March 15, 2013
Governor Signs EITC Cut into Law; Further Limits to Corporal Punishment Filed
Greetings!
Governor McCrory Signs EITC Cut into Law
Governor McCrory signed H.B. 82 into law on Wednesday . The new law reduces the state EITC from 5 percent of the federal credit to 4.5 percent and keeps in place the scheduled sunset of the bill at the end of the year.
TAKE ACTION: Sign Petition Against Shifting Tax Burden from Wealthy to Working Poor
Recent legislation to end the Earned Income Tax Credit, while also ending the estate tax, will hurt the most vulnerable in our communities by shifting the state's tax burden from the wealthy to the working poor. Click here to sign the NC Justice Center's petition, calling on the Governor and Legislature to shift their priorities.
Also, check out Together NC's Tax Reform Toolkit.
Bill Filed to Further Regulate Corporal Punishment
A bill ( S.B. 278) was filed this week to clarify that children in foster care are exempt from corporal punishment (in accordance with foster care regulations), and that officials who administer and witness corporal punishment in public schools must be the same gender as the student receiving the corporal punishment. The bill was referred to the Senate Rules Committee.
N.C. Supreme Court to Consider Appeal to Manning Pre-K Decision
The N.C. Supreme Court has agreed to consider an appeal to Judge Manning's 2011 ruling on legislation that tried to limit access to state-run Pre-K. With his decision, Manning threw out a new state law that tried to limit enrollment and charge parents a sliding scale fee. Last August, the Appeals Court upheld the Manning decision, determining that the state cannot limit enrollment to at-risk children. State legislators appealed the decision to the N.C. Supreme Court, and the court has agreed to hear the case.
TAKE ACTION: Protect Regulations that Protect Our Children
Click here to express your concern with H.B. 74, which would require that all state rules and regulations be reviewed and re-adopted before a certain date, or be eliminated from the books. Advocates are urging that the critical rules that regulate child care centers not be eliminated.
Raise the Age Update A bill to raise the age of juvenile jurisdiction from 16 to 18 for youth accused of misdemeanors only will be introduced in the next couple of weeks.
Relevant Bills Acted on This Week
Key bills affecting children that were acted on this week at the General Assembly are listed below. Economic Security
Would artificially limit expansion of the General Fund beyond an annual growth factor. Constitutional amendment subject to voter approval during the 2014 election cycle. Filed and referred to House Committee on Government.
Child Safety
Would increase penalties for felony child abuse from a max of 15 years to a max of 33 years. Passed the House and referred to Senate Appropriations Committee.
Would make it a felony for a parent or other caregiver to knowingly fail to report the disappearance of a child. Received from the House and referred to Senate Rules Committee. H.B. 18: Youth Skin Cancer Prevention ActWould raise the minimum age for use of tanning beds from 14 to 18. Teenagers ages 14 to 17 are currently permitted to tan with parental consent and children 13 and younger are allowed only with a doctor's prescription. Use of tanning beds, particularly in childhood, has been linked to skin cancer. Passed the House Regulatory Reform Committee and scheduled to be heard on the House floor on Tuesday.SB 45: Incapacity to Proceed Amendments (H.B. 88) Makes changes in law regarding juveniles' capacity to proceed with a case. Scheduled to be heard on the House floor on Tuesday. HB 183: Allow Hospitals to Test Blood for DWIMakes blood and urine samples taken in hospitals admissible in adjudicatory hearings in juvenile court. Scheduled to be heard on the House floor on Tuesday. EducationThree new bills on the compulsory school age: S.B. 313: Parent's Consent Required to Quit School (H.B. 235): Raises from 16 to 18 the age under which parental consent is required to drop out of school. Filed. Would require foster parents to develop educational plans for foster children by the time they are in high school. Filed and referred to Senate Committee on Health Care. Requires the State Board of Education to take certain steps to improve education for children who are deaf or hard of hearing. Filed. Would allow eligible students with disabilities to apply for scholarship grants to attend any nonpublic school and to receive special education and related services in a nonpublic school setting. Filed and referred to House Education Committee. Requires that funds transferred from LEAs to charter schools be transferred by a given date and be accounted for. Filed and referred to House Education Committee. Requires the State Board of Education to establish a revolving loan fund to provide interest-free start up funds, of no more than $25,000, to a charter school granted an initial charter. Filed and referred to House Appropriations Subcommittee on Education.
Expresses the intent of the Legislature to move from funding textbooks to funding only digital learning media by 2017 and to set standards for digital competency for teachers and staff. Passed and sent to the Governor. Directs the State Board of Education to survey public schools' wireless and bandwidth capacity, make recommendations to improve it and report on the expected costs of improving it. Provisions that would have assessed communities' internet readiness and allocated $100,000 to the effort were eliminated in committee. Passed the House and received in the Senate.
Friday Conference Calls
Action for Children and the Covenant with North Carolina's Children hold Friday morning conference calls to update you on the week's happenings at the General Assembly. Updates include bills and budget actions. To join:
- Fridays, 11 a.m.
- Dial 1-800-582-3014 and enter passcode 882011141#
Click here to add this call to your calendar.
New Reports
The Status of Girls in North Carolina 2013, Amie Hess, PhD, Meredith College
Focusing on data from seven content areas -- demographics and poverty, education, media engagement, physical health, mental health, sexual health, and leadership and civic engagement -- the report highlights areas in which girls in North Carolina are making strides, areas in need of improvement and areas of disparity among girls.
This report examines the potential impacts of the Supreme Court's decision that the federal government cannot compel states to expand Medicaid. The report finds that N.C. employers may have to pay between $65 million and $98 million in fees due to the N.C. Legislature's decision to not expand Medicaid.
Calendar and Events
Child Advocacy Day, April 17th at the General Assembly
Day child advocates will convene on behalf of N.C.'s children.
Save the date! More information coming soon.
Hands of Protection Second Annual 5K Walk, April 20th, Smithfield.
Walk to prevent child abuse.
Second Chance Lobby Day, April 23 rd from 9-5 at the N.C. Legislative Building Sponsored by the NC Second Chance Alliance Registration is open now. Today is the last day for the early bird registration rate.
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