Filial Debt Fairness Act.
HB 49, the Filial Debt Fairness Act, clarifies North Carolina's filial responsibility law by explicitly stating that adult children are **not liable for debts their parents incurred** (such as medical bills or loans). The bill amends Section 14-326.1 to clarify that while adult children may still face misdemeanor charges for failing to support a sick or unable-to-work parent (without reasonable cause), they cannot be held responsible for their parents' pre-existing debts. This directly affects adult children who might otherwise be sued for their parents' financial obligations. The law aims to prevent unintended liability for parents' debts while maintaining the existing requirement for children to support parents in need.
Bill status
died
1 of 4 stages cleared
Introduction
Feb 2025
Committee Review
Floor Vote
Governor
Introduced Feb 4, 2025
Last action Mar 6, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison
What changed between versions
Filed
→
Edition 1
·
3 edits
MINOR
This bill underwent minor formatting and sponsorship updates during its transition from filing to first edition. The primary changes involve adding co-sponsors to the bill and updating the bill number identifier, with no substantive policy modifications to the Filial Debt Fairness Act's content.
TECHNICAL
Added three additional co-sponsors (Representatives Lambeth, Reeder, and Campbell) to the bill's sponsor list, expanding the legislative support for the Filial Debt Fairness Act.
Updated the bill identifier from 'DRH10027-ML-17C' to 'H49-v-1', reflecting the bill's progression through the legislative process.
Removed the original filing date (Feb 4, 2025) and replaced it with a new session reference date (February 5, 2025) for the Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House.
Floor votes
How they voted
No floor votes recorded yet.
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
5
Key actions
0
Committee
2
Mar 6, 2025
Committee
Re-ref to the Com on Judiciary 2, if favorable, Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House
lower
Feb 5, 2025
Committee
Ref To Com On Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House
lower
Feb 4, 2025
Introduced
Filed
lower
3 primary · 11 co-sponsors
Sponsors
Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Donny Lambeth
RRepublican
P
Kelly Hastings
RRepublican
P
Tim Reeder
RRepublican
Co
Allen Chesser
RRepublican
Co
Bill Ward
RRepublican
Co
Bryan Cohn
DDemocratic
Co
Carson Smith
RRepublican
Co
Donnie Loftis
RRepublican
Co
Grant Campbell
RRepublican
Co
Harry Warren
RRepublican
Co
Jeff McNeely
RRepublican
Co
Jonathan Almond
RRepublican
Co
Neal Jackson
RRepublican
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