Legislative Update for the Week of June 24-28

Here is a look at some votes in the General Assembly last week.

House of Representatives:

HB391: Passenger Protection Act – Rep. John Bell (R- Wayne) was the primary sponsor for this piece of legislation that passed the House last Thursday with a unanimous vote in favor. Read Neuse News’ previous reporting on this bill here. The bill would require all ride-share drivers to have clear signage on their vehicles, as well as display their license plate number on the front of their cars. The bill now goes to the Senate for consideration. Read the text of the bill here. 

SB220: Removal of Political Signs by Citizens – Sen. Don Davis (D- Greene) was a primary sponsor of this bill that allows any citizen to remove a political sign that remains in the highway right-of-way more than 30 days after it should have been removed by the campaign. It passed the House on a 111-1 vote, with Reps. Bell, Chris Humphrey (R- Lenoir) and Pat McElraft (R-Carteret) voting in favor. Following the vote in the House, the Senate voted to approve changes made in the House committee process, and the bill went to Gov. Cooper for his signature. Read the text of the bill here.

SB224: Repeal Tuition Surcharge – The House voted on this bill sponsored by Sen. Jim Perry (R- Lenoir) in response to a constituent request. The bill repeals a surcharge previously imposed on students at state universities who require more than 140 credit hours to complete a bachelor’s degree. (Read Neuse News’ previous analysis here.) The vote in the House was 104-2 in favor, with Bell and Humphrey voting in favor. Rep. McElraft was absent for the vote.

Senate Votes:

HB474: Death by Distribution – The Senate voted on this bill that is a companion bill to SB375 (Read analysis of that bill here), passing it on a 36-10 vote. Sen. Harry Brown (R-Onslow) was a primary sponsor of the Senate version, and Sen. Perry was a co-sponsor. Both senators voted in favor of the House bill, as did Sen. Davis. After a House vote to agree to changes made in the Senate, HB474 went to Gov. Cooper for his signature. Read the text of the bill here.  

HB224: Assault w/ Firearm on LEO/Increase Punishment – The Senate passed this bill on a 48-0 vote, with all local senators voting in favor. Rep. Bell is a co-sponsor of this legislation that increases the penalties for assaulting a law enforcement officer with a firearm from a Class E to a Class D felony. It now goes to the governor for his signature. Read the text of the bill here.

Check back with Neuse News later this week for more updates on the General Assembly.