New bill proposes hike in vehicle safety inspection fees
According to the Hickory Record, right now, safety inspections cost $12.75 and $23.75 for safety and emissions.
A house bill sponsored by North Carolina State Representative Jeff McNeely wants to raise it to $29.15 and $40.15.
ALSO READ: Several local lawmakers reverse opposition to transit plan
McNeely said the increase all goes to the inspection stations.
He said if lawmakers don't raise the price, mechanics and auto shops will quit doing the work.
House lawmakers are set to debate the bill Tuesday.
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Texas Democrats arrive in Illinois to block vote back home on redrawn House maps sought by Trump
A standoff in Texas over redrawn U.S. House maps sought by President Donald Trump sharply escalated Sunday when dozens of Democratic legislators left the state to block a vote, followed by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott warning them that he will seek their removal from office if they don't return. The revolt by Democrats, and Abbott giving them until Monday to come home or face efforts to strip them of their elected positions, pushed a widening fight over congressional maps ahead of the 2026 midterm elections into new territory. At the center of the deepening impasse is Trump's pursuit of five more winnable congressional seats that will help bolster the GOP's chances of preserving their slim U.S. House majority. In response to Texas' rare mid-decade political gerrymander, Democratic governors have floated the possibility of redrawing their own state's maps in retaliation, but their options are limited. Many of the Texas Democrats were bound for Illinois and a welcoming from Gov. JB Pritzker, a potential 2028 presidential contender, who in recent weeks has offered them support. House Democratic Caucus Chair Rep. Gene Wu declined to say how long lawmakers were prepared to stay out of Texas, and it was unclear whether the gambit would succeed. Four years ago, House Democrats left Texas for 38 days in protest of new voting restrictions that still wound up passing once the holdout ended. 'We will do whatever it takes. What that looks like, we don't know,' Wu said at a Sunday night news conference. Lawmakers can't pass bills in the 150-member Texas House without at least two-thirds of them present. Democrats hold 62 of the seats in the majority-Republican chamber and at least 51 left the state, said Josh Rush Nisenson, spokesperson for the House Democratic Caucus. In addition to those in Illinois, delegations of Democratic lawmakers left Texas for Boston and Albany, New York, among other places, Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer said. Abbott threatened to seek the lawmakers' removal, saying they were not meeting under the state's constitution. 'This truancy ends now,' Abbott said in a statement released by his office Sunday night. Abbott also suggested the lawmakers may have committed felonies by raising money to help pay for fines they'd face. Republican House Speaker Dustin Burrows said the chamber would still meet as planned on Monday afternoon. 'If a quorum is not present then, to borrow the recent talking points from some of my Democrat colleagues, all options will be on the table. . .,' he posted on X. Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is running for U.S. Senate, said on X that Democrats who 'try and run away like cowards should be found, arrested, and brought back to the Capitol immediately.' A refusal by Texas lawmakers to show up is a civil violation of legislative rules. The Texas Supreme Court held in 2021 that House leaders had the authority to 'physically compel the attendance' of missing members, but no Democrats were forcibly brought back to the state after warrants were served that year. Two years later, Republicans pushed through new rules that allow daily fines of $500 for lawmakers who don't show up for work as punishment. In calling for the lawmakers' removal, Abbott cited a non-binding legal opinion that was issued by Paxton's office after the 2021 revolt by Democratic lawmakers. The quorum break will also delay votes on flood relief and new warning systems in the wake of last month's catastrophic floods in Texas that killed at least 136 people. Democrats had called for votes on the flooding response before taking up redistricting and have criticized Republicans for not doing so. Texas Republicans last week unveiled their planned new U.S. House map that would create five new Republican-leaning seats. Republicans currently hold 25 of the state's 38 seats. Pritzker, who has been one of Trump's most outspoken critics during his second term, had been in quiet talks with Texas Democrats for weeks about offering support if they chose to leave the state to break quorum. Last week, the governor hosted several Texas Democrats in Illinois to publicly oppose the redistricting effort, and California Gov. Gavin Newsom held a similar event in his own state. Pritzker also met privately with Texas Democratic Chair Kendall Scudder in June to begin planning for the possibility that lawmakers would depart for Illinois if they did decide to break quorum to block the map, according to a source with direct knowledge who requested anonymity to discuss private conversations. 'This is not just rigging the system in Texas, it's about rigging the system against the rights of all Americans for years to come,' Pritzker said Sunday night. Now, with Texas Democrats holed up in Illinois and blocking the Trump-backed congressional map, the stage may be set for a high-profile showdown between Pritzker and the president. Trump is looking to avoid a repeat of his first term, when Democrats flipped the House just two years into his presidency, and hopes the new Texas map will aid that effort. Trump officials have also looked at redrawing lines in other states, such as Missouri, according to a person familiar with conversations but unauthorized to speak publicly about them.
The Hill
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- The Hill
Johnson visits Jerusalem after Israel trip postponed
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) visited Jerusalem on Sunday after he previously postponed a trip to Israel earlier this year. Johnson was seen in footage visiting the Western Wall in Jerusalem and joining a group of House Republicans to meet with Israeli officials. 'It is such a moving time for us to be here, to be here at the Wailing Wall. We've offered our prayers, we've put our notes into the wall, as is traditional and we're so moved by the hospitality of the people and the great love of Israel,' Johnson said in a video posted to Instagram by the Western Wall Heritage Foundation. 'Our prayer is that America will always stand with Israel and that we will — we pray for the preservation and the peace of Jerusalem. That's what Scripture tells us to do. It's a matter of faith for us and a commitment that we have,' he added. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar shared a photo of Johnson and other House Republicans including Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) meeting in Jerusalem. 'We discussed the alarming global wave of antisemitism, including efforts by countries like Ireland to delegitimize Israel. I also described the horrific attacks against the Druze in Syria, the same kind of barbarism perpetrated by Hamas,' Sa'ar wrote. Johnson postponed a trip to Israel back in June, when he was supposed to address the Knesset, due to the military conflict between Israel and Iran. Jewish Insider reported Sunday that Johnson does not have plans to address the Knesset on his trip this week.
The Hill
2 hours ago
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Pritzker says Texas Democrats who fled state will be protected amid arrest threats
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker (D) said on Sunday that the state would protect Texas Democrats who fled to the Prairie State over GOP efforts to redraw the Lone Star State's congressional maps. 'They're here in Illinois. We're going to do everything we can to protect every single one of them and make sure that — 'cause we know they're doing the right thing, we know that they're following the law,' Pritzker told reporters at a press conference Sunday night held alongside the Texas state lawmakers. 'It's Ken Paxton who doesn't follow the law. It's the leaders of Texas who are attempting not to follow the law,' he continued. 'They're the ones that need to be held accountable.' The Illinois governor's comments came after Texas Democrats left their state to deny their GOP counterparts a quorum, or the minimum number of lawmakers needed to conduct business, during their special session. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) called the special session in part to push forward a new congressional map that would give Republicans five more pick-up opportunities, something President Trump has been pushing for as the GOP braces for a potentially challenging midterm election next year. A Texas House panel on Saturday advanced the set of maps, teeing them up for a vote on the House floor. Because Republicans enjoy majorities in both chambers and hold the governor's mansion, the maps are all but assured to pass. In a bid to stop those maps from passing, Texas Democrats fled the state, mainly traveling to Illinois, New York and Massachusetts — all blue strongholds. Breaking quorum, however, means that each lawmaker incurs a daily penalty of $500 and the possibility of being arrested. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in a post on X earlier Sunday argued that 'Democrats in the Texas House who try and run away like cowards should be found, arrested, and brought back to the Capitol immediately.' Texas Democrats' decision to leave the state — following a similar tactic they took in 2003 when Republicans engaged in mid-cycle redistricting — underscores how the party is looking to use all tools at their disposal to thwart Republicans from changing their election maps. 'This is wrong, this is un-American and this is undemocratic,' said state Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer (D). 'And America, we need to wake up. Republicans are stealing our democracy right before our very eyes.' The redistricting battle is opening the possibility to a larger redistricting arms race as blue and red states alike leave the door open to changing their own congressional maps, which would sow uncertainty into next year's midterms. But the issue is also placing a spotlight on several potential 2028 hopefuls, including Pritzker and Govs. Gavin Newsom (D) and Ron DeSantis (R), who have all weighed in on the redistricting tit-for-tat.
