Rep. Becky Carney

Maddy summaryHouse Bill 146 amends North Carolina's driver's license renewal process. It allows active duty members of the U.S. Armed Forces, or reserve components serving on active duty and stationed outside North Carolina, to renew their driver's licenses remotely multiple times in a row. Currently, a remote renewal requires the previous renewal to have been done in person, but this bill removes that restriction for eligible military personnel. This change aims to make it easier for these individuals to maintain their licenses while serving away from the state. The act becomes effective October 1, 2025, applying to licenses renewed on or after that date.

Maddy summaryHB 254 designates the fourth Thursday of March each year as Tuskegee Airmen Commemoration Day in North Carolina. This officially recognizes and honors the legacy of the African-American pilots, navigators, bombardiers, instructors, and support staff who trained at Tuskegee Institute from 1941 to 1949.

Maddy summaryHouse Bill 107 designates the second week of November each year as Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy (SUDEP) Awareness Week in North Carolina. Additionally, it encourages local boards of education to develop and offer seizure awareness training for school personnel who are responsible for students with epilepsy or who are otherwise predisposed to seizures. This training aims to provide school staff with information to support these students.

Maddy summaryHB 570, the "Responsible Firefighting Foam Management Act," restricts the use of firefighting foams containing PFAS chemicals for training and testing. It prohibits any person, local government, or state agency from discharging Class B firefighting foam with intentionally added PFAS for training or practice purposes. For testing, these foams are also prohibited unless required by law or an authority, and the testing facility has implemented measures to prevent environmental releases. The bill mandates the use of non-fluorinated alternatives for training and is set to become effective on December 1, 2025.

Maddy summaryHouse Bill 663, known as the Living Donor Protection Act, aims to support individuals who donate organs or bone marrow. The bill prohibits insurance companies from discriminating against individuals solely based on their status as a living organ donor in various insurance policies. It also establishes a state income tax credit of up to $5,000 for unreimbursed expenses, such as lost wages and travel, incurred by living donors. Furthermore, the act provides state employees and state-supported personnel with up to 30 days of paid leave for organ donation and seven days for bone marrow donation.

Maddy summaryHouse Bill 110 establishes the National Guard Student Loan Repayment Program in North Carolina. This program provides student loan repayment awards to active members of the North Carolina National Guard, incentivizing them to begin or complete a term of service of at least three years. Awards cannot exceed the recipient's total student loan debt or $50,000 for a three-year service term, with potential for additional funds for longer service. Recipients must sign an agreement to repay a portion of the award if they voluntarily terminate their service early. The bill appropriates over $25.5 million to a new fund for the program for the 2025-2026 fiscal year.

Maddy summaryHB 767 establishes the Joint Legislative Study Commission on Market Rate Compensation for Teachers. This commission will study public school teacher pay and benefits in North Carolina, comparing them to other states and professions, and analyze teacher attrition rates. Composed of legislators, gubernatorial appointees, and the State Superintendent, the commission will hold public meetings across the state. Its purpose is to gather data and provide legislative recommendations on teacher compensation to the General Assembly by the end of 2026.

Maddy summaryHB 555, "Medicaid Telehealth Services," aims to ensure that certain telehealth providers can enroll as Medicaid providers in North Carolina. The bill specifies that individual health care providers licensed by the state who offer services exclusively through telemedicine are not required to maintain a physical presence in the state to be eligible for Medicaid enrollment. Similarly, medical provider groups that exclusively offer telemedicine services will not need an in-state service address to be eligible for the state's Medicaid program. This bill directly affects telehealth providers and medical groups by removing location-based requirements for participating in Medicaid.

Maddy summaryHouse Bill 213, titled "Post NC Veterans' Benefits," requires employers in North Carolina to display a notice about veterans' benefits. This bill mandates that employers with five or more persons working in a room post this information in a conspicuous place. The Commissioner of Labor will provide a digital or printed form of this notice. The poster must include details on services such as benefits and claims, employment and training, housing assistance, and how to request military records, with the Department of Labor consulting the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs to create it.

Maddy summaryThis bill revives and expands a program that allows eligible retired educators to return to work in high-need schools. It defines "high-need retired teachers" as beneficiaries of the Teachers' and State Employees' Retirement System who meet specific retirement and service criteria, and are reemployed by local boards of education. A key provision ensures that earnings from this reemployment do not count against post-retirement earnings limits, allowing these teachers to receive both their full retirement allowance and a salary. The Department of Public Instruction is tasked with certifying these teachers, and local boards must report their employment status to the Retirement System.