Rep. Ben Moss

Maddy summaryHB 391 appropriates $2.178 million for the 2025-2026 fiscal year and $4.542 million for 2026-2027 to hire 50 additional Adult Protective Services (APS) workers statewide. The funds, distributed based on need factors like case volume and senior population, directly support county social services departments overwhelmed by rising elder abuse reports. Counties must use the funds solely for APS worker salaries and benefits, not to replace existing funding. This addresses a critical staffing gap identified by counties, where federal funds are depleted early and reports of elder abuse have increased significantly.

Maddy summaryHB 98, titled the "Patriotism Expression Act" (though misleadingly named), primarily modifies North Carolina's fireworks laws to permit the sale, possession, and use of specific consumer fireworks. It allows consumer fireworks (like sparklers, party poppers, and small novelty devices meeting safety standards under G.S. 58-82A-80) for public use, while maintaining an 18+ age restriction for purchase. The bill specifies that these fireworks must comply with defined safety limits (e.g., no more than 16 milligrams in party poppers, 75 grams per tube for sparklers) and prohibits indoor displays. It directly affects consumers, retailers, and fire safety enforcement, but does not change prohibitions on most fireworks or explosives.

Maddy summaryHB 137, the "Gabe Torres Act," expands death benefits under North Carolina's Public Safety Employees' Death Benefits Act to include public safety workers (like police, fire, and emergency personnel) who are killed while traveling to or from work. The bill amends the law to define "official duties" to explicitly cover commuting between home and work, as well as travel for training or responding to emergencies. It also appropriates $300,000 in recurring funds for these expanded benefits, effective July 1, 2025. This change directly affects eligible families of covered public safety employees who die during work-related travel, ensuring they qualify for death benefits previously limited to on-duty incidents.

Maddy summaryHB 276 expands the definition of "killed in the line of duty" for firefighters to include deaths caused by specific cancers that previously qualified them for benefits under North Carolina's Firefighters' Cancer Insurance Program. The bill adds seven specific cancers (like mesothelioma and testicular cancer) to the list and includes any cancer diagnosis that already provided benefits under the existing program. It also formally links the Firefighters' Health Benefits Pilot Program to the Cancer Insurance Program, ensuring consistent coverage, and appropriates $2 million annually for related death benefits starting July 1, 2025. This change directly affects firefighters diagnosed with covered cancers and their families, who will now qualify for death benefits under the Public Safety Employees' Death Benefits Act.

Maddy summaryHB 52, the "Protect Those Who Serve and Protect Act of 2025," increases penalties for assaults against public safety personnel and their animals. It creates a new Class I felony offense for throwing, spraying, or projecting substances (like water) at public safety officers or law enforcement/search and rescue animals while they are on duty or due to their role. The bill also prohibits intentionally pointing laser devices at these protected individuals or animals during duty. These changes update existing assault laws to explicitly cover a wider range of emergency workers (including firefighters, medical staff, National Guard members, and school employees) and add specific protections for animals used in public safety.

Maddy summaryHB 362 prohibits the intentional release of substances or technologies within North Carolina aimed at altering weather, temperature, or sunlight - including stratospheric aerosol injection (SAI), cloud seeding, and electromagnetic emissions. It defines "atmospheric modification" broadly to cover activities affecting climate, agriculture, health, or security, while explicitly excluding licensed pesticide applications by aircraft. The law makes it illegal to intentionally inject or disperse materials for such purposes and directs the Environmental Management Commission to create implementing rules. This bill directly affects entities or individuals conducting weather-altering experiments or technologies within the state. The measure is currently in committee referral after passing its first reading in the North Carolina House.

Maddy summaryHB 11 would allow North Carolina taxpayers to deduct overtime pay, up to $2,500 in bonus pay (defined as cash awards for workplace dedication), and reported tips from their taxable income. It applies to individuals and married couples filing jointly, with each spouse eligible for separate deductions. The bill specifically defines "bonus pay" to exclude tips and requires taxpayers to provide documentation to claim the deduction. This policy change would take effect for tax returns filed in 2025.

Maddy summaryHB 242 adds freestanding psychiatric hospitals (licensed, Medicare-certified facilities primarily providing psychiatric care that are not state-owned) to North Carolina’s Medicaid Healthcare Access and Stabilization Program (HASP). This expands the existing program - which currently reimburses acute care hospitals - to include these psychiatric hospitals, providing them with increased Medicaid reimbursements. The funding will come from a new quarterly assessment levied on the psychiatric hospitals themselves, calculated as a percentage of their hospital costs. The bill does not change patient eligibility but alters how these specific hospitals receive Medicaid payments through the HASP program.

Maddy summaryHB 343 appropriates $380,000 for 2025-26 and $397,000 for 2026-27 to create four full-time ombudsman positions within North Carolina’s Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program. This directly affects residents of nursing homes, adult care homes, and family care homes by enhancing advocacy for their rights and care quality. The bill’s key provision funds staff to move the state’s program toward national standards for resolving facility issues without formal complaints. It becomes effective July 1, 2025, with no advocacy language - only a concrete funding mechanism for expanded protections.

Maddy summaryHB 220 would allow the Town of Tabor City to transfer leftover funds from its wastewater system enterprise fund to the town's general fund, but only if the wastewater fund balance exceeds what's needed for operations and future closure costs. The transferred funds would support other town services like roads, parks, or public safety, without affecting how the wastewater system itself operates. This bill specifically applies to Tabor City and does not change the requirements for maintaining the wastewater system. The bill was introduced in 2025 but withdrawn before becoming law.