Opinion
NC’s elections are strong. Now let’s build the next generation.
The task now is to make it even more resilient for the voters, communities, and public servants who will rely on it for decades to come.
News
EXCLUSIVE: Harrigan introduces SAFE Rural Act for storm resilience
Legislation introduced by US Rep. Pat Harrigan, R-NC10 would establish a flood resilience fund within FEMA.
News
NC rural grants total $1.6M, promise 215 new jobs
The NC Rural Infrastructure Authority has approved seven grant requests under the Building Reuse Program. These seven grants fall into two categories: the Vacant Building Category and the Existing Business Building Category.
Opinion
NC’s rural broadband connectivity faces a serious threat
Federal broadband grants were never supposed to be taxable. When Congress launched the National Broadband Plan and the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP), grants were explicitly non-taxable.
News
NC small Main Street businesses eligible for ‘destination’ certification
Small Main Street businesses in NC interested in gaining more customers and becoming “destinations” are eligible to receive certification through a new program from the NC Department of Commerce.
News
House agricultural committee approves bills on manufacturing, taxes
House committee approves a bill supporting agricultural manufacturing and another using excess tax revenue to fund grant programs for eligible farmers.
Opinion
The tier system: NC’s Hunger Games
The time has come for the state legislature to re-evaluate the county tier system, which does not adequately distribute funds to counties based on need.
Opinion
Eastern N.C.’s 2nd Congressional District becoming a crowded, ‘Sandy’ affair
No matter what the courts do with North Carolina’s new congressional district map, the area that was once a deep-blue secure district for Democrats, and specifically for Rep. G.K. Butterfield for the last 18 years, is likely to be a competitive congressional seat over the next decade. A decline in the African-American voting population and...
Opinion
Local governments getting millions, and something’s just not right
There’s been a lot written about this year’s state budget, and there will be more. That’s what happens when you’re dealing with a 438-page bill allocating $24 billion. A lot of money, a lot of competing interests, a lot of detail. I looked at local government allocations in the budget previously, and it comes to tens of millions of dollars. In June, I...
News
Hagan-Nominated USDA Official Scrubs Grant Documents
RALEIGH — A copy of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s file on a 2011 $50,000 solar energy grant to JDC Manufacturing was missing key documents that would clarify the roles of various family members of U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan. Hagan family members own JDC Manufacturing, along with a solar company that claimed to have performed work on the project.
News
USDA Office Blocks Access To Hagan Grant Records
RALEIGH — After first agreeing to allow Carolina Journal to inspect the documents relating to a taxpayer-funded U.S. Department of Agriculture energy grant to a company owned by family members of U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan, the USDA Rural Development office in Raleigh later said the matter was being handled in Washington — implying the USDA’s headquarters in the nation’s capital.
Opinion
Start Up the Rural Economy
Rather than simply embarking on a new “buffalo hunt” for industrial prospects, North Carolina’s small towns and rural communities should focus on cultivating entrepreneurs.
