N.C. Senate President Pro Tem Marc Basnight, D-Dare, has been one of the most powerful individuals in state government since the early 1990s, but his long reign as the Senate's top leader appears to be at an end.
With an Anti-Incumbent mood running among voters in legislative elections, Democrats in North Carolina who dominated the General Assembly in the 20th and so far the 21st centuries will surely find Raleigh a far different place when the General Assembly reconvenes in 2011.
Democrat Bev Perdue will still be Governor for at least another two years, of course, but many things are likely to change
Republicans who have been thwarted in their legislative efforts will find a different atmosphere. The electoral change would open up new leadership opportunities for Republicans such as Sen. Bob Rucho of Charlotte and Rep. Thom Tillis of Mecklenburg.
The Senate changes include the biennial drafting of the state budget, for which Republicans have been laying plans for months to trim more than $3 billion from the state's roughly $20 billion operating budget. Some plans envision cutting up to 20 percent to make ends meet.
Perhaps just as important is the redrawing of congressional and legislative districts for the upcoming decade. Those districts must be revised every 10 years following the Census, and Republicans will have the chance to guide redistricting committees through the process for the first time in modern state history.
Also important to Republicans is Court of Appeals Judge Barbara Jackson's lead over Democratic Court of Appeals Judge Bob Hunter for the N.C. Supreme Court seat held by outgoing justice Ed Brady. Although these seats are nonpartisan, it's no secret that Jackson is a Republican, as is Brady. And her election would not only preserve a 4-3 Republican-Democrat split on the court, it will also give the N.C. court a majority of female justices. It's foolish to predict how justices will vote based on their political party, but it will comfort Republicans in redistricting lawsuits that the numbers at least appear to be on their side.
Democrats no doubt will now have second thoughts about their refusal to go along with Republican proposals in past years to create a nonpartisan commission to study demographic changes and draft new districts for the state's 13 congressional districts and 170 legislative districts. It will be another decade before districts could be redrawn, and Democrats will have time to ponder their lost opportunities - apparently from the back bench.
North Carolina Revenue Secretary Kenneth Lay is leaving his job after a series of problems involving refunds that have frustrated North Carolina taxpayers seeking any little bit extra in their wallets in the extended downturn.
Gov. Beverly Perdue's office announced she had accepted Kenneth Lay's resignation Wednesday and will replace him with outgoing state Sen. David Hoyle, D-Gaston, until recently the longtime co-chairman of the Senate Finance Committee.
The resignation's effective date is Oct. 22 for Lay, a former Bank of America executive who took the Cabinet position when Perdue was sworn in January 2009.
"I thank Ken Lay for his service to the state, and for the progress he has made in seeking a new strategic direction for the Department of Revenue," Perdue said in a statement.
When asked if Lay was forced out, Perdue spokeswoman Chrissy Pearson said only the governor and Lay agreed Wednesday that it was the right time to bring in new leadership. Asked for an explanation of his departure beyond a two-sentence resignation letter, Lay said in a prepared statement only that the strategic vision "has reached a point of inflection, which is a perfect time for new leadership."
Lay had been under fire in recent weeks after a new department policy made public was making it harder for North Carolina residents to get refunds when they overpaid their taxes by mistake, potentially leading to millions of dollars in withheld funds. Last year's change, following a 2007 law, led department officials to direct workers not to review returns flagged for a refund if they were more than three years old.
Perdue said last month she hadn't known earlier about the department policy change. Lay and the governor announced soon after a plan to eliminate a backlog of 230,000 returns since 1994 in the agency's computer system by year's end and pay refunds.
But Lay told The News & Observer of Raleigh recently the General Assembly would have to alter the law so that refunds for returns older than three years could be paid.
Hoyle, who decided not to run for a tenth term in November, said the price tag on the ill will with taxpayers with the policy change costs more than the refunds that had been otherwise withheld.
"We have an obligation to the citizens to administer everything fairly," Hoyle said in an interview. "People are suspicious of government anyway ... it's just not right."
The tax collections department also had been forced to delay tax refunds the past two years because of cash flow problems within state government. More than 300,000 refunds valued at $222 million hadn't been distributed this year, nearly a month and a half after the April 15 filing deadline.
Lay also took criticism after a WRAL-TV report found two department leaders had been reimbursed tens of thousands of dollars for mileage and lodging while commuting between their Charlotte area homes and their Raleigh offices.
Hoyle, 71, said he accepted Perdue's job offer Tuesday. He said he wanted to help Perdue, a former senator and president of the Senate as lieutenant governor.
Hoyle "has seen the Department of Revenue from the inside and out. He has spent years helping to write the state's tax laws, and I'm sure that experience will prove invaluable in his new role," Perdue said in her statement.
Hoyle was often a foil of the department as the Finance Committee leader, criticizing the agency for putting small business owners over a fiscal barrel because of poor advice it gave taxpayers or vague rules.
"I think a lot of people get caught in a trap," he said.
Hoyle said he would resign his Senate seat the day before he assumes his new job. Perdue said Hoyle's appointment was subject to a usual review by the state Ethics Commission. Hoyle said he doesn't believe his extensive business dealings will generate potential conflicts of interest.
Gov. Bev Perdue was right to replace N.C. Secretary of Revenue Kenneth Lay, a former Charlotte banker, after his department changed state policy and kept taxpayers' overpayments if they did not request a refund with a three-year statute of limitations.
That policy was unethical, undermined public trust in state government and, not to put too fine a point on it, was dumb.
Perdue's office said the governor never knew about it until a newspaper report in mid-August revealed the department was not informing taxpayers about the overpayments, making it harder to get refunds if taxpayers had not asked for them.
The Revenue Department has released e-mails that suggested it had consulted staffers in the governor's office about the change. In stories that ran Sunday in the News & Observer of Raleigh and the Charlotte Observer, Lay said he could not explain why the governor didn't know about the policy change and said he thought her office had checked off on it. Her staff said the matter was mentioned only in the briefest way, not in a formal policy discussion.
The department should have recognized the political storm that would blow up over keeping money that shouldn't have been paid to the government, and Perdue was rightly incensed when she learned of it. She ordered the department to eliminate a backlog of flagged returns by the end of this year and send the overpayments back to taxpayers. Officials have since determined the state owes $949,000 in overpayments to 3,300 taxpayers, but refunding them all will require a change in state law when the legislature convenes next year.
We don't know what Perdue thought when she saw Lay's remarks Sunday saying the governor's office had acquiesced in the change, but we imagine the words "new leadership" were among them. She announced Wednesday that she had accepted Lay's resignation and that outgoing state Sen. David Hoyle, D-Gaston, would replace him.
That Perdue would turn to a longtime ally is not surprising. Hoyle is an experienced politician and businessman unlikely to make a blunder such as hanging on to tax overpayments. And as co-chair of the Senate Finance Committee, he knows state tax policy. Whether he's the right person to run a large bureaucracy is another question, but Perdue's office surely will be careful to make sure he has a good staff - and that the governor's office knows what it's doing this time.
Jennifer Shelton is not a Politician but for the last few days she has been lobbying lawmakers in Raleigh.
"I believe that a person is tried for their crime and not for the color of their skin," said Shelton.
Her husband, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Officer Jeff Shelton, and his partner Sean Clark were gunned down three years ago as they answered a domestic disturbance call in east Charlotte at the Timber Ridge Apartments.
Demeatrius Montgomery was scheduled to go on trial for the murders in July, but a judge postponed it until October, which stunned the families.
"None of us saw that coming. We were all taken aback by that," Jennifer Shelton said.
The trial was delayed because of the N.C. Racial Justice Act. It requires experts to examine data on a county-by-county basis to determine if Blacks are more likely to get the death penalty than whites for committing the same types of crimes.
Proponents counter that the unintended consequences should not be a surprise to anyone because it's written in the bill that the N.C. Racial Justice Act can be used prior to a trial.
"From the moment I saw it, I saw it as a fatally flawed bill that was as likely to create as many injustices as it was supposed to correct," said Republican House Whip Thom Tillis.
He believes changes need to be made and he's glad Shelton is helping him make that case.
"In a case such as ours it gives a person charged with murder a chance to avoid a death sentence based on statistics from other cases," Shelton said. "I believe people should pay for their crimes. I believe victims deserve justice."
Shelton says the lawmakers she talked to seemed receptive to her plea. She is hoping that will be enough.
A Black N.C. Star High School Football player is challenging the charges against him, stemming from a run-in with N.C. deputies that ended up with the player being stunned with a Taser.
West Rowan High School running back Kevin Parks and his attorney, Ken Harris, are also conducting their own investigation into what happened.
They're hoping to find answers to what they say are several unanswered questions and see whether their findings constitute enough to proceed with a civil lawsuit.
Parks, who goes by KP, never met an end zone he couldn't reach in a flash while running over defenders.
"59 touchdowns this year," he said.
That's just one of his many football records.
Others include being named to the 2010 Parade All-American Team as well as the Old Spice Red Zone National Player of the Year. That prowess earned Parks a football scholarship to Virginia.
But it's another record Parks is fighting, which includes accusations of improper passing, following too closely and resisting a public officer.
"I was feeling like -- is this really happening right now?" Parks said, referring to an incident two weeks ago in Davie County.
"This day started with him traveling to see a friend. It ended up with him Tased and unconscious," said Harris.
Investigators say Parks was driving too closely to an off-duty trooper, who was on his motorcycle with his wife, and then Parks passed the motorcycle in a no-passing zone on Highway 601 in Davie County.
Plus, police say Parks' car was weaving and the trooper suspected impairment.
That trooper followed Parks until he stopped. Help arrived to take Parks into custody. Investigators say that's when an argument ensued and Parks was stunned with a Taser.
Parks isn't talking about the arrest, but Harris says there are plenty of questions his investigation hopes to answer.
"Whether or not Mr. Parks should have been stopped in the first place, whether or not he engaged in any traffic violation to begin with, whether or not he should have been restrained, whether or not he should have been arrested, whether or not he should have been Tased," Harris said.
Harris says other issues includes Parks' Taser injury and when the off-duty, non-uniformed officer flashed a badge.
"Is it shown 8 miles after you follow someone?" Harris said. "The mere showing of a badge doesn't give you license to do whatever you want to do."
Since Parks' arrest, investigators now say Parks was not impaired, even though that's what they suspected.
Parks hasn't filed a civil suit, but Harris says that could change depending upon what their investigation finds.
Highway Patrol officials say the trooper was doing his job -- on or off duty -- and did what he felt was right.
They also say Parks likely is an outstanding young man but in their words, "they arrest outstanding young men all the time."
The family of two murdered police officers will have to wait a few months longer for a trial.
For the second time, lawyers for the alleged cop killer tried to have their client declared mentally incompetent. The judge didn't buy the claim, but the trial will still be delayed.
Now, the families of officers Sean Clark and Jeff Shelton will have to wait until October to go to trial.
The suspected killer, Demeatrius Montgomery, walked into court Thursday without a hint of emotion and has continued to remain silent, even refusing to speak with his attorneys.
"His behavior has become increasingly bizarre, odd," said defense attorney Duane Bryant.
Montgomery's attorneys say he is not competent to stand trial, but the judge disagreed with their assessment.
Still, the newly enacted Racial Justice Act proved to be a winning hand in delaying the trial.
"It is an act that looks at the reasons or reported reasons behind the exposure to death or life in prison," Bryant said.
The act is designed to determine if there is racial bias in the system when it comes to the death penalty. Prosecutors say they have looked at 10 years worth of death penalty cases and found no bias.
But the judge agreed to wait for the completion of a statewide study, which includes Mecklenburg County. Prosecutors argued there is no reason to make the families of Clark and Shelton wait any longer.
"I think the Legislature did not make a provision for this hearing on purpose, and therefore it's the state's position that there is no need to hear this," said assistant district attorney Marsha Goodenow.
Officers Shelton and Clark were killed three years ago in March. They were both shot in the head as they stood outside the Timber Ridge apartments while responding to a domestic dispute.
N.C. Lawmakers on Wednesday stripped out some of the toughest measures from a package of new laws governing the state's liquor store system.
"We gutted it," said Sen. Dan Clodfelter, a Charlotte Democrat who was critical of the changes.
He cast the lone "no" vote on the legislation approved by a special committee focused on the Alcoholic Beverage Control system.
The committee cut a requirement that members of local ABC boards must follow the state ethics law, even though a primary task assigned to the group was to craft a bill establishing consistent ethical standards across the state.
The committee was created in the aftermath of embarrassing revelations of the Mecklenburg ABC board's chair and some employees accepting a lavish dinner from a liquor company and six-figure salaries paid to the father and son team that ran the New Hanover County system.
Sen. Dan Blue, a Wake County Democrat, said the state ethics law provision would put local ABC boards on different footing from other local boards and commissions that are subject to local ethics policies.
"It doesn't make sense to have mixed messages and mixed standards," Blue said.
The committee also sliced out a measure that would empower the state ABC Commission to take steps to improve an unprofitable or minimally profitable liquor store.
"If you want to have any teeth in this law to fix problem stores, this language does it," said Rep. Edgar Starnes, a Hickory Republican.
The committee instead voted to put county commissions and city councils in charge of fixing the problems. Starnes said those groups are "too close to home," because they appoint the ABC boards.
Rep. Pryor Gibson, a Wadesboro Democrat, led several of the efforts to delete provisions from the bill, including a requirement that a community must have 5,000 registered voters before it could vote to create a local ABC board, which then can open a liquor store.
Gibson has repeatedly criticized such a restriction as discriminating against small towns.
The restriction grew out of criticisms, including in a report by legislative staffers, that the existing threshold of 500 registered voters to create an ABC board and subsequent store created unnecessary competition and inefficient stores.
More than 100 of the state's 169 ABC boards operate one store.
Brunswick County, for example, has nine ABC boards. Last year 10 ABC boards had a profit margin of 2 percent or less. Nine boards lost money.
State ABC Commission Chair Jon Williams said the bill still would provide "important new powers" for the commission.
The legislation approved Wednesday afternoon mirrors several provisions that Gov. Bev Perdue's budget reform commission recommended to her just an hour earlier, including:
Giving the state ABC Commission the authority to audit local boards.
Establishing a mission and performance standards for liquor stores.
Limiting the compensation of ABC board members and store operators.
The general manager and other top employees of a local ABC board could not be paid more than the local clerk of superior court.
That's currently $113,000 in both Mecklenburg and Wake counties.
Current ABC compensation would be grandfathered, but four Mecklenburg County ABC board employees' pay exceeds that limit:
The CEO ($159,000), Chief Financial Officer ($130,000), Director of Operations ($120,000) and Director of Human Resources ($115,000). Wake County's General Manager's compensation is $142,000.
The legislation was amended, though, to let the county commission or city council approve higher salaries if the ABC board requested them.
Some of the leading Democratic senators are wading into next Tuesday's Democratic Senate primary in North Carolina, hoping to hoist Cal Cunningham into the fall election against Republican Sen. Richard Burr.
Cunningham, a former state senator and Iraq war veteran, was recruited into the race by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which has provided him with advice and financial help. This has given an advantage to Cunningham, who is in a competitive primary with Democrats Elaine Marshall and Ken Lewis.
"It is unusual, but it happens," Illinois Sen. Richard Durbin, assistant Senate majority leader, said in an interview while in Raleigh over the weekend.
"The decision was made that Cunningham had the best chance to succeed," Durbin said. "The voters in North Carolina have the final word in this. They will decide in the primary and in November. Of course, we will stand behind the party's choice, whoever that might be."
The backing of the national party is one reason Cunningham has the fundraising lead in the Democratic primary. The lead has enabled Cunningham to be the only Democrat to air TV commercials during the past two weeks. Marshall, the secretary of state, unveiled a TV ad Monday, but it has yet to be broadcast. Lewis, a Chapel Hill attorney, began broadcasting his first radio ad this week.
As of April 14, Cunningham had raised $730,200 in the campaign, compared to $514,541 for Marshall, according to reports filed with the Federal Election Commission. Lewis had raised about $456,000 by April 14, his campaign estimated.
All that pales compared to Burr, who has raised $6 million, and who has been running TV commercials longer than any of the Democrats.
The Democratic senators, through their leadership political action committees, gave Cunningham at least $36,000 in contributions during the first quarter, according to FEC reports.
The Lexington attorney received money from the leadership PACs of Sens. Mark Begich of Alaska ($2,000), Thomas Carper of Delaware ($5,000), Carl Levin of Michigan ($2,000), Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico ($2,000), Robert Menendez of New Jersey ($5,000), Kent Conrad of North Dakota ($5,000), Mark Warner of Virginia ($5,000) and Durbin ($5,000).
The senatorial committee's support has likely helped Cunningham get the backing from other interest groups with close Democratic ties such as the N.C. Association of Educators, the Sierra Club and the Teamsters.
"The word gets out that candidate x is the committee's preferred nominee," said Jennifer Duffy, senior political editor of the Washington-based Cook Political Report. "That does help line up support."
Cunningham's opponents have sought to make the national party's backing a negative. Both Marshall and Lewis have portrayed Cunningham as the candidate of Washington interests.
"They obviously don't understand North Carolina very well, do they?" said Thomas Mills, Marshall's campaign spokesman.
The backing of national parties in Senate races has become increasingly important in recent years. The Democratic Senatorial Committee recruited Kay Hagan into the 2008 Senate contest and pumped $10 million into the race, helping her defeat Republican Sen. Elizabeth Dole.
Burr was recruited to run for the Senate in 2004 by Karl Rove, then the chief political adviser for President George W. Bush, who was looking for a challenger to then-Democratic Sen. John Edwards. Rove also recruited Dole into the Senate race in 2002 to fill the seat of the retiring Sen. Jesse Helms.
Two Charlotte area legislators gained the unfortunate distinction of worst attendance record during last year's legislative session.
And the whole issue of absences has deteriorated into a dispute between Rep. Nick Mackey and Rep. Beverly Earle, both Charlotte Democrats.
Sen. Malcolm Graham, a Charlotte Democrat, and Rep. Jeff Barnhart, a Concord Republican, accumulated the worst attendance records in their respective chambers, with the exception of fellow lawmakers who were ill or had surgery during session.
Graham attended 91 of 112 legislative days for an 81 percent attendance rate. The only lower record was that of Sen. Richard Stevens, a Cary Republican, who was sidelined with a broken kneecap.
"Not only am I a state senator, but I work for a living as well," Malcolm Graham said, adding that the supposed part-time job is full time. "I try to balance the responsibilities of serving as well as making a living at the same time."
Legislators receive less than $14,000 a year in salary, plus $559 per month for expenses.
Barnhart made it to 95 of 114 days, or 83 percent. Earle, who underwent two back surgeries last year, and Rep. Becky Carney, who was out for two months after suffering cardiac arrest, had lower attendance figures.
During last night's Charlotte City Council meeting Republican council member Andy Dulin (District 6) boldly spoke up and voted "Yes" to save Charlotte's Special Transportation Service for local Senior Citizens.
Newly elected Democrat Mayor Anthony Foxx voted "No". How disappointing.
Foxx voted no because the new Bus Garage from which to house and operate the Senior Citizen Transportation program, will be somewhat close to his Elite, Posh, Uptown digs.
It will also be located in a section of Charlotte where many of his Straight Ticket Voters reside.
Last year on the campaign trail when Anthony Foxx asked Low Income, Black, Senior Citizen constituents to vote for him they did so without hesitation.
After his election how does Foxx wish to repay them?
By attempting to slash a Necessary program that would assist many of them with receiving continued Medical Care via trips to their Doctors.
Excuse me but I thought Democrats were supposed to be the party in favor of Health Care for Low Income and Middle Class citizens. Did I miss something here?
Foxx claims he wants to prevent City Bus Garages from being placed in Urban Areas.
Please know that's just an excuse he was trying to spin because he wanted to use the money (Stimulus Funds) on another venture like a 1.5 mile Streetcar in the Uptown area. (Where he lives)
Why does Charlotte need a Streetcar that will ONLY travel 1.5 miles when we already have City Buses traveling in the same Uptown direction and when a lot of citizens are leaving Charlotte due to High Unemployment??
How much Fiscal sense does this make?? Even a donkey can see how foolish that idea is.
Why not spend the money on renovating a Bus Garage and expanding Charlotte's Blue Lynx Light Rail line?
Both long term ventures will create Job Growth and improve Charlotte's air quality by getting drivers off the road.
This type of Arrogant, foolishness is why prominent Senators like Evan Bayh are getting out while they can before becoming politically infected with vote buying schemes (like the Charlotte Streetcar).
He sees how Arrogant, Cold-Hearted, Greedy and Selfish many Politicians have become, especially Democrats like Anthony Foxx. (If Foxx isn't cold-hearted or greedy he sure has a funny way of showing it.)
Its a sad day when White, Republican Politicians like Andy Dulin have to speak up for Black, Low Income Senior Citizens because Black Leaders refuse to do so.
Beware, beware God is watching and those Politicians will someday receive their just rewards.
People like Evan Bayh and Andy Dulin are going to be Blessed, while people like Anthony Foxx will most definitely reap what they sow.....
Unless they change.
CHANGE!
Isn't that what Pres. Obama and his crew (including Anthony Foxx) promised many voters back in 2008?
The Charlotte City Council approved a zoning change Monday night that will allow the city's transit system to relocate a bus garage adjacent to a greenway along Little Sugar Creek.
The Charlotte Area Transit System will move offices and a garage for its Special Transportation Service from Statesville Avenue to 3.6 acres east of North Alexander Street. The site is just north of Interstate 277.
CATS' plans had been in limbo since the summer, when council members rejected the transit system's tentative plans for the new $14 million facility. They complained last June that the planned buildings were too ugly and would disrupt the improving Belmont and Villa Heights neighborhoods.
Since then, CATS made a number of changes that helped secure council approval.
The transit system changed the layout of the STS facility, placing the more attractive office building facing the park. It promised to save a 30-foot oak tree and limited the size of the building.
Council approved the change by an 8-3 vote. At-large council members Susan Burgess and Patrick Cannon, who are Democrats, and Republican Edwin Peacock voted against it.
Andy Dulin, a Republican, said he supported the transit system's plans because the green space is on what he called a steep hill, leading to the creek.
"This is not a hill you go with your dog and children and throw a Frisbee," Dulin said. "This (facility) is needed today."
STS carries the elderly and disabled on trips to the doctor or grocery store or other errands. CATS said it needs to expand the buildings that house its buses and vans, and it wants to relocate it adjacent to an existing bus maintenance garage on North Davidson Street. That garage is being improved with roughly $20 million in federal stimulus funds.
By combining the two facilities, CATS expects to save money by sharing staff.
The plans still upset some, however. Jud Little, who owns property in nearby Villa Heights, said the plan is short-sighted.
"Putting industrial uses here makes it more difficult to achieve residential re-investment in areas close by," he said.
Mayor Anthony Foxx, who didn't vote on the zoning change, agreed.
"We continue to put industrial uses into our urban core," said Foxx, who lives nearby in the First Ward. "From that perspective, I would vote no."
The city's zoning committee found the STS buildings would be inconsistent with the city's Belmont Revitalization Plan. But the committee voted to approve the zoning change 5-2, saying it was "in the public interest."
In other action, council members unanimously approved a zoning change that will allow an iconic red, white and blue Volkswagen Bug to remain on top of a building at the intersection of Freedom Drive and West Morehead Street.
The change covers 0.28 acres on the building site.
The building owner wants to convert the building to a restaurant, but that would have meant the Bug had to go. The city has an ordinance against rooftop signs.
The change will allow the Volkswagen to stay, though it can't be an advertisement for a business.
Sen. Larry Shaw, a Cumberland County Democrat, announced Thursday he will not seek re-election this year. Shaw has served in the Senate's 21st district since 1995.
"A wise man once said the greatest one among you, is the greatest servant among you," Shaw said in a written statement. "My public service duty has been fulfilled and now the torch of community servitude must be passed on. Now more than ever, Cumberland County needs an individual with an executive mindset to harness the resources necessary to allow it to continue to develop into a competitive region of the state.”
Shaw's departure is the latest in a wave of longtime senators announcing their retirements. Tony Rand, the former Majority Leader, resigned his seat representing a Cumberland County district at the end of last year.
The decision of nine-term state Sen. Charlie Albertson, D-Duplin, to step down after this term ends continues the march of Democrats out of the legislature -- and adds to the speculation that Republicans will capture a number of Democratic seats and take over the Senate next year.
In fact, Tuesday Republicans announced plans to push legislation that would exempt North Carolina from any federal requirement that every resident be required to purchase health care of pay a penalty. The bill likely won't pass in the coming short session, but it certainly would give Republican candidates a hot-button issue to campaign on this year.
Republican leaders say they see their proposal as a positive initiative because they hear from so many people who don't like the health reform bill moving through the U.S. Senate.
Albertson, who also served four years in the House before moving to the Senate, is a popular county and gospel music singer with a flowing beard and an easy way with people. Lately he also has been a Senate appropriations committee chair and principal budget writer. At 78, he says he's exhausted. He joins four other Senate Democrats who won't run again, including Sen. David Hoyle of Gaston County, R.C. Soles, the dean of the Senate and longest-serving legislator, of Columbus County(who has been indicted by a grand jury for shooting an intruder at his home), and Julia Bozeman, D-New Hanover. Already resigned from the Senate are former Majority Leader Tony Rand, D-Cumberland, and David Weinstein, D-Robeson.
The decision of these six Eastern N.C. Democrats to leave changes the power structure of the state Senate dramatically. It robs Senate President Pro Tem Marc Basnight of veteran lawmakers from the East and furthers a shift of power from the East to the West, where Democratic Sen. Martin Nesbitt of Buncombe County will become the new majority leader. And it creates four vacancies to be filled by voters this fall and two other seats (Rand's and Weinstein's) where the Democratic incumbents will not have an established record of winning their districts. Republicans are enthusiastic about the possibility of winning six seats this fall and changing the Senate from a 30 to 20 advantage for Democrats to at least 26-24 in favor of Republicans.
Another departure will be Sen. Eddie Goodall, R-Union, who is not running again, but whose seat is regarded as a safe one for the GOP.
Meanwhile, Senate Republican leader Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, House Republican leader Skip Stam, R-Wake and State Republican Party Chairman Tom Fetzer announced plans Tuesday to file legislation in the short session (and next year, if the first try fails) that would exempt North Carolina from any federal requirement that residents purchase health insurance. Here's part of a press release the GOP put out:
"Raleigh, N.C. — The Republican leaders of the State Senate and House were joined by the Chairman of the North Carolina Republican Party today promising to fight the federal take-over of healthcare and protect an individual’s right to make decisions about their own health coverage. The Republican leadership promised a legislative initiative called the Health Care Protection Act (HCPA).
“Republicans will not stand idly by and watch as citizens' rights to make their own health care decisions are taken from them by the federal government,” said Senate Republican Leader Phil Berger (R-Rockingham), “The people of North Carolina are overwhelmingly opposed to this blatant abuse of power. We are proud to be their legislative voice by putting forth this common sense initiative.”
"House Republican Leader Paul Stam (R-Wake) said the initiative should be supported by Democrats and Republicans alike. “This should not be about partisan politics; it should be about the individual freedom of our citizens." Stam noted that either a general statue or a constitutional amendment will be presented during the short session in May. If the Democratic majority blocks the initiative, it will be submitted again the first week of next year’s session, when he believes Republicans will hold a majority."
I don't doubt that the Republican are serious about trying to exempt North Carolina from any federal law requiring the purchase of health insurance, though I think it would have a long and hard court fight ahead of it. But regardless of whether such a law would stand up to legal scrutiny, you have to admit it would make a mighty good campaign issue to energize the Republican Party's base and encourage support for Republican candidates this fall.
The issue might help Republicans gain control of the Senate and also take over the House, where Democrats have a 68-52 edge. If Republicans can pick up a net of nine seats, they'd have enough for a 61-59 majority.
North Carolinians in lower income tax brackets pay a higher percentage of their income in state and local taxes than the wealthiest taxpayers in the state, according to a study by the Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy.
The 50-state report compiled the amount each income group paid in income, sales, excise and property taxes over a multiyear period. The date shows that most states do, in fact, have regressive tax structures, explained Kelly Davis, the Midwest regional director for ITEP.
“Fairness is, of course, in the eye of the beholder,” reads the study. “Yet almost anyone would agree that the best-off families should pay at a tax rate at least equal to what low- and middle-income families pay. Virtually every state fails this basic test of tax fairness.”
Income taxes are progressive, meaning those who earn more pay a higher percentage. Other state and local taxes, such as sales and property taxes, are regressive. Although they tax everyone equally, those who earn less are paying more proportionally.
“We know that low-income people spent most of what they earned on things that are subject to regressive sales taxes,” Davis said.
The report found that North Carolina families earning less than $17,000 each year give 9.5 percent of their income back to state and local governments. Those earning between $29,000 and $48,000 paid the most, paying 9.6 percent of their annual wages in state and local taxes. Those earning $1,150,400 or more annually, the wealthiest bracket, pay 8.1 percent.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the median annual household income in Buncombe County was $43,805 in 2008, roughly 16 percent below the national average.
ITEP's mission is to “keep policymakers and the public informed of the effects of current and proposed tax polices on tax fairness, government budgets and sound economic policy.” But Davis said it is up to voters and legislators to decide what to do with the information.
“Our role is to give data and make people aware of this information,” Davis said. “Making sure people are aware of tax policy is a good first step.”
NC State Sen. Tony Rand, one of the most powerful political figures in the state, is leaving the Senate.
Rand, a Fayetteville Democrat, will become chairman of the state Parole Commission, Mark Johnson reports. He will resign before the end of the year.
"There comes a time when it's time to go," Rand said.
Rand has been in the Senate since 1981. He was appointed to his seat and later became rules chairman and the majority leader.
Rand, known for his wit and gravelly drawl, was the enforcer for Senate Leader Marc Basnight and made sure that the Senate's machinery ran smoothly. On the Senate floor, he is known for delivering pointed, but often entertaining allegories: "It's all chicken but the beak," he once told Dome.
Gov. Bev Perdue released a statement announcing her appointment of Rand to the Parole Board.
"North Carolina is fortunate that Senator Rand decided to take this position. He, like me, cares first and foremost about protecting the public but also understands the importance of giving people a fair shot at a second chance," said Perdue. "I don’t believe I could find a better candidate in the state or country to lead this commission."
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina donated $643,000 to state politicians from the 2000 election cycle through 2008, the election watchdog group Democracy North Carolina says.
No other company the size of Blue Cross has donated more to state politics, the organization said in a news release Tuesday. The political action committees of seven other companies, such as banks and utilities, have given more, but they are larger than Blue Cross and operate in multiple states, reports Dan Kane.
Sen. Tony Rand, the Democratic majority leader and chairman of a Senate committee on employees’ hospital and medical benefits, received $36,000 from Blue Cross, making him the top recipient, Democracy North Carolina said. The second highest recipient was Senate leader Marc Basnight, who received $35,000.
Blue Cross, the state’s largest health insurer, administers the health insurance plan for state employees. The health plan is supervised by a legislative body.
"This arrangement puts legislative leaders in the awkward position of monitoring themselves," Democracy North Carolina said in a news release Tuesday. "When substantial political money flows from insurers to legislators, the awkward position becomes more problematic to a skeptical public, even when legislators are doing their best to protect the public interest."
Executives from Blue Cross contributed an additional $117,000 to state politicians during the same 2000-08 period, the organization said. Blue Cross' chief executive officer, Robert J. Greczyn Jr., donated $69,000, and chief operating officer J. Bradley Wilson gave $21,933.
The top recipients of donations from the executives were Basnight, Attorney General Roy Cooper and Gov. Beverly Perdue.
Democracy North Carolina said that while the plan is in trouble, Blue Cross has a reserve fund in excess of $1.2 billion and gave its top six executives $10.5 million in salaries and bonuses in 2008.
Blue Cross spokesman Lew Borman said the company is required by law to have a reserve fund representing three to six months worth of claims and administrative expenses to make sure Blue Cross can pay its customers' medical bills. He said the $1.2 billion represents "the lower end of that requirement."
He also said that the executive compensation cited was for 2005-08, which were "three of the most successful years in our company's history in terms of customer growth, and financial stability."
As for the political contributions, Borman said it's nothing out of the ordinary for employees to voluntarily contribute so that they have a "voice in the democratic process."
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