Pull up a chair and sit a spell to read this week's LeagueLINC Bulletin. With yesterday being the crossover deadline, it has been an intense week at the General Assembly, with a slew of bills receiving hearings, passing from one chamber to the other, and being left to die in committee. The LeagueLINC Bulletin and the League's bill tracking system remain the best way to stay on top of all the issues affecting cities across North Carolina. More Information Posted on May 17, 2013 by Jennifer Webb More Information Posted on May 09, 2013 by Jennifer Webb
Two local bills granting certain counties and municipalities electronic notice authority were approved by the House Judiciary Subcommittee B this morning. Local electronic notice authority was chosen by League members as one of their Municipal Advocacy Goals for the 2013-14 biennium, and the League has worked with legislators on both bills approved this morning.
Both SB 287 Notice Publication by Some Local Govs and HB 504 Local Electronic Notice grant certain counties and the municipalities wholly within those counties the authority to publish legally required public notices on their own websites and through other means. Municipalities spend upwards of $4 million annually statewide purchasing advertising space in newspapers for legally required public notices, at a time when overall print newspaper readership is declining and most print readers are not looking for public notices. More Information Posted on May 08, 2013 by Chris Nida The May 3, 2013 LeagueLINC Bulletin is now available. It was another busy week at the General Assembly, and more busy weeks are likely upcoming. The LeagueLINC Bulletin and the League's bill tracking system remain the best way to stay on top of all the issues affecting cities across North Carolina. This week's Bulletin features news on the transitional hold harmless payments, regulatory reform, transportation, rental registration programs, and much, much more. More Information Posted on May 03, 2013 by Jennifer Webb
Thank you to all of the League members who have weighed in on SB 612 Regulatory Reform Act of 2013, which was given initial approval by the N.C. Senate today. The League has been working with legislators on this legislation and reached out to its members for examples of how the bill could impact cities and towns around the state. Dozens of you responded, and the League compiled those responses and presented them to legislators, some of whom shared those examples in a robust debate over the bill on the Senate floor.
SB 612 contains a provision that would prevent municipalities from enacting any regulation that is “more stringent than” the State or federal regulation in that area. This provision applies primarily to environmental regulations, including those regulated by such agencies and commissions as the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, the Environmental Management Commission, and the Coastal Resources Commission. More Information Posted on May 01, 2013 by Erin Wynia
Legislation to implement the transportation reform plan previously announced by Governor Pat McCrory was unveiled in the House Transportation Committee today. A Proposed Committee Substitute for House Bill 817 Transportation Appropriations Financing was considered and given unanimous approval by the Committee. You can view the new version of HB 817 here, and the summary of the bill by legislative staff here.
The new version of HB 817 appears to largely mirror what was previously announced by the Governor. Under the terms of the bill, transportation revenues would be divided between three categories of projects: State, Regional (consisting of paired transportation divisions), and Local (transportation divisions). Forty percent of revenues (about $6 billion) will go to Statewide projects, 40 percent to Regional projects, and 20 percent to Local. The Regional money will be assigned on a per capita basis, while the 14 transportation divisions will receive equal shares of the Local money.
More Information Posted on April 30, 2013 by Chris Nida
The General Assembly is in high gear this week as legislators push forward in anticipation of the nearing crossover deadline. Cities and towns are getting involved in the process and making a difference for your hometown. The League has a recap of all the legislation in motion and details on how you can get involved in District Days! in its April 26 LeagueLINC Bulletin. More Information Posted on April 26, 2013 by Jennifer Webb The Senate Commerce Committee gave a favorable report to HB 150 Zoning/Design & Aesthetic Controls Tuesday morning, sending the bill to the Senate floor. The bill previously passed in the House of Representatives and would thus become law if it is passed by the Senate and signed by Gov. Pat McCrory.
HB 150 was introduced at the request of the N.C. Homebuilders Association and would prevent cities from imposing aesthetic controls over 1- and 2-family dwellings in all zoning districts, unless these controls are agreed to by the developer. While proponents argue that these controls are an overreach by local government, cities contend that eliminating them would render local governments unable to ensure that infill development is consistent with the character of existing neighborhoods, harming both economic development efforts and the property values of existing development. More Information Posted on April 23, 2013 by Paul Meyer Please see the note below from the National League of Cities regarding the Marketplace Fairness Act (S. 743), which enables states to collect the sales taxes they are already owed from online purchases. Passage of this legislation at the national level would bring in additional revenue for North Carolina municipalities that they are currently owed but unable to collect. Please contact Senators Richard Burr and Kay Hagan, thank them for voting to end debate on the Marketplace Fairness Act, and ask them to vote in favor of the Marketplace Fairness Act as is without any additional amendments. The Senate is expected to vote on this measure either tomorrow or Thursday, so the sooner you can contact them, the better. Please share this message with your elected officials and others in your municipality as you deem appropriate.
For more on the Marketplace Fairness Act, see here. Thank you for your efforts in supporting this important federal legislation. More Information Posted on April 23, 2013 by Paul Meyer
It was another very busy week for cities and towns at the General Assembly, and the League has a recap of all the legislation in motion in its April 19 LeagueLINC Bulletin. Details are also available on District Days!, a small group opportunity for municipal officials from across the state to come to Raleigh and interact with legislators. More on this and much, much more can be found in this week's LeagueLINC Bulletin. More Information Posted on April 19, 2013 by Jennifer Webb 1
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