GOVERNOR COOPER OPPOSES TRUMP EFFORT TO GUT CLEAN POWER PLAN: North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper says he's against the decision by President Donald Trump's administration to replace rules that sought to limit coal-fired plants in the nation's electrical grid and their emissions. Cooper's office says the Democratic governor has "deep concern" over the Environmental Protection Agency's action to eliminate the Clean Power Plan championed by then-President Barack Obama. The rule signed Wednesday gives states more leeway deciding whether to require plants to make limited efficiency upgrades. Cooper said in a news release the rollback could allow coal-fired plants to pollute more. The governor has been pressing for lower greenhouse gas emissions and renewable energy industry expansion in the state. He signed an executive order last year that aims to reduce emissions statewide and make state government more energy-smart.
https://www.wral.com/cooper-has-deep-concern-over-clean-power-plan-replacement/18465129/

GOVERNOR COOPER WANTS MEDICAID EXPANSION IN THE BUDGET: Cooper’s staff was clear that Medicaid expansion needs to be part of the discussions and has invited legislative leaders to the Executive Mansion on Wednesday to continue negotiations. Senate Majority Leader Harry Brown, who signed the letter to Cooper along with Sen. Kathy Harrington and Sen. Brent Jackson, spoke with reporters on Tuesday about the letter and budget negotiations. “If [Cooper’s] willing to not just have a show, but really sit down and negotiate, we’d love to sit down with him,” Brown said Tuesday. Brown said that Medicaid has problems and expansion “just doesn’t make sense to a lot of us.” The revised budget is expected to come out within a week, but it would face a possible veto if it doesn’t satisfy Cooper — and it would then need the support of supermajorities in the House and Senate to become law.
https://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/article231681113.html

UNC CHARLOTTE STUDENTS RALLY TO DEMAND ACTION ON GUNS: “In a matter of seconds, my life was changed forever,” she said. “All we wanted was to go to class, but now we’re graduating with PTSD and a deep fear every time we don’t see a clear exit.” The rally, organized by the nonpartisan March for Our Lives and the NAACP, was held to raise awareness of gun violence and call for local, state and national elected officials to enact common-sense gun safety laws. The March for Our Lives agenda advocates, among other things, for funding research and intervention programs to address the root causes of gun violence, universal background checks, bans on high-capacity magazines and semi-automatic assault rifles, and safe storage and mandatory theft reporting laws for gun owners. Saturday’s call to action is for everyone, from gun opponents to gun safety advocates to gun owners, said Margaret Murphy, a sophomore from Holly Springs who is the new director of UNC-Charlotte’s March for Our Lives chapter.
https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/article231556008.html

SENATE BUDGET CUTS EARLY COLLEGE HIGH SCHOOL FUNDING: State Senate budget writers have proposed phasing out $26 million in extra funding that the early colleges receive as part of their mission of providing high school students with access to college courses. School leaders across the state are warning that the loss of the supplemental state funding means some early colleges, especially those in rural communities, won’t have enough money to stay open. “If they’re not going to have the supplemental funding, they’re going to have to scale back dramatically or not be able to continue,” said Elizabeth Yelverton, legal affairs and policy manager for the N.C. Association of School Administrators. “There’s a very good chance that a lot of schools will close without the funding.”
https://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/article231561948.html

SENATE TAKES AIM AT NC SHERIFFS' AUTONOMY: Two months after the House passed a bill requiring North Carolina sheriffs to cooperate with federal immigration officials, a revised measure surfaced in the Senate on Wednesday. The new proposal, which now is backed by the North Carolina Sheriffs' Association, includes a process for a judge to order whether a person should be held under an immigration detainer but no longer allows people to sue and fines to be levied against sheriffs who don't cooperate. The Senate Judiciary committee also discussed a proposal to allow people to purchase as many handguns as they want during a five-year period with a single pistol purchase permit instead of requiring them to get a permit from their local sheriff before buying each gun.
https://www.wral.com/wednesday-wrap-play-nice-with-ice-or-else/18448407/