Budget delays continue at NCGA 
State budget negotiations, which have dragged past the July 1 start of the North Carolina fiscal year, are expected to run for weeks to come, lawmakers said Thursday. And while delays in the budget process aren’t unusual, rarely have they happened with as much at stake.

In addition to run-of-the-mill debates on issues like how much of a raise state employees should get, Republican legislators are also debating whether this new budget should be used to legalize casinos across the state. And as those and other debates hold up the budget negotiations, Medicaid expansion remains on pause. Although lawmakers did approve that earlier this year, they tied its fate to the budget's passage.

The legislature has had years with no new budgets due to political stalemates. Senate leader Phil Berger said he's confident that won't be the case this year. It's just a question of when a final deal will be reached, he said, and not if one is possible at all.

"It's just a matter of us working through these things," Berger said in an interview with WRAL on Thursday. "I don't see any roadblocks that will keep us from having a budget."

The new state budget, which will be roughly $30 billion once it becomes law, is bigger than it has ever been.

But more money can sometimes bring more problems. And this year the budget negotiations over how to spend the money — how to balance a combination of short-term and long-term projects, raises for state employees or further tax cuts — have dragged on for months.

Berger and Moore told reporters Thursday that negotiations continue and are expected to continue for weeks to come. They declined to provide more details on the broader budget talks. Neither chamber anticipates holding any votes next week, to give top budget writers more time to focus on figuring out the final details.

Hanging in the balance is Medicaid expansion, which would provide hundreds of thousands of the state’s working poor with insurance and pour billions of federal dollars into the state’s healthcare systems.

Long opposed by state GOP leaders until their high-profile reversal earlier this year, expansion will go into effect this year only once the new budget becomes law.

The fact that the budget is now more than a month overdue doesn’t mean state government will come crashing to halt. Unlike the federal government, which can shut down if Congress doesn’t approve a budget, in North Carolina the state simply continues operating under the terms of the previous year’s budget until a new one is approved.

The lack of action, however, means that teachers are looking at the prospect of no new raises, at least immediately, as the 2023-24 school year kicks off this month. Other state workers are, too. Corporations that had been hoping to pay less in taxes likely want lawmakers to hurry up — as do the roughly half million uninsured North Carolinians who will qualify for Medicaid, under the Medicaid expansion deal tied to the budget.

As for when that all will happen?

"You're talking a couple of weeks out at this point, to put everything together,” Moore said. “But it is moving in the right direction.”

Source: WRAL

Imagine what our neighborhoods would look like if we had all that we need, North Carolina! We can rewrite the rules so that *everyone contributes* to make our schools, hospitals, parks & programs all that our families deserve. Corporations paying what they owe means fully funded schools that prepare our children for the future, healthcare that keeps us well without breaking the bank, and more. We’re joining together to #FundOurFuture: https://ncbudget.org/jointogether/ #TaxEquity #ncga  Source: NC Budget & Tax Center  

From EqualityNC: 
The NC House has moved the override votes again on two Slate of Hate bills, #HB808, a youth gender-affirming care ban, and #HB574, a trans sports ban.  It is currently on the calendar for Tuesday, August 15th. Tell our lawmakers that NC belongs to ALL of us here: https://p2a.co/uGGaZop #ncpol

What is #UniteNC?
Pro-Choice North Carolina is excited to join with our partners at Common Cause North Carolina and other organizations across the state for a series of #UniteNC town halls! This is a fantastic opportunity to build our shared power and hold lawmakers accountable. Pro-Choice North Carolina will have materials at all town halls and we’ll be in-person at some of them, too. 

If you're concerned about harmful policies in the state legislature like attacks on abortion access, upcoming elections, and redistricting, join us and speak up for people-first policies!

• August 7: Kannapolis (Cabarrus County)
• Updated date - August 8: Gibsonville (Guilford)
• August 14: Wilmington (New Hanover)
• August 17: Salisbury (Rowan)
• New date - September 5: Hendersonville (Henderson)
• New date - September 6: Brevard (Transylvania)
• New date - September 7: Sylva (Jackson)
• September 12: Scotland’s Neck (Halifax)
• August 14: Wilmington (New Hanover County)
• August 17: Salisbury (Rowan County)

And there are more #UniteNC town halls to come…stay tuned! You can register and learn more by clicking HERE.  

Registered voters can now obtain free photo ID from their county boards of election.

Voters will be asked to show photo identification when they cast ballots in municipal elections this fall. Drivers licenses, state ID cards, passports and other forms of identification can be used.

The state Board of Elections announced Wednesday that county election offices are ready to offer IDs to registered voters who don’t have any of the other acceptable forms of identification.

Voters will be asked for their name, date of birth, and the last four digits of their Social Security number, the state Board of Elections said in a news release. The IDs may be ready on the spot in most counties, but a few counties will have to mail the IDs or have voters pick them up later.

North Carolina has a voter ID law in place for the first time since the spring 2016 primary.

Even though they will be asked for photo ID, voters without it will be able to cast ballots after filling out ID Exception forms saying why they don’t have it.

All voters now have at least one place in their county where they can obtain photo identification that they can use to cast ballots.

Carolina Demography reported last week that 17 of the state’s 100 counties don’t have DMV offices.  People seeking to obtain drivers licenses or state ID cards in those counties must cross county lines. Of those 17 counties, 11 have proportions of Black voting-age residents that are higher than the state average.

Even people who live in counties with one or more DMV offices may have a hard time getting an appointment.

Of the state’s 116 DMV offices, more than 70 on Wednesday they did not have appointments available for people seeking to obtain new licenses. DMV offices see people by appointment in the morning and accept walk-ins in the afternoon.

Click here to find a DMV office near you.

Source: NCNewsline

NCDHHS Partners With the North Carolina Council on Developmental Disabilities to Host Statewide Town Hall 

Secretary Kody Kinsley and DMHDDSUS Director Kelly Crosbie will join the North Carolina Council on Developmental Disabilities for a statewide townhall (virtual and 

in-person) that will be open to all of North Carolina on Zoom. Join us to hear updates on the state I/DD budget, 1915(i) Medicaid, Medicaid Expansion, and more.   

Date/Time: Thursday, August 10, 2023, 6:00-7:30 p.m. 

Join Link: Click here to register 

Note: Limited space is available in person at the Cary Garden Hilton Inn.  

Email townhall@nccdd.org to request to join in person. 

NAMI Annual Conference - Sponsors Welcome!
The 2023 NAMI NC Annual Conference will be held October 6, 2023 at the Durham Convention Center. We are excited to ramp up planning for this important event, and we need you!
Sponsors/Exhibitors: Interested in sponsoring or exhibiting at the annual conference?
Find more information on sponsor levels and benefits or to submit a Sponsorship/Exhibitor Commitment Form; visit the conference page on the NAMI website by clicking HERE. 

Questions? Contact Davine Laster, Director of Development and Events, at dlaster@naminc.org.

August is National Immunization Awareness Month (NIAM).  This is an annual observance held each August to highlight the importance of vaccination for people of all ages.  Read more from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) here. 

Item to Watch: 
SB 90- Searches of Student's Person (Children's Law Omnibus) was re-submitted to the K-12 Education Committee with several PCS (proposed committee substitutes) that would change how social workers can support children with their mental health.  The PCS version of the bill would clarify that minors have no authority to consent to mental health treatment unless they believe themselves to be a danger to themselves or others.  NASW-NC OPPOSES ALL PCS SUBMITTED. 

• Challenge school library books and prosecute librarians
• Challenge instructional materials
• Force a superintendent to be dismissed or receive a reduction in pay
• Request for their child to be reassigned to another school or district
• Be informed if their child identifies as transgender or is at risk of suicide
• Prohibit instruction on gender identity, sexual activity and sexuality in fourth and fifth grade
• State that charter schools are not state actors, potentially giving them more leeway to institute dress codes 
   

Due to public backlash and media coverage, SB 90 was pulled from the committee calendar.  Please be on the lookout for more information from NASW-NC if it is reintroduced during this legislative session. 

You can see a copy of SB 90 with the PCS changes by clicking HERE. 

NASW-NC Bills of Interest: 
HB 762 - School Social Workers/Master's Pay as a stand alone bill was heard in the House Education Committee on May 30th. Master's Level Pay for School Social Workers was included in the Governor's & House versions of the Budget. However, it was cut from the Senate version. NASW-NC and the NC School Social Workers Association (NCSSWA) were present at the NC General Assembly to advocate for this legislation.  It passed unanimously out of the House Education Committee and is now in the Appropriations Committee, where we hope it will be included in the final version of the 2023 Budget. 

Social Work Interstate Licensure Compact Update

SB 718 was not subjected to the final bill crossover deadline of May 4th. This means we still have the rest of the 2023 Legislative Session to get the bill passed in both chambers and signed into law by Governor Cooper. We are optimistic the bill will pass. Since only Republican-sponsored bills have moved this session, we are pitching the Compact as primarily a bill to support military spouses. The Social Work Compact creation was initiated by the Department of Defense to promote licensure portability for military spouses. You can read about that here: Interstate Licensure Compact for Social Work (socialworkers.org)  A large number of Republican lawmakers, who have the supermajority in both the House and Senate, are very supportive of bills that support military populations and NASW-NC is working on getting support to advance the bill before session ends. Please be on the lookout for action alerts to contact your legislators to support the Social Work Licensure Compact. 

More information about the Social Work Licensure Compact can be found here: https://swcompact.org   

Thank you to the members of NASW-NC for supporting the advocacy work we do. We would not be able to advocate for the social work profession or social justice issues in North Carolina without a robust and engaged NASW membership. If you are a social worker and not a member, we ask that you join NASW today. Our voice is louder with your membership.

Learn more about NASW-NC membership here.

Want this information sent directly to your inbox? Sign up for weekly NASW-NC legislative updates: https://votervoice.net/NASWNC/home