HUD greenlights $1.4 billion for Helene relief in NC
Good morning and welcome to Under the Dome. I’m Caitlyn Yaede.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development approved a $1.4 billion block grant for disaster recovery in North Carolina last week, intended to benefit communities impacted by Hurricane Helene.
Gov. Josh Stein submitted the North Carolina Action Plan to HUD last month to request the funds, making North Carolina “the fastest state to have submitted a plan following a major hurricane in the past decade,” according to a news release from the governor’s office.
The department’s approval comes after Sen. Ted Budd and Thom Tillis, joined by 10 other colleagues representing North Carolina in Congress, penned a letter asking the Trump administration to expedite the relief.
TWO GROUPS REVIEWING FEMA?
Two separate Trump-appointed groups will work on improving disaster recovery, Rep. Chuck Edwards says.
In the first visit of his second presidential term, Donald Trump visited Western North Carolina and called into question the role of FEMA in helping communities recover from disasters like Helene.
He indicated during his visit an interest in eradicating the agency and delegating natural disaster relief to the states. On Jan. 24, he signed an executive order creating the “Federal Emergency Management Agency Review Council” to conduct a “full-scale review” of the agency.
Some members of the council were announced the same month. It was to be headed by Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley. Rep. Chuck Edwards said in a written statement that he would also serve on the “FEMA task force” alongside Reps. Virginia Foxx and Tim Moore.
This week, Trump shared the full roster for the FEMA Review Council on Truth Social. Although Edwards, Foxx and Moore were absent from the lineup, Edwards told Spectrum News they are serving on a completely separate board — with a similar mission.
“I’ve been appointed to a special task force to accelerate the recovery of Western North Carolina,” he told Spectrum News. The FEMA Review Council, by contrast, will offer recommendations to improve FEMA, according to Edwards.
Although the task force has not convened, Edwards published his own recommendations to accelerate hurricane recovery earlier this month.
REPUBLICANS ADVANCE BILL EMPOWERING STATE AUDITOR
North Carolina lawmakers on Tuesday advanced a bill expanding the powers of the state auditor, a position they have frequently sought to embolden since November, when it was won by a Republican for the first time in 16 years.
The bill, House Bill 549, would empower the auditor to investigate any non-governmental organization that receives public funds, but limits his purview to only the organization’s use of state or federal funds.
“At its core, this bill reaffirms a basic principle: transparency is non-negotiable,” House Majority Leader Brenden Jones, the bill’s sponsor, said. “When public money is involved, no agency, no contractor, no publicly-funded entity should be beyond independent review.”
Starting this summer, the bill would also exempt new hires in the auditor’s office from the State Human Resources Act — a broad law which establishes protections for state employees. It would give current employees the choice to exempt themselves from the act.
Ardis Watkins, legislative affairs director for the State Employees Association, strongly criticized this proposal at a committee hearing on Tuesday.
“You voted for lack of transparency in government, for less efficient government, where you can get rid of people who are career professional state employees and are nonpartisan and put whoever you want in there,” she told lawmakers on the House State and Local Government Committee, who did not allow members of the public to comment on the bill until after they had already voted on it.
Rep. James Roberson, a Wake County Democrat, also opposed the measure.
“I think this would further erode the opportunity to do the right thing for North Carolinians when it comes to maintaining jobs and making sure that we appear to be a sustainable work state,” he said.
Senate Republicans have advanced their own proposal to expand the auditor’s powers with a bill called The DAVE Act — a reference to Boliek’s first name.
It would give Boliek more power to recommend job cuts or the complete elimination of state agencies — though the legislature would still have the final say.
The DAVE Act passed the Senate earlier this month almost entirely along party lines, with former Senate Democratic leader Dan Blue being the only member of his party to vote in favor of it.
— Kyle Ingram
REALITY CHECK: NC falls in national ranking for teacher pay
The National Education Association released its annual report on Tuesday, with North Carolina ranked 43rd in overall teacher pay, down five spots from last year, T. Keung Hui reports.
The national average teacher salary is $72,030 — significantly higher than North Carolina’s average of $58,292.
At the same time, the state rose three spots to 39th in beginning teacher pay, as state lawmakers have long targeted pay increases for new educators due to their high turnover rate.
This report comes at a critical time, as the General Assembly is working on its budget and the House is considering several bills that would impact the teaching profession. More on this later.
The Senate’s version of the budget proposed a 2.3% pay increase for teachers this year, with an average of a 3.3% increase over the next two years, as well as a $3,000 bonus.
It’s unclear how teachers will fare under the House’s version, but the chamber is considering a bill that would give teachers a 22% raise.
POLL: National poll from Elon University shows low confidence in economy
A majority of Americans are bracing for higher prices after President Donald Trump unveiled higher tariffs, according to a new national poll from Elon University.
Forty-three percent of Americans expect prices to be “much higher” and 37% anticipate “somewhat higher” prices as a result of new tariff policy. Attitudes about tariffs remain divided by party, however, with 71% of Republicans indicating they would be willing to accept higher prices if it would benefit the U.S. economy in the long run, compared to just 13% of Democrats.
A majority — 65% — said they are very or somewhat concerned that higher tariffs will impact their family’s financial situation.
Overall, 45% of Americans are less confident in the national economy since Trump took office for his second term.
WHAT ELSE WE’RE WORKING ON
T. Keung Hui has the details on several bills moving through the House that would drastically change what it means to be a public educator in North Carolina. One such bill, House Bill 57, would eliminate standardized testing requirements for teacher licenses. This comes as House Bill 806 would allow up to 50% of teachers in a district to be unlicensed, mimicking the requirements for charter schools. This piece of legislation would also end class size limits in K-3 classrooms.
A bill in the Senate would allow employers to obtain restraining orders against picketers protesting their business. Senate Bill 484, which advanced through the chamber’s judiciary committee on Tuesday, would add “mass picketing” to the state’s workplace violence prevention law, Brian Gordon reports. This comes as picketers have appeared outside of businesses like Target and Tesla to protest their corporate political stances. In particular, one group of Durham picketers has rallied outside the Tesla dealership on Raleigh’s Glenwood Avenue almost weekly since February. Some Democrats in the Senate committee warned the bill could discourage constitutionally protected peaceful protests.
WHAT ELSE WE’RE READING
“I’ve never been outside the country for more than four months at a time,” 20-year-old Josiah Young told CNN. “I had always lived in Jackson County.” Still, the North Carolina native is at risk of having his ballot tossed in the ongoing legal battle for a seat on the state Supreme Court. Young was spending a semester abroad in Spain when he cast his ballot on an online portal for military and overseas voters. His ballot is one of hundreds being litigated as a “never resident” ballot by Republican challenger Jefferson Griffin. CNN’s Tierney Sneed and Dianne Gallagher have the full story.
A bipartisan bill moving through the House would criminalize “deepfakes,” or artificially generated pictures and videos, WRAL’s Paul Specht reports. House Bill 934 would make the distribution of audio or video of someone “acting in a manner that the person did not actually speak or act” a Class 1 misdemeanor, and could come with prison time. Its primary sponsor is Polk County Republican Jake Johnson.
Today’s newsletter was by Caitlyn Yaede. Check your inbox tomorrow for more #ncpol.
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