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Hise ekes out win over Ballard in Senate District 47 primary

State Sen. Ralph Hise of Mitchell County secured reelection in Senate District 47 after narrowly snagging a victory over fellow incumbent state Sen. Deanna Ballard of Boone. Hise secured 50.65% of the vote compared to Ballard’s 49.35%. The primary was one of the most closely watched in the state because of its unusual matchup —...

David N. Bass
News

NC Senate fails to override mask veto, votes for adjournment

The N.C. Senate voted Wednesday evening to adjourn the longest long session of the legislature in decades, effective March 10. The adjournment resolution calls to reconvene the state legislature on April 4, then gavel out until May 4. The beginning of the short session would officially begin on May 18. The adjournment measure, Senate Joint...

CJ Staff
News

Protest of mask mandates planned Tuesday during meeting of Wake school board

The state’s Department of Health and Human Services says its newly revised K-12 Toolkit is a guideline for school districts, but it won’t hold up to state laws. The clarification came in a January letter to Sen. Deanna Ballard, R-Watauga. “The toolkit itself is not a legally enforceable document but rather a strong recommendation for...

Theresa Opeka
News

GOP lawmakers score well in N.C. Chamber’s annual ‘How They Voted’ report card

Republicans lawmakers in North Carolina scored well in the 2021 “How They Voted” report card released by the N.C. Chamber of Commerce on Monday, Dec. 13. How They Voted, the report says, “presents a straightforward, objective accounting of who stepped up — and who did not — when given the chance to support job creators...

John Trump
News

Senate education leader blasts AG Stein’s ‘defense’ in Leandro case

A top N.C. Senate education leader is criticizing Attorney General Josh Stein for his handling of the state’s defense in the long-running Leandro school funding lawsuit. “AG Stein tosses 200 years of legal precedent as he endorses lawless maneuvering to enact Gov. [Roy] Cooper’s preferred budget plan via court order,” reads a subheadline in a...

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Plaintiffs ask Leandro judge to order $1.7 billion transfer; N.C. senator responds

The plaintiffs in the long-running Leandro school funding case have asked the court to bypass the legislature and order the state government to transfer $1.7 billion to begin funding components of the plan. The plaintiffs made the request in a court filing obtained by WRAL-TV in Raleigh. The transfer would fund years two and three...

CJ Staff
News

GOP lawmakers fire back after judge sets arbitrary funding deadline in Leandro

Republican budget writers in the General Assembly are bristling after the judge in the long-running Leandro school funding case set an arbitrary deadline of Oct. 18 for lawmakers to fund the court-ordered plan. In a hearing Wednesday, Sept. 8, Superior Court Judge David Lee ordered the legislature to comply or he would explore options to...

David N. Bass
News

Excellent Public Schools Act, ‘Science of Reading’ literacy reforms take effect July 1

While state lawmakers wrestle with establishing a biennial budget, a bill previously passed by the General Assembly, and signed into law, takes effect Thursday, July 1: the Excellent Public Schools Act of 2021. The act modifies the implementation of read-to-achieve programs, including changes to reading instruction in North Carolina public elementary school classrooms, with the...

Jeff Moore
News

GOP lawmakers introduce measure to promote early literacy among N.C. public school students

Republican legislators in the N.C. Senate are pushing forward a bill meant to improve literacy among North Carolina public school students by the third grade. The Excellent Public Schools Act of 2021 would lay out a statewide roadmap for switching literacy instruction from a “look and say” method to the phonetic method. The bill would...

David N. Bass
News

Senate leader, governor say they’re talking about agreement to reopen schools

N.C. Senate leader Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, says lawmakers are negotiating with Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, on a plan to reopen schools. Berger, in a news conference Tuesday, March 9, with Sen. Deanna Ballard, R-Watauga, offered no specifics about the plan. Berger had scheduled a news conference Monday, but he canceled it because of the...

CJ Staff
News

Far-left teachers’ union questions learning loss after DHHS guidance; Republicans fire back

As the N.C. State Board of Education votes Thursday, March 4, to reopen schools, a far-left teachers’ union is trying to deny that children are suffering from learning loss. In a tweet, N.C. Association of Educators President Tamika Kelly called learning loss a “false construct.” She went as far as to place “learning loss” in...

John Trump