Thursday, July 11, 2013

Surprises not surprising near session's end

Surprises keep on coming in the waning days of North Carolina's legislative session.

Last week it was the N.C. Senate which, in a hastily called committee meeting, inserted controversial new abortion proposals into a bill on Sharia law.

Wednesday it was the House. Committee members meeting to debate a bill on motorcycle safety found the bill had picked up a new sidecar: the abortion proposals. They were similar to the Senate's, but revised at the urging of Gov. Pat McCrory's administration.

They caught some lawmakers by surprise. But Rep. Ruth Samuelson, a Charlotte Republican handling the abortion provisions, told reporters, "We’re nearing the end of session. Things move quickly."

Then came more surprises.

They came in a regulatory reform bill, or as critics call it, the "Billboards Forever" bill.

Inserted into a bill involving various regulations were several seen publicly for the first time. Among them: provisions to allow more clearing of trees and other vegetation around billboards and to essentially prevent cities and towns from regulating existing billboards.

"The bottom line for us is that this legislation says, in effect, that billboards are forever," says Ben Hitchings, president of the N.C. Chapter of the American Planning Association. "The fact that this hasn't been vetted in any substantive way is a real concern."

The bill, SB 112, has other provisions that concern local officials.

It prohibits local governments from enacting environmental or other regulations more stringent than state or federal regulations. And it repeals zoning protest petitions, which give citizens more say in nearby development.

Paul Meyer of the N.C. League of Municipalities says the bill essentially puts city ordinances "in the hands of various state environmental agencies."

"Municipalities enact these environmental ordinances to respond to environmental threats, protect life and property, and streamline local development procedures," he said in a statement.

The bill is on Thursday's House calendar. If passed, and if the Senate concurs with its changes, the bill could present a dilemma for McCrory.

Last year, as a candidate for governor, he said he opposed GOP legislation that would curb local governments' ability to regulate billboards.





Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/07/10/3021199/mccrory-will-veto-abortion-bill.html#storylink=cpy

8 comments:

bobcat99 said...

"It prohibits local governments from enacting environmental or other regulations more stringent than state or federal regulations. And it repeals zoning protest petitions, which give citizens more say in nearby development." In NC, we are all being run over by big government, or should I say big business?

bobcat99 said...

The Observer really needs to get a new captcha provider. I can barely make out what they say. It takes several attempts to get through them. Signed, Not a Robot

Anonymous said...

The only thing the Republicans haven't done yet is pass legislation mandating the flying of the Confederate flag over the Capitol building in Raleigh.

Of course, they do have a few days until adjournment.

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Anonymous said...

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/07/12/4162388/mccrory-says-he-mingles-with-protesters.html

Could future US Republican conservative president please give the specific details and exact words these violent verbally abusive law breaker protesters many who resisted arrest to the Raleigh police uttered to him outside so it will be on record since he says he was "cussed out" by this raunchy bunch?

It is common knowledge all liberals are all the real racist bigoted vicious haters when they cant get all the freebies they demand like spoiled rotten crybaby children throwing a tantrum but for obviously non-peaceful protesters to "cuss out" a sitting governor is something never before heard of and needs to be investigated further for the future.

McCrory showed total class and intelligence in handling this uncivil situation. The 1st Amendment allows for peaceful protests only. Liberal racists are pure devils.


MCCRORY FOR PRESIDENT IN 2016 !!

Anonymous said...

Any truth to the insider scoop that many employees at the Charlotte Observer were arrested for breaking the law creating unrest strife violent overthrow social unrest upheaval and civil disturbance and disobedience because they cant get their way on sodomite marriage?

Only 93 out of 100 counties this voted obama marriage down so what is the problem? Its called majority rule. California disobeyed Prop 8 and overrode We The People.

Hopefully the authorities will see fit to check for and confiscate any and all firearms knives or other weapons at any other protest event especially from liberal media protesters.

In case some are ignorant or forgot:

THE 1ST AMENDMENT : US CONSTITUTION
RATIFIED 1789 IN PHILADELPHIA PA

AUTHOR: JAMES MADISON 4TH PRESIDENT
RESIDENT OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Anonymous said...

http://www.cnn.com/video/data/2.0/video/world/2013/07/15/penhaul-pkg-egypt-christians-under-attack.cnn.html

Muslims continue killing Xians the world over and of course since the Obama revolution in Egypt the revolutionary terrorists supported by the White House continues killing coptic Xian catholics (muslim converts).

The largest nation in Africa with 200 million split even at 50/50 muslims and Xians was ignored by Obama during his 100 million $$ tax payer funded African vacation to see Mandela and sight see West Africa but never breathed a word about Nigeria where Nigerian Xians are slaughtered by the millions by muslims.