NC House panel advances property tax cap amendment

May 13, 2026

Summary

A North Carolina House panel advanced a proposed property tax cap amendment as lawmakers debated whether local spending or state cost shifts were driving higher bills.

Why this matters

The proposal could change how quickly counties and cities can raise property taxes, affecting funding for schools, public safety, and other local services. Voters may be asked to decide the amendment in November.

A proposed constitutional amendment to limit how much local governments can raise property taxes passed the North Carolina House Finance Committee on Tuesday, despite concerns from several Democrats about its effect on local services and whether it addresses the main drivers of tax increases.

House Bill 1089 was recommended by the House Select Committee on Property Tax Reduction and Reform, which House Speaker Destin Hall, R-Caldwell, created after complaints from constituents about rising property taxes. Hall and other Republican leaders said local governments were responsible for the increases.

“Families are getting ripped off as some, but by no means all, local governments rake in billions more than inflation and population growth warrant,” Hall said in a recent press release.

Democratic lawmakers said the state had shifted costs to counties and cities, contributing to higher property taxes. Rep. Eric Ager, D-Buncombe, said lawmakers should examine state mandates on education, law enforcement, and other services.

“I think if we were really serious about fixing the property tax problem, we would begin here looking at ourselves and figuring out how we can support these communities in both their education, their law enforcement, all of those things, and stop creating unfunded mandates,” Ager said.

Ager said he would support the bill in committee, calling it a “good faith effort.”

Rep. Tim Longest, D-Wake, said Wake County would spend $600 million in local funds to cover state funding gaps for public schools, community college operations, jail operations, and foster care. Rep. Brandon Lofton, D-Mecklenburg, said Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools had 700 teaching positions funded entirely by the county, and said Mecklenburg County would spend $429 million this year on school funding gaps and about $2.9 billion over seven years on items he said were the state’s responsibility.

Tamika Walker Kelly, president of the North Carolina Association of Educators, said limiting local revenue would hurt public schools.

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Defense companies and their executives donated nearly $5 million to members of Congress this year through political action committees and individual contributions, according to a new report by NOTUS.

OpenSecrets data showed the money represented a small share of overall congressional fundraising, but it often went to lawmakers with influence over defense policy and spending.

Rep. Ken Calvert, R-Calif., who leads the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, raised about $200,000 from PACs and individuals tied to RTX, BAE Systems, Leidos, and others. Calvert is expected to face a competitive midterm race.

Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, received nearly $130,000 last quarter from defense industry PACs and executives, according to NOTUS, citing Federal Election Commission records. That total included a $7,000 donation from Anduril co-founder Brian Schimpf.

Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Ala., chair of the House Armed Services Committee, received $68,000 in defense industry donations in the first quarter of 2026, including $7,000 from Anduril co-founder Palmer Luckey. Smith and Rogers co-sponsored the Streamlining Procurement for Effective Execution and Delivery (SPEED) Act, which would make changes to the defense acquisition process.

Greg Williams of the Project On Government Oversight said recent efforts have focused on easing procurement rules and expanding ways to bypass oversight. “A big part of the push over the last year or so is to deregulate the defense acquisition process,” he said.

Last week, Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla., who raised $32,500 from defense industry PACs by March 31, introduced a bill that would let the secretary of state issue loans to foreign governments to buy U.S. arms. Mast said, “This bill would ensure we continue to arm our partners and allies under terms that put America first.”
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PFAS compound detected in Haleakala water system

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The Hawaii Department of Health said perfluorobutanoic acid, a type of PFAS, was detected in water samples from the Haleakala National Park water system on Maui.

The department said it was notified of the initial detection May 1 after multiple samples were collected from the Haleakala Park Rain Shed Chlorinator between Nov. 12, 2023, and March 31.

Perfluorobutanoic acid, or PFBA, is used in industrial applications and consumer products, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA said it is a breakdown product of PFAS used in stain-resistant fabrics, paper food packaging, carpets, and other consumer products.

The Department of Health said detected levels ranged from 3.1 to 7.6 micrograms per liter, below the state environmental action level of 15 micrograms per liter for surface water that may be used as a drinking water source.

The EPA said some PFAS compounds have been associated with potential health effects after sufficient exposure over time.
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Ex-NFL player gets 16 years in Medicare, VA fraud

In addition to the prison sentence, French was ordered to pay more than $110 million in restitution and forfeit about $17 million seized from bank accounts and other assets.

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A former NFL tight end was sentenced to 196 months in prison for a fraud scheme that cost Medicare and the Department of Veterans Affairs nearly $200 million, according to a May 8 Justice Department release.

Joel Rufus French, of Armory, Mississippi, owned a marketing company and was the beneficial owner of eight durable medical equipment companies, the release said. Prosecutors said he sold patient information and doctors’ orders for medically unnecessary orthotic braces.

According to the release, French worked with overseas telemarketing call centers that pressured older Americans to share personal and health insurance information and agree to receive braces they did not need or want. He then paid telemedicine companies to obtain signed doctors’ orders from doctors and nurse practitioners who had not examined, and sometimes had not spoken to, the patients, the Justice Department said.

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Prosecutors said French hid his connection to those companies from Medicare by using false documents and straw owners.

“Fueled by lies, bribes, and overseas telemarketers, this corrupt scheme preyed on senior citizens and disabled veterans to flood the country with unnecessary medical devices — and then billed the taxpayer for it,” Justice Department National Fraud Enforcement Division Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald said in the release.

French also laundered about $225,000 in cash from a Mississippi bank, the release said. It said he drove to Orlando, Florida, with more than $10,000 of that money to pay accomplices who sold him beneficiaries’ personal and insurance information.

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French was a unanimous All-American at Mississippi in 1998. He signed with the Seattle Seahawks after going undrafted in 1999 and was released in 2001 after missing the previous season with an injury. He later signed with the Green Bay Packers and was waived before the 2002 season.
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CBP deported 27 cruise workers in child porn probe

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Customs and Border Protection canceled visas for 27 people, 26 of whom were from the Philippines, and deported them to their home countries.
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U.S. hotels see weaker World Cup bookings so far

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The expected economic boost from the World Cup has not yet reached many U.S. hotels.

Room bookings were lighter than expected in most of the 11 U.S. cities hosting matches, according to an April survey by the American Hotel & Lodging Association.

In Kansas City, Boston, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Seattle, a majority of hotel operators said bookings were running behind typical seasonal demand. In New York City, Los Angeles, Dallas, and Houston, demand was flat compared with a regular spring and summer, the association said.

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U.S. Clears $35.5 Billion in Tariff Refund Payments

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Customs and Border Protection said the payments were being processed through a new online portal and would include interest on duties paid across more than 8 million import entries. Brandon Lord, executive director of trade programs for the agency’s Office of Trade, said the portal had validated nearly 87,000 of the 126,000 declarations received as of May 11.

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SC Senate rejects late push to redraw voting lines

On Monday night, President Trump wrote on Truth Social that Republicans should use every “Legal and Constitutional authority” to stop Democrats.

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The South Carolina Senate on Tuesday rejected an effort to redraw the state’s congressional districts weeks before the primaries, despite pressure from President Donald Trump and support from House Republicans.

Senators voted 29-17 against adding redistricting to a resolution governing what lawmakers can do after the regular session ends Thursday. The motion needed a two-thirds majority. Five Republicans joined all 12 Democrats in voting no.

Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey, an Edgefield Republican, said changing the map now would delay congressional primaries, discard absentee ballots already cast, including some from military voters overseas, and create confusion that could reduce turnout. He also said South Carolina lawmakers should not follow a map drafted outside the state.

Senate Minority Leader Brad Hutto, an Orangeburg Democrat, also opposed using “a map someone else gave us,” saying it would be unfair to voters and candidates.

Trump had called Republican senators, joined a GOP caucus meeting by phone, and urged action on social media.

The push followed a U.S. Supreme Court ruling striking down Louisiana’s congressional map as unconstitutional racial gerrymandering. Massey said that ruling did not apply to South Carolina’s map, which he said had been upheld by the U.S. and state supreme courts. “We don’t have a racial gerrymander. We have a partisan gerrymander. We were trying to maximize Republican seats,” he said.

In the House, the Judiciary Committee voted 15-9 along party lines Tuesday to advance legislation that would adopt a new map and delay congressional primaries to Aug. 18. The map, first circulated by House Republicans last week, was written by Adam Kincaid of the National Republican Redistricting Trust. According to the trust, it would favor Republicans in all seven districts, including the 6th District held by U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn.

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A Senate do-over vote was possible, but Massey said that was highly unlikely.
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South Carolina’s Republican Party said Tuesday it plans to file a federal lawsuit next month challenging the state’s open primary system and seeking the ability to limit who can vote in Republican primaries.

Party Chairman Drew McKissick said the lawsuit would argue South Carolina’s system violates the party’s First Amendment right to decide who it associates with. He said the goal is to prevent voters who are not registered Republicans from voting in GOP primaries.

“This is the only alternative that we have left,” McKissick said after two bills to close primaries stalled early in the legislative session.

The proposals split House Republicans, faced long odds in the Senate, and would have been vetoed by the governor if they had passed.

At a Statehouse news conference, McKissick said the party has not decided whether to limit participation only to registered Republicans. The state party has backed legislation that would allow unaffiliated voters to participate, while automatically registering voters with a party after they cast a ballot in that party’s primary.

Attorney General Alan Wilson and U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman, both Republican candidates for governor, joined McKissick in support of closing primaries. Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette, U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace, and Sen. Josh Kimbrell have also publicly supported the idea.

Opponents told lawmakers earlier this year that closed primaries could block independents from voting and further reduce already low primary turnout. They also said any system requiring voters to register with a party in advance could create confusion.

South Carolina Republicans have challenged the system before. A federal judge dismissed a 2010 lawsuit brought by the Greenville County Republican Party in 2013, ruling the county party could not bring the case without deciding the underlying constitutional question.

McKissick pointed to court rulings recognizing parties’ First Amendment associational rights. He said a similar lawsuit in Texas is ongoing.
Virginia

Virginia sets paid family, medical leave by 2028

Federal law requires companies with 50 or more workers to provide 12 weeks of leave, but it does not require that workers be paid.

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Gov. Abigail Spanberger signed two bills Monday that put Virginia on track to create a paid family and medical leave program by 2028.

Senate Bill 2 by Sen. Jennifer Boysko, D-Fairfax, and House Bill 1207 by Del. Briana Sewell, D-Prince William, allow workers to take up to 12 weeks of leave to care for ill family members, address their own long-term health needs, or care for a new child.

The law also provides up to four weeks of safe leave for people facing domestic violence, sexual assault, or harassment. The leave can be used while navigating legal matters or other changes tied to leaving unsafe situations.

At a bill-signing event at the state Capitol, Boysko said the law would have helped when she experienced a pregnancy complication as a young mother. While she recovered and her daughter was in a neonatal intensive care unit 20 miles away, she said her husband could not take leave from work.

Spanberger said the new law could help small businesses attract and retain workers, while supporting larger employers that already offer similar benefits.

Virginia’s law applies to workers at companies with 10 or more employees. It allows them to receive up to 80% of their pay while on leave through a program that will require initial state funding and later be financed by contributions from most employers and employees.

The state Department of Planning and Budget estimated startup costs at $117 million over the 2027 and 2028 fiscal years.

Republicans have opposed state funding for the program. During the legislative session, Del. Michael Webert, R-Fauquier, said the policy might not work for some small businesses.

Former Gov. Glenn Youngkin vetoed a similar proposal last year, calling it a “one size fits all government mandate.”

Spanberger, lawmakers, and supporters highlighted the policy’s effect on working mothers.
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N.C. lawmakers revisit land limits near bases

Property acquired in violation of the law could be placed in receivership and sold, with the proceeds covering costs and any remaining funds going to the state.

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North Carolina Republican lawmakers on Tuesday introduced a revised proposal to bar governments deemed adversarial to the United States, along with state-controlled enterprises, from buying, leasing, or holding controlling interests in agricultural land statewide or property within 50 miles of military installations.

Sponsors said the measure was a compromise between earlier House and Senate proposals that did not win full General Assembly approval. The bill updates the “North Carolina Farmland and Military Protection Act.”

The legislation uses a federal list tied to International Traffic in Arms Regulations to define adversarial foreign governments, including China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, and Venezuela. It applies to installations including Fort Bragg, Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, and other military and National Guard facilities.

A previous version passed the House unanimously last year but did not receive a Senate vote.

Sen. Bob Brinson, R-Craven, told a Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday that he worked with bill sponsors to address concerns.

Brinson said lawmakers reduced the restricted zone around military bases from 75 miles to 50 miles after some objected to the earlier distance. He said the bill also expanded protections by adding National Guard facilities.

The proposal would authorize the attorney general to investigate suspected violations and ask a court to order divestiture of prohibited land holdings.

Senate Democrats said they appreciated the revisions but remained concerned about possible economic effects. Sen. Lisa Grafstein, D-Wake, asked sponsors to add protections for immigrants who moved to the United States years ago and started a business. She also said she would prefer a limit of 10 miles or less.

Republicans said national security concerns outweighed possible economic effects.