Sen. Lisa Barnes

Maddy summarySB 374 requires businesses and individuals to obtain licenses or permits to install, inspect, repair, or service portable fire extinguishers and specific fire suppression systems (including kitchen, industrial, and engineered systems) in North Carolina. Businesses must get a firm license, while individuals must get an individual permit, both issued by the State Fire Marshal. The bill exempts routine visual inspections by fire chiefs, fire marshals, or employees of firms working on their own systems. It also mandates standardized service tags with detailed work dates and gives the State Fire Marshal authority to set installation standards and fees. This applies to systems required by state or local fire safety rules.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires all public school districts and state agencies to carry comprehensive insurance coverage (covering all types of damage beyond just fire) for public education and state properties, effective July 2025. Public education boards must join the State Public Education Property Insurance Fund unless they secure equivalent coverage and receive a waiver from the State Fire Marshal. It also creates tuition waivers for advanced fire/rescue training courses at the North Carolina Emergency Training Center, funded by state money. Additionally, the bill modernizes fire marshal operations, clarifies inspection authority, and updates insurance fund procedures.

Maddy summarySB 320 creates an additional retirement allowance for North Carolina state and local law enforcement officers who retire after meeting specific service and age requirements. Eligible officers with at least 30 years of service (or 55+ with 5+ years) under age 62 can choose between two calculation methods for their annual allowance: one based on their current pay rate and service, or one based on their pay rate at 30 years of service. The allowance, paid monthly from state funds, stops upon the officer’s death, reaching age 62 (for the first method), or meeting a time-based condition (for the second method). This change supplements retirement income without affecting other retirement benefits or salary increases.

Maddy summarySB 261, the Energy Security and Affordability Act, removes a mandated interim timeline for carbon reduction by North Carolina's major electric utilities (those serving 150,000+ customers) and introduces an alternative cost recovery method for ongoing construction of base load power plants. The bill requires these utilities to achieve a 70% reduction in carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 (from 2005 levels) and carbon neutrality by 2050, with the Utilities Commission developing a Carbon Plan by 2026 for achieving these goals. It specifies that new solar energy must come from 45% third-party power purchase agreements for small solar facilities (80 MW or less) and 55% utility-owned or purchased sources, including for solar paired with storage. This bill directly affects North Carolina's largest electric utilities and the Utilities Commission, altering their regulatory framework for emissions and infrastructure costs.

Maddy summarySB 226 expands eligibility for death benefits under North Carolina's Public Safety Employees' Death Benefits Act to include firefighters who die from specific cancers. It adds any cancer diagnosed after January 1, 2022, that qualified a firefighter for benefits under the Firefighters' Cancer Insurance Program (or its predecessor, the Health Benefits Pilot Program) to the list of cancers presumed to be "killed in the line of duty." This means firefighters receiving cancer benefits under the program will automatically qualify for death benefits if they later die from that cancer. The bill also permanently establishes the Cancer Insurance Program as the successor to the pilot program and allocates $2 million annually for related death benefits starting July 1, 2025.

Maddy summarySB 290, the NC REINS Act, requires North Carolina's General Assembly to approve certain state agency regulations before they take effect. It directly affects state agencies creating rules with significant economic impact (over $1 million annually) and gives legislators a 30-day window to block such rules through a specific disapproval bill. The bill adds a legislative review period for all permanent rules and mandates that rules with substantial economic impact must be ratified by the legislature, effectively creating a veto power over those regulations. This changes current process by requiring explicit legislative action for high-impact rules instead of automatic implementation after agency approval.

Maddy summarySB 24 requires that any new state health insurance mandate must be paired with the repeal of an existing mandate and include funding to cover the new cost. It directly affects North Carolina employers (especially small businesses) and taxpayers by targeting mandates that increase insurance premiums and state health plan expenses. Key provisions mandate that new health benefit requirements (like coverage for specific treatments or drugs) must include both a repeal of an equivalent existing mandate and recurring state funding for the new cost. The bill applies to all health insurance plans, including the State Health Plan for Teachers and State Employees, and takes effect 30 days after enactment.

Maddy summarySB 61 prohibits tolls on North Carolina's Interstate 95 for ten years and requires the North Carolina General Assembly to approve any future tolling on this highway. The bill amends state law to explicitly exclude I-95 from tolling authority, preventing the state toll authority from collecting tolls during this period. After the ten-year ban, the General Assembly would need to vote to allow tolls, rather than the authority acting unilaterally. This directly affects drivers using I-95 and the state's process for managing highway funding.

Maddy summaryThis bill (SB 32) is a procedural local act that solely relates to North Carolina's 11th Senatorial District. It contains no substantive policy changes or mechanisms - it simply states the act pertains exclusively to that district and specifies it becomes effective upon enactment. The bill does not directly affect voters, legislators, or policies beyond its narrow administrative scope. It is currently in the early committee review stage (referred to Rules and Operations Committee).

Maddy summaryThis bill proposes a constitutional amendment in North Carolina to require all voters to present photographic identification before casting a ballot, expanding a rule that currently applies only to those voting in person. The legislation would place this change on the ballot for a statewide vote on November 5, 2024, asking voters to decide whether to mandate photo ID for everyone regardless of how they vote. If approved by a majority of voters, the amendment would become part of the state constitution and allow the General Assembly to set specific rules for acceptable forms of identification. If rejected, the proposal will have no effect and the existing voting requirements will remain unchanged.