The Legislative Review

Submitted by Rep. Karl Gillespie

In this week’s edition of the Legislative Review, the state legislature concludes the long session for 2023.

I returned to Raleigh Monday evening and met with my colleagues Tuesday morning for a caucus meeting. Following caucus, the House reconvened for a voting session, where we voted on the following legislation:

SB 68- VARIOUS LOCAL CHANGES, would do the following:

  • Authorize the City of Hendersonville to expand the use of proceeds from charging for on-street parking to fund any capital projects and restrict the City of Hendersonville’s use of proceeds from charging for off-street parking.
  • Change the method of election for the City of Hendersonville, the Village of Flat Rock, and the Town of Fletcher from the nonpartisan primary and election method to the nonpartisan plurality method, with candidates filing for office at the same time as candidates for county partisan primaries.
  • Exempt the City of Archdale from the 10% area cap on voluntary satellite annexations.
Rep. Karl Gillespie

I voted in favor and the bill passed, 100-6.

SB 154- OMNIBUS OCUPATION TAX CHANGES, consolidates all of the filed occupancy tax bills introduced in both the House and Senate this session, adds new occupancy tax provisions for Carteret, Davidson, and Davie Counties, and extends by 29 years the sunset on Mecklenburg’s existing authorization to levy a 1% prepared food and beverages tax and the 2% occupancy tax dedicated for the NASCAR Hall of Fame Museum facilities. SB154 incorporates a bill that I filed earlier in session that passed the House but did not move in the Senate. That bill creates Graham County District G consisting of the part of Graham County located outside of the incorporated areas of the county and it authorizes the district to levy a room occupancy tax of 3% within the district.

I voted in favor and the bill passed, 100-6.

HB 898- HOUSE REDISTRICTING PLAN 2023/H898 ED 2, realigns the North Carolina House of Representatives’ districts. I voted in favor and the bill passed, 62-44.

SB 508- 2023 BUDGET TECH/OTHER CHANGES, makes technical, clarifying, and other modifications to the Current Operations Appropriations Act of 2023 (S.L. 2023- 134) and other legislation affecting the State budget.

I voted in support of the bill and it passed, 86-15.

On Wednesday, the House reconvened to vote on third reading for the bills that passed on Tuesday. The House also voted on the following:

SB757-Realign Congressional Districts 2023/CST-4, realigns the North Carolina Congressional districts. I voted in favor and SB757 passed 64-40.

SB758 -Realign NC Senate Districts 2023/SB758,2 Ed., realigns the North Carolina Senate districts. I supported the bill and it passed, 63-40.

The House also voted in favor, by a vote of 80-23, for SJR760, Adjournment Resolution. The resolution adjourns the regular session of the General Assembly.

Did you Know?

Significance of the North Carolina State Flag Design

The State flag is divided into three rectangles, two horizontal and one vertical. The upper right rectangle is red and the lower right rectangle is white. The entire background of the rectangle on the left is dark blue. The scroll and the letters, N and C, are gold. The dates on the scroll are dark blue and the star is white. 

The State flag displays two dates: May 20, 1775, is the date thought to have been the time of the issuance of the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence. This document made a bold statement in favor of independence for the colonies. It stated that English laws were no longer in effect in Mecklenburg County. April 12, 1776, is the date of the Halifax Resolves. In this document, North Carolina authorized its delegates to the Continental Congress to vote for independence from England. These dates celebrate the fact that North Carolina was one of the first colonies to encourage independence from England, well before the famous date of July 4, 1776.

Do you have a suggestion? Concerned about a particular issue? Contact my office and we will assist you in any way we can. Email to [email protected].