Provided by Stacey Massengill, NCSPA Legislative and Public Policy Committee Member
Originally Submitted by Rob Thompson, Executive Director of the Covenant with North Carolina's Children
Dear Covenant Members,
The pace of various study commissions has really picked up over the last month as deadlines approach, vacations end, and appointments have finally been made. The purpose of these task forces and commissions is to study an issue and make recommendations back to the full Legislature by next session. Below are some summaries of where these groups are at in their deliberations. I also included some good news(!) and announcements. Cheers, Rob
Children and Youth Study Commission
This Commission met Thursday, 11/19 for the first time since last interim. The meeting was devoted to a discussion of a proposed ban on shackling children as they are transported to and from involuntary mental health commitment hearings. Last session, the Covenant supported H656, which would have banned this practice. In some parts of the state, these children are shackled about the legs, waist, and arms, which humiliates them and exacerbates their preexisting mental health problems.
During the meeting, Commission members heard from Deborah Whitfield of Council for Children's Rights (Covenant member) and Eddie Caldwell of the NC Sheriffs' Association. Whitfield presented a strong case for banning shackling, while Caldwell made far-fetched comparisons to extreme cases involving adults, not children. Most questions from commission members had to do with potential logistical issues around implementing the ban. Members of the commission did express a strong interest in exploring the idea of doing video conferences for these hearings, which would eliminate this issue all together. The Commission did not make any recommendations at this meeting.
The Commission will meet again in November (11/30, 10 am, 415 LOB) and twice in December. The Commission will begin a discussion about how best to support the children of inmates at the next meeting. Follow this link to see a list of Commission members: http://www.ncleg.net/gascripts/Committees/Committees.asp?sAction=ViewCommittee&sActionDetails=Non-Standing_677
Joint Senate and House Finance Committee Meetings
The Senate and House Finance Committees met twice in November with the goal of coming up with recommendations for modernizing North Carolina's revenue system.
Thus far, the Committee meetings have largely been educational, with a series of presentations by academics and legislative staff. The focus has been on the need to broaden the base of the sales tax to include a greater percentage of statewide consumption. While we generally support this idea, it's becoming apparent that many legislators and lobbyists see sales tax reform as a way to cut corporate and individual income taxes. The Covenant would strongly oppose any efforts to do this.
It's unclear when legislators will begin a serious conversation about what to do here in NC. The next meeting is on Tuesday, 12/1 from 10 am to 4 pm. (Also, Together NC will be hosting a revenue modernization workshop on Wednesday, 12/2 from 1:30 - 3:30 at NCAE).
As you all know, the Covenant has been co-leading the Together NC coalition ( http://www.togethernc.org/) to ensure that NC has adequate revenues to fund the important services that support children and families. Modernizing our revenue system is an important part of this effort.
Youth Accountability Task Force
At the end of last session, the Legislature created a commission to study how best to move 16- and 17-year olds into the juvenile justice system (though that policy change is still yet to pass). At the first meeting of this task force, members and attendees were educated on adolescent brain development, the respective roles of the Department of Juvenile Justice and the Department of Corrections, and the evolution of juvenile justice policy in NC over the past century. Task Force members also heard a presentation from a Connecticut legislator about their recent success about changing the age of juvenile jurisdiction in that state.
The next meeting of the task force will be on Thursday, Dec. 10 from 10 am to 3 pm at the NC Judicial Center. Follow this link to see a list of Task Force members: http://www.ncleg.net/gascripts/Committees/Committees.asp?sAction=ViewCommittee&sActionDetails=Non-Standing_6432
Early Childhood Consolidation Study Commission
This Commission hasn't met yet. Their charge is to examine how best (of if) to consolidate early childhood programs, such as Smart Start, More at Four, and Child Care subsidies. It looks like the first meeting of this group will happen sometime in early December. Here are the members:
House: Rep. Ray Rapp (co-chair), Rep. Glazier, Rep. Insko
Senate: Sen. Dan Blue (co-chair), Sen. Purcell, Sen. Swindell
Governor: Stephanie Fanjul, John Pruitte, Olson Huff
Good news in the world of mental health and developmental disabilities?
Yep, it's true. Last Friday, 11/19, Leza Wainwright (director of the division of MH/DD/SA) informed LMEs that an additional 1175 CAP-MR/DD slots are immediately available (225 for the comprehensive waiver and 950 for tier one (partial) waiver). This is great news. The CAP-MR/DD program allows people living with serious disabilities to receive community-based services so that they don't have to move into an institution.
Announcements
Join Together NC for a Tax Modernization Workshop in Raleigh
This year, North Carolina's state government faced the first of what will be several large revenue shortfalls, jeopardizing the programs and services that support our families and communities. While the severe economic downturn is largely to blame for this shortfall, it has also highlighted our inadequate and outdated revenue system, which overreacted to the recession leaving us in a deep financial hole.
To ensure that we can maintain and build upon public programs, like education, health care, housing assistance, job training and so many others, we MUST create a stable, fair and adequate revenue system.
This year's massive state revenue shortfall created a unique opportunity for tax modernization. The House and Senate finance committees have come together and will be meeting over the next several months to craft recommendations for updating our state tax system, starting with the sales tax.
Please join us for a presentation and discussion on why strengthening North Carolina's tax system is critical to preserving public investments in our families and communities and how we can fix it. The presentation will focus on our state and local sales tax.
Wednesday, December 2nd 1:30 pm to 3:30 pm NCAE Auditorium 700 South Salisbury Street Raleigh, NC 27601
Upcoming Legislative Meetings:
Children and Youth Study Commission - 11/30, 10 am, 415 LOB, Raleigh
Senate/House Finance Committees - 12/1, 10 am, 643 LOB Raleigh
Youth Accountability Task Force - 12/10, 10 am, NC Judicial Center, Raleigh
