Under the Dome: Lawmakers to quickly take up mandate for sheriffs to help ICE
Good morning! ☀️ Here’s what you need to know in North Carolina politics today.
It looks like the first major piece of legislation Republicans will take up during the short session is the bill that would require all North Carolina sheriffs to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
This is a bill that Republicans have been trying to enact since 2018, when new sheriffs elected in Democratic counties like Wake and Mecklenburg promised to limit or end their cooperation with ICE.
Gov. Roy Cooper has vetoed two similar bills in the past, and it was expected that a new bill that cleared the House last spring would also pass the Senate, and be sent to his desk, but the upper chamber didn’t take up House Bill 10 at all last year.
Now, it appears the Senate is ready to move forward with the bill, with the Senate Judiciary Committee scheduling a hearing on it for Tuesday. Catch up on the battle between Democratic sheriffs and the General Assembly with this story we published last month previewing the bill’s expected movement this session. — Avi Bajpai
Here’s more, from Luciana Perez Uribe Guinassi, correspondent Stephanie Loder, and me.
Medicare Advantage costs going up
Potential premium increases are on the table for the State Health Plan.
The plan’s Board of Trustees discussed the state of the plan’s finances Thursday.
One sticking point in those talks was an unexpected increase in Medicare Advantage payments the plan needs to make. This is projected to lead to a hefty financial loss for the plan in 2025, about $163 million compared to the prior year, according to data presented by staff during the meeting.
Humana currently holds the Medicare Advantage contract.
This increase in costs to the plan comes despite cutting access to popular weight loss drugs like Wegovy and Saxenda.
Staff members proposed ideas on how to tackle the increase, including an increase in premiums. Under this plan, premiums would not increase for retired state employees. But they would increase for dependents of those retirees — children, spouses and other family members — on Humana’s Medicare Base Plan (70/30).
The premium would increase by $33 per month in 2025 for children and spouses, from just $4 now to $37. It would increase to $74 per month under a family coverage plan, up from just $8.
The increase in premiums would impact about 4,200 retirees and 22,000 dependents, staff reported.
The board had originally planned to vote on the changes on Thursday, but Treasurer Dale Folwell called to postpone the vote to allow more time to analyze the projected shortfall. — Luciana Perez Uribe Guinassi
DEMOCRATS RENEW PUSH FOR ‘COMMON SENSE’ GUN SAFETY MEASURES
Volunteers from Moms Demand Action and Everytown for Gun Safety filled the halls of the Legislative Building on Thursday to make another push for what they called “common sense” gun safety measures.
At a press conference, Democratic lawmakers who file gun safety bills each session said that although they’ve “tried everything possible” to force hearings and votes on legislation including red flag laws and universal background checks, they plan to continue putting a spotlight on the issue and pushing for action.
Angela Ferrell-Zabala, the executive director of Moms Demand Action, said that with gun rights groups urging Republican lawmakers to build on action they took last year and pass legislation this session that would allow concealed carry without a permit, North Carolina is “at a crossroads.”
“We need our elected leaders to show some courage and prioritize popular, effective common sense gun safety bills instead of rolling back existing laws, and exacerbating this crisis,” she said. “The facts are on our side; history and research have proven that states with weak gun laws have higher rates of gun violence. And we know we deserve action from our lawmakers because our lives are worth more than the gun industry’s profits.”
Democrats introduced several gun safety bills last year, including legislation to enact a red flag law in the state that would allow a judge to temporarily confiscate guns from someone deemed a threat to themselves or others, require permits for the purchase of long guns, and penalize leaving unsecured guns in unattended vehicles.
Rep. Marcia Morey, a Durham Democrat who has introduced many of those bills, said she and her colleagues would file discharge petitions once again this year, to try to force a vote on bills that haven’t been heard by committees for months.
Discharge petitions require the support of 61 members of the House to move a bill directly to the floor for a vote. — Avi Bajpai
DEMOCRAT MAY TURN AGAINST MEDICAL MARIJUANA BILL
North Carolina remains one of few states that has failed to pass a medical marijuana legalization bill, despite a push from Republican Sen. Bill Rabon.
Rabon, the primary sponsor of the medical marijuana legalization bill, last year shared with the House health committee his experience using marijuana illegally during his chemotherapy treatments for cancer
The bill, also known as the NC Compassionate Care Act, passed the Senate by a vote of 36-10, with all the votes against it coming from Republicans. But opposition from House Republicans has kept it from becoming law.
Now Sen. Graig Meyer, an Orange County Democrat who previously voted in favor of the bill, wants amendments before moving forward.
Get the full story from Luciana Perez Uribe Guinassi here.
NC LAWMAKER SANCTIONED OVER FRANKED NEWSLETTERS
The bipartisan House Communication Standards Commission on Wednesday unanimously sanctioned U.S. Rep. Chuck Edwards after finding he violated the rules regarding franked mail to send out newsletters to constituents attacking President Joe Biden and his son, Hunter Biden.
Franked mail can only be used for congressional business, not to target political parties or individuals.
Edwards, a Flat Rock Republican, called the sanction a way for Democrats to put a gag order on him. He said he would follow the rules going forward.
Get the full story from Danielle Battaglia here.
GRAND JURY INDICTS NC’S MARK MEADOWS
Former North Carolina congressman Mark Meadows, who served as chief of staff for former President Donald Trump, was indicted by an Arizona grand jury this week for his efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
While Meadows’ name does not appear in the indictment, he is among 18 people charged.
Prosecutors provided details in the indictment that revealed Meadows as one of the defendants whose names are redacted.
Individual charges weren’t immediately clear, but charges for the group include:
Conspiracy.
Fraudulent schemes and artifices.
Fraudulent schemes and practices.
Forgery.
Trump is not charged in the indictment.
Get the full story from Danielle Battaglia here.
TIME TO RSVP FOR UNDER THE DOME: LIVE!
Join The N&O on April 30 for a special live recording of the Under the Dome politics podcast featuring Sen. Natalie Murdock (D-20) and Sen. Vickie Sawyer (R-37).
Here’s what you need to know to join in:
Register at underthedomelive.eventbrite.com
The event starts at 5 p.m.
The podcast begins at 5:30 p.m.
Join us in the Daniels Auditorium at the N.C. Museum of History, 5 E. Edenton St., Raleigh.
That’s all for today. Check your inbox tomorrow for more #ncpol news.
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