging more students to attend college. The Learn and Earn early college high schools initiative provides high school students the opportunity to graduate in five years with a high school diploma and an associate’s degree or two years of college credit. North Carolina launched the New Schools Project to assist in the creation of small, economic development-themed high schools across the state. The smaller high schools focus on growing economies and job sectors by offering classes in health care, computer technology, biotech and engineering based on a student’s interests and possible future career.
The House Select Committee on Public School Construction is studying ways the state and counties can build the schools needed to accommodate tens of thousands of new students each year. North Carolina will need to spend close to $10 billion over the next five years on school renovations, new buildings and furniture.
The legislative panel, as well as other organizations across the state, has held several recent meetings to discuss possible options for financing school construction projects, bond referendums, public-private partnerships, lottery funds, and the possible use of alternative facilities, such as empty buildings like grocery stores, for schools. Since 2000, the rate of enrollment in the state’s high schools has increased three times faster than in elementary and middle school, but experts expect the trend to change in the next five years. Elementary enrollment in the next five years is expected to grow twice as much as middle schools and eight times larger than high schools, according to a state survey. According to a recent facility needs survey, North Carolina has more than 7,000 mobile units and temporary classrooms, which act as classrooms for about 178,000 students.
The Joint Select Committee on Environmental Justice, a panel created to evaluate the impact of present and future landfills on minorities and the poor, recently heard testimony regarding a study on the location of landfills across our state. Adjusting for population density, the report found solid-waste facilities were twice as likely to be located in a community where more than 10 percent of residents were minorities. The odds of a community having a landfill were 40 percent higher in an area with average home values less than $100,000 compared with more than $100,000. However, since 1990, landfills were permitted less often in low-wealth housing areas.
The Select Committee on Environmental Justice was created by legislation passed this summer, which placed a one-year moratorium on permitting new N.C. landfills. The ban, which took effect Aug. 1, delays development of at least four proposed landfills that would expand the state’s narrowing landfill capacity. The panel is expected to recommend early next year how to ensure that human health concerns and citizen equity are protected when landfills are considered. The Environmental Review Commission is examining how to improve rules about permitting landfills.
As I’ve said many times before, I hope you will continue to let me know how you feel about the issues that were 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.