Rep. Pricey Harrison

Maddy summaryHouse Bill 433 allows licensed registered nurses (RNs) to serve as school nurses in North Carolina public schools. The bill prohibits the State Board of Education from requiring a four-year degree for school nurse employment. It specifies that RNs with at least two years of experience in a hospital or health clinic can work as school nurses without needing additional certifications or licenses. These qualified registered nurses will be paid under the certified school nurse pay scale.

Maddy summaryHouse Bill 390, titled "Alleviate the Dangers of Surgical Smoke," establishes new standards for surgical smoke evacuation in North Carolina. This bill requires all licensed hospitals and ambulatory surgical facilities to adopt and implement policies mandating the use of a smoke evacuation/filtering system during surgical procedures likely to generate surgical smoke. A smoke evacuation/filtering system is defined as equipment that captures, filters, and eliminates surgical smoke at its origin. The Department of Health and Human Services is authorized to take adverse action against facilities that violate these new requirements. This act is scheduled to become effective on January 1, 2026.

Maddy summaryThis bill proposes amending the North Carolina Constitution to ban corporations from spending money to influence election outcomes. It directly affects business entities by stating that only human beings can exercise political spending power within the state. The measure includes specific exceptions for political committees and news organizations owned by parties or candidates, while threatening to revoke corporate legal protections like limited liability for any violations. Because the bill requires voter approval, it will be placed on the November 2026 ballot for a public referendum rather than becoming law immediately.

Maddy summaryThis bill clarifies that designating a historic district in Mecklenburg County does not count as "down-zoning" under state law. By making this distinction, the legislation ensures that local governments can create historic districts without needing the written consent of every property owner within the area, a requirement that currently applies to other types of down-zoning. The law also prohibits waiting periods that prevent applicants from resubmitting denied development requests. These changes apply retroactively to December 11, 2024, and affect only Mecklenburg County.

Maddy summaryHB 1192, known as the Energy and Housing Affordability Act, modifies how electric utilities in North Carolina handle changes in fuel costs and establishes rules for on-site power generation by large customers. The bill requires utilities to provide detailed data on fuel usage and emissions treatment to the Public Service Commission, which will then use a new sharing mechanism to adjust customer rates. Under this mechanism, if fuel costs rise or fall from a baseline, customers and utility shareholders will split the financial impact, with customers covering eighty percent and shareholders absorbing the remaining twenty percent of any variance. Additionally, the act appropriates funds to support a workforce housing loan program aimed at improving housing affordability.

Maddy summaryThis bill establishes a grant program within the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services to fund community organizations focused on improving maternal health outcomes for Black women. The program provides financial awards ranging from $10,000 to $50,000 to support initiatives that address social determinants of health, such as housing, transportation, nutrition, and access to childcare. Eligible applicants must be community-based groups led by Black women that offer evidence-based services including doula support, mental health care, and culturally respectful training for health workers. The legislation also requires the department to provide technical assistance to grant recipients and submit annual reports on fund usage and program effectiveness.

Maddy summaryHB 1208, known as the Community Safety Risk Protection Act, requires individuals in North Carolina to surrender firearms, ammunition, and related permits to law enforcement when a civil no-contact order is issued against them. This measure applies to people who have threatened violence, made threats of suicide, or caused serious injury to a victim, and it mandates that these items be stored by the sheriff until the legal order expires or is denied. The bill also outlines a process for individuals to request the return of their surrendered items after the protective order is no longer in effect, provided they are not legally prohibited from owning a firearm.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires North Carolina public schools to provide annual firearm safety and conflict de-escalation training to students starting in kindergarten, with parents retaining the right to opt their children out of the instruction. The firearm safety component mandates teaching safe handling, storage, and emergency procedures without using live ammunition, while the de-escalation portion focuses on managing stressful situations through instruction from mental health professionals. Additionally, the legislation expands access to mental health records by requiring court clerks to conduct statewide searches when individuals apply for concealed handgun permits and modifying how judges issue involuntary commitment orders. The state will also allocate $250,000 to fund the development of these new curricula, which are scheduled to begin in the 2026-2027 school year.

Maddy summaryHB 1191, titled the Fostering Care in NC Act 2026, introduces several changes to how North Carolina handles cases involving juveniles and child welfare. The bill increases privacy protections by sealing court records in abuse and neglect cases and clarifying who can access them. It also updates procedures for expunging names from the responsible individuals list and requires courts to schedule permanency planning hearings within 30 days. Additionally, the act mandates that siblings be placed together whenever possible and ensures counties communicate before transferring cases to improve coordination on care and financial support.

Maddy summaryHB 1197 updates the North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program by increasing forgivable loan amounts for future students and establishing stricter criteria for selecting partner teacher training institutions. Under the new rules, eligible students can receive up to $10,000 per academic year, while the program will only partner with schools that meet specific performance standards, such as high licensure pass rates and alignment with the Science of Reading. Additionally, the bill mandates a study by the Friday Institute to investigate why some participants choose to repay their loans in cash rather than fulfilling their service obligations. These changes are set to take effect for the 2026-2027 academic year, with previous program revisions applied retroactively to current participants.