The short session of the N.C. General Assembly is scheduled to start in May
SOUTHEASTERN N.C. -- Finding legislative solutions to the presence of emerging contaminants in drinking water will be among the top issues the region's delegation to the N.C. General Assembly hopes to tackle in this year's short session.
The session is tentatively scheduled to begin in May, following the primary election. While the issue of drinking water has dominated the discussion among area legislators, it is by no means the only topic they'll deal with this year.
Here are some things the three-county region's legislators say are among their goals:
1. Water quality
The issue of contaminants in the Cape Fear River was thrust into the forefront in June of last year, when the StarNews reported that the unregulated chemical GenX was found in the Cape Fear River and could not be filtered by the Cape Fear Public Utility Authority (CFPUA).
So far, legislators have passed a limited measure providing $435,000 for research and testing to the CFPUA and University of North Carolina Wilmington over the veto of Gov. Roy Cooper, who wanted a more comprehensive approach taken. Last month, the House passed a bill providing $2.3 million to the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) for equipment and testing.
That bill passed the House unanimously, but has created some tension created between the two chambers after the Senate declined to take it up.
"This is the first environmental bill anyone can remember where it was unanimous," said the bill's prime sponsor, N.C. Rep. Ted Davis, R-New Hanover. "Nobody from the Senate has contacted me about that bill. Nobody."
"I'm very disappointed that the Senate did not take it up because it was unanimous out of the House," said N.C. Rep. Holly Grange, R-New Hanover, another prime sponsor.
"We haven't taken any aggressive steps yet," said N.C. Rep. Deb Butler, D-New Hanover. "It's disappointing that they didn't get (the bill) through the finish line."
"I can't answer for the Senate," said N.C. Rep. Bob Muller, R-Pender. "It's disappointing they didn't consider it."
Area senators, meanwhile, said the measure would have done nothing to ensure clean drinking water, while leading people to believe it would.
"I disagreed with the way they approached the issue and I hope we can resolve our differences," said N.C. Sen. Michael Lee, R-New Hanover. "It's about finding the best policy. Finding the best policy doesn't mean we're fighting about it, it's about finding out what is best."
N.C. Sen. Bill Rabon, R-Brunswick, who is chairman of the Senate Rules Committee, which controls the flow of legislation in the Senate, said he believed something would be accomplished during the short session regarding contamination of water.
"I don't know if that bill will pass per se or if it will be something else. But something will," Rabon said. "The goal is to get this stuff out of our water. We need to ensure that absolutely no more goes into the water ever again."
2. Film
The biennial budget passed last year includes $33.6 million in 2017-18, a figure that includes a rollover of $18.6 million in unspent funds, and $31 million in 2018-19 for the state’s film grant program.
But, for the first time, that money is recurring, meaning no need to lobby for the program’s inclusion each budget cycle. Supporters have said the recurring money will provide stability in the program and was something they had to work to convince other legislators to support.
Legislators said they hope to keep it that way, as such items can fall prey to competing interests, Lee said.
"I'm going to bird dog that to make sure that does not get diminished in any way," he said.
Davis said he "would fight that tooth and nail" if other legislators attempted to restrict the program again.
3. Transportation
N.C. Rep. Frank Iler, R-Brunswick, and Rabon have each said they want to find ways to get transportation projects from concept to completion faster.
"We've had an issue with project delivery and building up cash because we aren't able to get projects done," Iler said. He said legislators could try to find ways to get things like environmental reviews and planning done faster so work can get started sooner.
"We'd like to see more projects being delivered faster," he said.
Reporter Tim Buckland can be reached at 910-343-2217 or Tim.Buckland@StarNewsOnline.com.
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