HB 807 raises teacher salaries for the 2025-2026 school year with new pay scales based on experience and adds supplements for certified teachers, school nurses, counselors, and specialists. It allocates $89.4 million annually and $109.2 million as a one-time fund to provide weighted, per-child funding for children with disabilities based on the cost of services provided. The bill also mandates free breakfast and lunch for all public school students, funded through state appropriations tied to school food authority evaluations, and includes funding for a one-to-one device refresh in public schools.
HB 810, effective July 1, 2025, provides North Carolina state employees with paid bereavement leave: up to 40 hours for the death of an immediate family member (spouse, parent, child, sibling, or dependent living with them) and up to 8 hours for the death of a colleague. It applies to all state employees, public school staff, and community college workers, requiring documentation like a death certificate but allowing leave without exhausting sick or vacation time. Employees must use family leave within 180 days of the death and provide funeral attendance proof for colleague leave, with no annual limit on usage. The bill appropriates $2 million annually from the General Fund to cover these leave costs through the 2025-2027 fiscal biennium.
HB 798 appropriates $1.72 million annually from the General Fund to create a Cold Weather Shelters Grant Program, administered by the Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Aging. The program provides grants to municipalities and nonprofits to establish or expand temporary emergency shelters for people experiencing homelessness during severe weather events. Grants are limited to $215,000 per recipient annually, with selection considering poverty rates in the service area and existing funding availability. Recipients must report annually on shelter usage, funds spent, and the number of people served, starting in 2027.
HB 861 requires pregnancy centers in North Carolina receiving state funds through the Carolina Pregnancy Care Fellowship (CPCF) to participate in a competitive grant process. It mandates detailed applications covering staff credentials, services offered (including medical testing and ultrasounds), equipment use, and advertising practices, along with annual reporting on client demographics (by age, race, income), services provided, and fund expenditures. The bill sets strict limits on administrative spending (10-15% of funds) and requires all grant funds to be used for nonsectarian purposes only. This directly affects nonprofit pregnancy centers receiving state funding under CPCF, requiring them to disclose operational details and report service outcomes to state agencies.
HB 920, the NC Digital Asset Freedom Act, allows North Carolina residents and businesses to use qualifying digital assets for everyday transactions and tax payments. To qualify, digital assets must meet strict criteria including 10 years of security, $750 billion market capitalization, decentralized governance, proof-of-work security, and U.S. regulatory classification as a non-security. The bill recognizes these assets as legally valid payment methods (preventing denial of enforceability) and permits tax payments to the state using them, requiring reporting of U.S. dollar equivalents at transaction time. It also mandates privacy protections for users and imposes a $2,000 daily transaction limit for new users of digital asset kiosks to prevent fraud.
HB 930 creates two separate $1,500 one-time bonus programs for eligible public employees in North Carolina: first responders (including police, firefighters, emergency medical staff, dispatchers, and public hospital nurses) and teachers (classroom staff, principals, and support personnel). The bill allocates $130 million annually for first responders and $165 million for teachers from the General Fund during the 2025-2027 fiscal biennium, with funds distributed to local governments and school districts by November 1 each year. To qualify, recipients must be employed on October 1 of the fiscal year, and bonuses must be paid by December 31 (prorated for part-time workers). Funds cannot cover administrative costs, must be paid in addition to base salary, and will revert to the General Fund if unspent by year-end. The program takes effect July 1, 2025.
SB 73 authorizes the Town of Richlands to impose a 3% occupancy tax on hotel and short-term rental stays, in addition to existing state and local sales taxes. The tax revenue must be sent quarterly to the Richlands Tourism Development Authority, which is required to spend at least two-thirds promoting tourism (e.g., advertising, marketing) and the remainder on tourism-related projects like facility improvements. The bill also establishes the Tourism Development Authority with specific membership rules, including at least one-third of members from tourism businesses and half from tourism promotion roles. It mandates quarterly financial reports to the town council on how funds are allocated.
SB 658 appropriates $1 million from the state General Fund to Preservation Greensboro Incorporated for the operating expenses and restoration of the historic Blandwood Mansion in Greensboro. The mansion, built in the 19th century and formerly home to Governor John Motley Morehead, is directly affected by this funding. The bill directs the Office of State Budget and Management to provide a one-time grant to cover preservation costs for the 2025-2026 fiscal year. This is a straightforward funding measure with no policy changes beyond allocating state resources for historic site maintenance.
SB 659, the "Investing in North Carolina Act," raises salaries for public school teachers and state employees for the 2025-2026 fiscal year. It establishes a new monthly salary schedule for teachers based on experience (ranging from $4,600 for 0 years to $6,370 for 29+ years), adds specific supplements for certified teachers, nurses, counselors, and specialists, and provides cost-of-living increases for retirees. The bill also expands the Wage$ program statewide and creates a tax credit for qualifying employers equal to 5% of wages paid or $10,000, whichever is lower. Directly affecting teachers, state employees, community college staff, UNC employees, retirees, and participating employers, it focuses on concrete pay adjustments through funding appropriations.
HB 948, the P.A.V.E. Act, amends North Carolina law to allow Mecklenburg County to levy an additional 0.5% local sales tax specifically for public transportation systems. The bill defines "public transportation system" broadly to include buses, transit facilities, bike/pedestrian infrastructure, and automated transport tunnels, while excluding general roads. Funds collected must supplement, not replace, existing public transit funding and can only be used for financing, building, operating, or maintaining these systems. The tax proceeds would be distributed monthly to Mecklenburg County and its public transportation authorities per a financial plan, with the bill taking effect only if Mecklenburg levies this tax.
