pricey harrison

UPDATED: Harrison's bill would focus on banning coal obtained from mountaintop removal from being burned in North Carolina, not on banning mountaintop removal itself in North Carolina. There are not significant coal deposits in North Carolina's mountains. My mistake.

I've heard good stuff about Pricey Harrison for years. Everyone has always said she's one of the most reliable progressive voices in the General Assembly, and I've pretty much taken that praise at face value. Until today when I met Pricey in person. Now I can sing my own praises of Representative Harrison from first hand experience.

We talked only briefly, about two topics. First, mountaintop removal and second, out-of-state athletes getting subsidized by North Carolina taxpayer dollars.

As you may have heard, Pricey is leading the charge in the General Assembly to ban use of coal obtained using the obscene practice of mountaintop removal in North Carolina.

A lot of the vehicles in North Carolina's motor pool are diesel fueled. Also, NC will continue to purchase new vehicles as older ones head to the scrap heap. With gasoline prices at four dollars a gallon, wouldn't it make sense for North Carolina to move to alternative fuels and purchase only the most fuel efficient vehicles? It would save NC taxpayers untold amounts of money to have our motor fleet be as efficient as possible.

Grier Martin (D), Pricey Harrison (D), and Charles Thomas (R) have submitted legislation to do just that. HB 2720 - Energy‑Efficient State Motor Vehicle Fleets - has two components:

Shouldn't $1.6 million dollars of your hard earned North Carolina tax money give you the right to know and refuse exposure to hazardous pesticides, herbicides, and chemicals? If Governor Easley can spend $1.6 million tax payer dollars on a pesticide plan to protect farmworkers shouldn't the plan also include protecting the citizens of North Carolina as well. The plan should be comprehensive and not discriminate between industries, companies, workers, and citizens. Tell the Director of the State Office of Rural Health and Community Care, Mr. John Price to implement a plan that protects everyone's right to know when being exposed to hazardous pesticides, herbicides, and chemicals.

Not the war you're thinking about. Our state is taking steps in the battle against greenhouse gases. Granted, they are baby steps. Finally, it appears our state won't be trailing behind the rest of intelligent life on at least one issue.

According to Margaret Lillard of the AP via The Charlotte Observer:

As governments around the world look for ways to fight global warming, North Carolina lawmakers are eyeing a simple set of green guidelines that supporters hope will be the first steps in a successful war against greenhouse gases.

A blue-ribbon panel that has spent the past year discussing climate change is to meet Thursday to draw up an interim report for state lawmakers on possible actions North Carolina can take to address global warming.

According to the article, most of the measures will include actions that can be taken by energy consumers and providers.

I guess none of us is surprised to see this happen. I didn't think the pileup would start this quickly, though. The second Democrat in the N.C. House has called for Jim Black to resign.

Rep. Pricey Harrison, a Democrat from Greensboro does have a slightly different take on the situation. He thinks Black should temporarily step down from his leadership position. Maybe this keeps him from the vulture-circling-the-body category, but it is unmistakably a sign that Democrats in the NC legislature are losing confidence in Jim Black's ability to lead effectively while he is dealing with his legal issues.

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