North Carolina legislators are not scheduled to return to Raleigh until January. But advocates for free-market, limited-government reforms already are looking ahead to policy proposals they will pursue in next year. Becki Gray, John Locke Foundation vice president for outreach, shares some key ideas JLF will pursue as lawmakers gather for their next “long” legislative session in 2017. Demographic changes ensure that North Carolina must innovate to keep up with funding demands for public education. That’s the warning Matthew Ladner delivered during a recent visit to the Tar Heel State. Ladner is senior adviser of policy and research at the Foundation for Excellence in Education. He explains that growth of both younger and older populations will mean that North Carolina must spend public education dollars as efficiently as possible in the decades ahead. North Carolina’s certificate-of-need restrictions on new medical facilities and major equipment survived for another year. But the state’s CON law won’t last much longer. That’s the prediction from state Sen. Ralph Hise, R-Mitchell, a leader in the General Assembly’s health care debate. Hise explained during a recent JLF forum why he believes North Carolina eventually will drop its CON rules completely. North Carolina is moving forward with its proposal to transform the state’s Medicaid program. State Health and Human Services Secretary Rick Brajer recently briefed lawmakers on the basics of the Medicaid reform plan. He also explained that reforms will depend on negotiations between the state and federal government. Those negotiations are bound to last for more than a year. You’ll hear highlights from his presentation and reaction from lawmakers. The presidential race grabs the headlines, and the closely contested N.C. governor’s race is attracting attention as well. But North Carolina has other important elections on the November ballot as well. Carolina Journal Managing Editor Rick Henderson analyzes key recent developments in some of the most important down-ballot election contests.