ANOTHER BUDGET UPDATE FROM THE COVENANT

Early Saturday morning, the House passed its budget proposal, which included a $784 million revenue package that will mitigate some of the worst cuts. The original revenue package would have generated about $940 million, but members of the House Finance Committee voted to eliminate additional taxes on tobacco products, beer, and wine. The final revenue package includes the following: an expanded sales tax base that will include more services; a quarter cent increase in the sales tax rate; two additional top income tax brackets; the elimination of some corporate loopholes; and, an increased liquor tax.

Below are some key restorations that came as a result of the revenue package:

Education:

-Maintains K-3 classroom sizes at current levels
-Low wealth funds for counties
-At risk student funding

Division of Child Development:

-Cuts in child care rates were fully restored
-The Smart Start cut was reduced from $25 million to $5 million

Health Choice:

-The proposed enrollment freeze is lifted
-The ER co-pay is eliminated

DSS:

-Funding for Child Advocacy Centers is fully restored
-State aid to counties for work-first is fully restored
-Foster care and adoption assistance is fully restored

Public Health:

-Early hearing program - fully restored
-2 nd dose of the chicken pox vaccine - fully restored
-Oral health program - fully restored
-Public health contracts - $5 million of $10.5 million cut restored

Medicaid:

-Provider reimbursement rate - rate is reduced by 3% instead of 5.5%
-PT/OT/ST - fully restored
-Adult optical and dental - fully restored
-Orthotics and prosthetics - fully restored

Mental Health:

-MH/DD/SA state funded services are fully restored ($50 million cut proposed)
-CAP/MR-DD state supplemental funds - cut reduced from $16 million to $8 million

Covenant Legislative Updates:

H88 - Healthy Youth Act (Sex-ed)

A group of Senators have come up with a piece of compromise legislation that limits parental choice and diminishes the comprehensive program. The bill was pulled off of the floor last week, and is scheduled to be heard this Tuesday.

H442 - Parental Involvement in School Discipline (corporal punishment)

The Senate Education Committee passed the bill last week. It was a contentious hearing with a very close vote. The bill was debated on the floor of the Senate, but due to opposition from all Republicans and some Democrats, the bill was not voted on. It is now scheduled to be heard on 6/24.

S526 / H548 - School Violence Prevention Act (Bullying Bill)

The House Judiciary I Committee will hear the bill this Tuesday with a floor vote later in the week. We don't expect the Committee vote to be a problem, but we know that the vote on the House floor will be extremely close.

OTHER COVENANT AGENDA BILLS

H177, Healthy Families and Healthy Workplaces Act (Paid sick-days) has now been heard in both the Senate and House Commerce Committees, which is a great step forward for this needed policy. We hope to get a study bill on this issue by the end of session.

H656 / S666 - MH Proceedings / No Restraint - This bill would prevent the shackling of youth during MH hearings. It's been referred to the House Judiciary II Committee and the Senate Judiciary I Committee. Unclear where this will go.

H783 - Study Comm. / Youth Aging Out of Foster Care (Adams, M. Alexander, Earle, Wiley). This bill passed out of the Juvenile Justice Committee last week and will move the House Rules Committee.

H804, an Act to Amend the Personal Education Plan Statute, passed the House the week before last. In short, this legislation would facilitate greater parental involvement in the education of their children. Thanks to Angella Dunston at the NC Justice Center for her work getting this bill passed.

H1414 - Youth Accountability Act

This bill would raise the age of juvenile court jurisdiction from 16 to 18, so that the state doesn't automatically prosecute 16 and 17 year-olds as adults (we're the only state in the country that still does this).

Unclear when this bill will come back up.


PASSED BILLS

Senate Passes Due Process / Suspension Bill

H218 / S737 - Parental and Student Educational Involvement Act (Due process for long-term suspensions and expulsions).

Yea! The bill has now passed both chambers and is headed to the Governor's desk. Kudos to the ACLU and others for their great work on this bill.

Financial Literacy Bill Passes Both Chambers

H817 / S1019, Establish NC Financial Literacy Council, have passed their respective chambers and seem likely to become law very soon. Kudos to Action for Children for its leadership on this issue.

Anti-Smoking Bill Wins Final Passage

The House voted to approve the Senate's version of the secondhand smoking bill, which would ban smoking in all restaurants and bars across the state. This is a great victory for the health of children and families in North Carolina. The Governor is expected to sign the bill into law on Tuesday morning. Cheers to the NC Alliance for Health, the American Cancer Society, and the American Heart Association for the hard (and smart) work on this bill.