Download - Ray Warren - NC House

							                                       REPRESENTATIVE RAY WARREN
                             88th House District                             North Carolina House
                             Raleigh: (919) 715-8361                         306C Legislative Building
                             Rayw@ncleg.net                                  Raleigh, NC 27603-5925



 Edition #4                                   Legislative Newsletter                                   2/22/07




REPRESENTATIVE RAY WARREN’S REPORT FROM RALEIGH…
 On Monday night, Governor Mike Easley delivered his fourth, and likely his final, State of the State address at
 the General Assembly. The governor focused largely on education and gave us a sneak preview of his budget,
 which was unveiled on Thursday and will be discussed by legislators next week.

 The governor called on the General Assembly to launch the nation’s most ambitious education initiative that
 would allow students to earn a four-year degree at a state university debt free. First, he called for a major
 expansion of the state’s Learn and Earn program, which allows students to stay in high school for an extra year,
 and earn enough community college or university credits to get an associate’s degree and a high school diploma
 at the same time. The program now reaches 33 high schools and will expand to 75 high schools by the 2008-09
 school year. In two years, it would be available to every student, Easley said. He also announced his plan to cut
 income taxes for an estimated 1.2 million low-and middle-income North Carolinians.

 I will provide more details on the governor’s budget in next week’s update, or you may review the entire budget
 online at www.osbm.state.nc.us beginning Thursday afternoon.

 Governor Easley also called on legislators to:
     Add 10,000 additional 4-year-olds to the state’s “More at Four” pre-kindergarten program, which
       currently serves nearly 20,000 at-risk children.
     Continue raising teacher pay, which will be up 18 percent since 2005 and on the way to reaching the
       national average by 2008.
     Eliminate the state income tax for 600,000 low-income taxpayers and cut it in half for another 600,000.
     Provide health insurance to foster children attending college until they turn 22 and to approximately
       12,000 children in families who earn $40,000 to $60,000 a year, or 300 percent of the poverty level for a
       family of four.
     Expand the North Carolina Rx prescription drug program to reach 45,000 more seniors.
     Strengthen and expand campaign and lobbying reforms.
     Expand prisons and increase funding for technology and communications for local law enforcement.
     Work toward energy independence and greater energy conservation.

 The Future of Hog Farming in North Carolina and Renewable Energy
 The North Carolina Pork Council and Progress Energy said in a press conference on Monday afternoon that
 they’ve found an economical way to generate energy from farm waste. They asked legislators to create a seven-
 year pilot program that would test the feasibility of converting hog waste from across the state into electricity,
 which could be sold to the utility company no later than late 2012. If approved by the General Assembly, hog
 producers would collect methane gas from their treatment systems and convert it to power.



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Two New Coal-Fired Power Plants for NC?
On Thursday, lawmakers sent a letter to the N.C. Utilities Commission, asking it to delay its decision for 90
days on whether to allow Duke Energy to build two coal-fired power generators at the aging Cliffside facility
west of Charlotte. Launched by Rep. Paul Luebke, D-Durham, the letter complains that the public hasn’t
received adequate information about the plant and the potential negative impact on consumers, in addition to its
rising costs. In November, the company acknowledged that its cost estimate for the plants in Rutherford and
Cleveland counties had soared 50 percent, from $2 billion to $3 billion. Duke Energy is urging quick approval
of the new plants so it can “lock in on negotiated prices for equipment and labor before costs rise again.” If
built, Duke Energy’s proposed Cliffside units would be the state’s first major power plant project in a quarter
century. The utilities commission is scheduled to rule on the proposal next week.

Members of the House and Senate have introduced close to 700 pieces of legislation during the first month of
the 2007 session, which started on January 24. This week’s highlights include bills focused on providing
affordable health care to North Carolina’s more than 1.3 million uninsured, banning smoking in public places,
reducing gang violence.

Below are several bills that I have chosen to highlight and have noted those for which I am a sponsor or co-
sponsor:

    o   House Bill 220, would establish special license plates for Juvenile Diabetes research (co-sponsor)
    o   House Bill 230, to provide for a one-cent local option sales tax in Alexander County (sponsor)
    o   House Bill 263, to provide that a person who commits the crime of murder or manslaughter of a
        pregnant woman is guilty of a separate offense to the unborn child (co-sponsor)
    o   House Bill 332 would appropriate $10 million for the Farmland Preservation Trust Fund (co-sponsor)
    o   House Bill 274, the Street Gang Prevention Act, would increase criminal penalties for gang violence
        as well as providing $150,000 to the Department of Justice for the creation of a statewide criminal street
        gang member database and $10 million in grants for gang violence prevention and intervention
        programs.
    o   House Bill 265 would establish a high-risk insurance pool.
    o   House Bill 259 would prohibit smoking in most public places, including restaurants and work places.
    o   House Bill 283 would increase the pension for former firefighters and rescue squad members.
    o   Senate Bill 208 would issue up to $500 million in bonds for grants and loans for wastewater and
        drinking water projects if voters approved the borrowing in a statewide referendum this November.
    o   Senate Bill 222 would make it a felony to rob someone using the appearance of a firearm.
    o   Senate Bill 296 would continue in-state tuition for dependents of members of the armed forces if the
        uniformed person is killed in combat or while on active military duty while assigned to a North Carolina
        unit.
    o   Senate Joint Resolution 205 honors the life of NASCAR driver Benny Parsons, who died last month.

Please remember that you can learn more about the General Assembly by visiting www.ncleg.net. Our newly
updated website allows citizens to listen in on each day’s legislative session, committee meetings and press
conferences, learn more about introduced legislation, and view each day’s schedule and list of bills to be voted
on. The House will be back in session on Monday night at 7 pm.




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