Latest news with #NCNewsline
Yahoo
16-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Science is on the federal chopping block and North Carolinians will suffer
A student works in a biology laboratory. (Photo by Jess Daninhirsch/Capital News Service) Americans have long maintained a healthy instinct to be skeptics. We pride ourselves on demanding proof. Unfortunately, in recent years, the explosion of social media in which every person has a public platform has allowed this natural skepticism to fuel a situation in which distinctly unscientific conspiracy theories get way too much attention. And this, tragically, has led millions of people to waiver in their faith in science. This trend is on display right now in Washington where federal budget writers are planning to slash scientific research funding at a time in which the need in numerous realms — like combating disease and developing clean energy – has never been greater. Here in And that would be a terrible mistake. The bottom line: Science — genuine science — is the ultimate expression of a skepticism-based search for the truth. By forsaking it, we head down a very dangerous road indeed. For NC Newsline, I'm Rob Schofield.
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Stein signs six bills, including changes to state's investment fund
North Carolina State Treasurer Brad Briner (left) and Gov. Josh Stein at a bill signing ceremony at the governor's mansion in Raleigh on June 13, 2025. (Photo: Galen Bacharier/NC Newsline) Gov. Josh Stein signed a bundle of bills into law Friday, including one that overhauls how the state's investments are managed. Under House Bill 506, a five-person board of appointees would oversee North Carolina's $127 billion pension fund. It is currently the sole responsibility of the treasurer. The new law comes after Brad Briner, the new Republican treasurer, said he wanted to see the fund deliver better returns for state retirees. 'While I trust that Treasurer Briner would do an excellent job if he kept this authority to himself, he and I share a belief that this process will be stronger when more voices are involved,' Stein said Friday at a bill signing ceremony in the governor's mansion. Briner's predecessor, former Republican Treasurer Dale Folwell, was often criticized for keeping an unusually large portion of the state pension funds sitting in cash. Briner pledged to move North Carolina away from that sole-fiduciary governance model. Briner, who also spoke Friday, said the state had 'fallen short on the investment side,' which was 'coming at a cost to our retirees.' 'This legislation allows us to face that problem,' he said. Four of the five members of the new board will be appointees. Two will be appointed by the heads of the House and Senate, both Republicans. Stein and Briner will both appoint one member each, subject to the legislature's approval. Those members will serve staggered six-year terms; they must have expert knowledge and a decade of relevant experience. Stein also signed several other bills into law Friday: House Bill 50, which changes how state law enforcement officers' separation allowance is paid out. House Bill 231, which makes it easier for social workers to transfer their licenses to North Carolina. House Bill 477, which makes changes to the Death Benefits Plan in state retirement plans. Senate Bill 248, which makes birth certificates for adopted persons similar to those not adopted. Senate Bill 477, which makes changes to the Department of Natural Resources, including about public access to confidential information on rare species and sensitive habitats. Stein has yet to issue a veto, but that could change soon. Several controversial Republican-led bills sit on the Democrat's desk, including multiple proposals to crack down on immigration enforcement, and a bill allowing permit-less carry of handguns. The governor has ten days to either sign or veto a bill before it automatically becomes law. If Stein does issue vetoes, the path for a GOP override could be challenging — Republicans are one vote short of a veto-proof majority in the House.
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Secrecy of immigration control actions is frighteningly un-American
Immigration officials, their backs turned to hide their identities, pose with an Australian citizen who faces possible deportation back to his home country. A list of 'sanctuary' jurisdictions accused of failing to cooperate with immigration arrests, including the state of Colorado, was taken down after protests about its accuracy. (Photo by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) As long as the United States is going to maintain immigration laws, it's a given that unauthorized people will be subject to arrest and deportation. This fact is not terribly controversial. That said, there should be enormous controversy over the way federal officials are now carrying out this work. Simply put: we don't have secret police in the United States. Or at least we shouldn't. Unfortunately, it's hard to describe Trump administration immigration enforcement actions in any other way. Time and again in recent months – here in North Carolina and around the nation — masked individuals in unmarked vehicles have swooped in and spirited people away to undisclosed locations. And whatever the alleged status or crime of these arrested people – this is just plain wrong and un-American. The bottom line: It's a fundamental premise of the U.S. Constitution that no person in our country can be deprived of liberty without due process. When government starts evading this guarantee – even for non-citizens — it places all of our freedoms in grave jeopardy. For NC Newsline, I'm Rob Schofield.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
New and damning school voucher data confirm worst fears
Ever since North Carolina legislators established the so-called 'Opportunity Scholarships' school voucher program, sponsors and proponents have pitched it as a means of helping low-income students escape struggling public schools. Unfortunately, but not surprisingly, a new report from the Department of Public Instruction shows that this was all baloney. The DPI researchers found that just sixty-seven hundred of the state's eighty-thousand-plus vouchers in the current school year went to students who had attended a North Carolina public school in the prior year. And while the data for kindergartners were not yet available, it's clear that as much as ninety percent or more of new vouchers in 24-25 were for students who have never attended a public school. In other words, the vast majority of voucher money is going to parents – most of them well-off – who never had any intention of sending their kids to public schools. The bottom line: School vouchers in our state have nothing to do with quote 'opportunity' and everything to do with undermining and privatizing public education. Other explanations are simply false. For NC Newsline, I'm Rob Schofield.
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
North Carolina House approves controversial gun bill, sends to Stein
North Carolina Legislative Building (Photo: Galen Bacharier/NC Newsline) The North Carolina House voted 59-48 Wednesday to pass a contentious bill authorizing constitutional carry, sending it to Democratic Gov. Josh Stein for approval. Senate Bill 50, 'Freedom to Carry NC,' would allow individuals who are U.S. citizens, at least 18 years of age, and not otherwise prohibited by law, to carry concealed weapons without applying for a permit. It's one of the most controversial topics of the legislative session. Members of Republican leadership support the bill, which would make North Carolina the 30th state to approve of so-called 'constitutional carry.' Republican Reps. Ted Davis of New Hanover and William Brisson of Bladen and Sampson counties voted against the bill. Davis also voted against the measure during Tuesday's House Rules Committee hearing. Ten Republicans and 3 Democrats abstained from voting. Stein signaled to reporters on Tuesday that he would veto the bill, according to The Carolina Journal. It's possible the legislature doesn't have the numbers to override a gubernatorial veto after Republicans lost their supermajority in the House following November's elections. Rep. Keith Kidwell (R-Beaufort) presented SB 50 to the chamber. 'It allows people to constitutionally carry a firearm without obtaining a permit from the government to exercise their God-given right to defend themselves,' he said. The bill does not change who may buy a firearm or the circumstances surrounding when or where an individual can carry a firearm, Kidwell said. Debate was lengthy, lasting about an hour. Roughly half of a dozen Democrats rose to speak out against the legislation, while a handful of Republicans defended it. Rep. Phil Rubin (D-Wake) cited surveys from Everytown for Gun Safety and Elon University that found a large majority of North Carolina voters were against removing permit requirements from concealed carry laws. Rep. Allen Buansi (D-Orange) said the bill made him think of his community: the people and the law enforcement. 'This bill would make their jobs a whole lot harder and put them at an even greater risk,' he said. Rep. Marcia Morey (D-Durham) proposed an amendment that would remove the first section of the legislation — the parts about eliminating the permit process. It would leave the portions about compensating the families of gun violence victims. These provisions were added by Democratic amendments when the measure appeared on the Senate floor in March. 'I just ask you to vote, pick out the most controversial, dangerous part of the bill,' Morey said. Kidwell asked the chamber to shut down Morey's amendment. 'This basically just guts out the bill,' he said. The amendment failed by a vote of 46-61. Morey argued that SB 50 itself highlights the harm it will cause. 'The first part eradicates the need for a permit to carry a concealed weapon, yet the rest of the bill addresses the irreparable damage that will come,' she said. 'It increases compensation for families, of slain law enforcement, EMS. It provides scholarships for children whose family members die.' Rep. Tracy Clark (D-Guilford) shared two emotional stories about her own experience and trauma from guns. A childhood friend died by suicide while the pair attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill together. Four years later, Clark lost another friend, Eve Carson, to homicide. Carson, UNC-Chapel Hill's student body president, was shot and killed near the campus in March 2008. 'Two totally different stories that I'm traumatized by: suicide with a good guy with a gun, homicide with two very bad guys with a gun,' Clark said. 'I have to speak out today because this bill goes too far.' House Democratic leader Robert Reives said he was moved by Clark's painful remembrance of her friends lost to gun violence. 'I felt I would be less of a man not to stand up and tell her how much I feel those stories,' said Reives. Rep. Jay Adams (R-Catawba) reminded the chamber that he, like many of his friends, are part of the baby boomer generation born to World War II veterans whose parents taught them how to own weapons responsibly. Adams said he has owned firearms since he was 11 years old. But circumstances are different now, Rep. Amos Quick (D-Guilford) retorted. He said everybody is a law-abiding citizen until they're not. 'When I was in school, no one thought about a school shooting,' he said. 'If we pass this bill, we are opening the door potentially for more of our children to have to endure the horrors of being locked in their classroom, because one of their classmates, 18 years old, had the state of North Carolina's stamp of approval to go and get a weapon and conceal it and walk in the school.' North Carolinians Against Gun Violence are calling on Governor Stein to veto SB 50. 'The safeguards we lose if we repeal the requirement for a concealed carry weapons permit are all too dangerous to risk when it comes to public carry of firearms in North Carolina,' said Becky Ceartas, executive director of NCGV. 'Without a background check, the public and law enforcement do not know who is illegally carry a concealed weapon or not.' Ceartas said weak concealed carry weapon permitting laws also increase gun thefts by approximately 35%. 'The General Assembly is taking us in the wrong direction for our state, and we urge Governor Stein to veto this dangerous bill.' Immediately after approving SB 50, the House passed legislation (HB 811CS) that would appropriate $1 million in recurring funds over the next two fiscal years. This would allow North Carolina's community colleges to establish a comprehensive firearm safety instruction course, making 'the instruction as accessible as possible to all citizens 18 years and older who seek to enroll.'
