While there's still no consensus on a state budget, House and Senate lawmakers did compromise on a relief bill that would send $500 million in state funding to Western North Carolina to aid the recovery from Hurricane Helene.
"The most important thing that I can stand here and say, to the people back home, is that your voice has been heard," said Karl Gillespie, a Republican representing House District 12.
The relief bill comes nine months to the day since Hurricane Helene devastated Western North Carolina and was approved unanimously by House and Senate lawmakers. The package carves out of tens of millions for farmers and disaster crop loss funding, support for damaged colleges and universities, and $5 million to invest in a Western North Carolina Tourism campaign.
Lawmakers from Western counties highlighted the need for visitors this summer to stimulate the local economy.
NC lawmakers did compromise on Helene relief bill for WNC
"We're about to head out on summer vacation, and if you want to go someplace that's 10 degrees cooler than wherever you live, come to the Mountains. We are open," said Democrat Julie Mayfield, who represents District 49, which includes Buncombe County.
One thing the Helene relief bill does not do is provide small business grants for independently owned businesses hit by the storm, a shortcoming that several Democratic lawmakers harshly criticized despite ultimately voting for the measure.
"When we talk about there's more to come. For most of the small businesses that were impacted by this storm. It will come too late," said Brian Turner, a Democrat representing District 116.
House lawmakers also passed several bills of note on the last day before the chambers broke for the summer, including one restricting DEI practices in state government. HB 171 would bar public funding from promoting "diversity, equity, and inclusion" measures, and would prohibit those hiring practices in state government and state agencies.
"We're hurting North Carolina with this bill, I want to make sure you understand that," said Democratic Representative Zack Hawkins on the House floor.
After weeks of debate, House lawmakers voted 61-47 to approve HB 171, which now heads to Governor Stein's desk, where it faces a possible veto.
Other Democrats argued the bill could dissuade companies from wanting to do business in North Carolina.
"JetZero came to Greensboro, North Carolina, promising billions of dollars and thousands of jobs and one of the reasons they came to Greensboro was because of NC A&T, the number 1 HBCU in the nation, right here in North Carolina. This harms efforts like that," said Representative Amos Quick, a Democrat from District 58.
Republicans have said DEI has done more harm than good and doesn't belong in state government. ABC11 spoke with Mitch Kokai after the vote, an analyst with the conservative-leaning Locke Foundation in Raleigh, about the timing of the bill and whether the Trump administration's focus on DEI impacted it.
"I think this legislation would have come about anyway. It probably just gets a little bit more momentum because of the fact that it's not just at the state government, that the federal government is also talking about it," he said.
House lawmakers also passed HB 193 Thursday morning, which allows employees or volunteers at North Carolina's private schools to carry guns or stun guns on school property. Those armed employees would need written permission from the school board or director and have a permit for the weapon, while also completing a training course.
Republicans called that bill a common-sense measure that would improve school safety, while Democrats said it missed the root cause of school safety concerns and could make schools even less safe.
"Common sense tells you, bringing more guns into schools, where there are children, can only give the probability there will be more accidents," said Marcia Morey, a Democrat representing House District 30. "If there is a problem, if law enforcement does come in, how will they determine who is the good guy, who is the bad guy, if every employee and volunteer at that school has a gun that's drawn?"
That bill, like HB 171, heads to Governor Stein's desk, where it could face a veto.