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AUDITOR BETH WOOD WILL STEP DOWN
Beth Wood, the embattled state auditor who was charged this week with using publicly owned vehicles for personal errands, will resign before the end of her term, she told WRAL News Thursday.
The decision caps a stunning yearlong fall for the Democrat who has earned bipartisan support for her work as a government watchdog, ensuring public resources are used appropriately over four terms.
Wood was charged Tuesday with a misdemeanor after an eight-month probe by the State Bureau of Investigation found that she used at least one state-owned vehicle for private purposes in 2021 and 2022, including traveling back and forth to regularly scheduled hair appointments and dental appointments.
She also traveled to shopping centers and spas “where she was not engaged in business in her official capacity,” according to an indictment handed down Tuesday by a Wake County grand jury. An investigation is ongoing.
The Governor will appoint a replacement very soon, who will serve out the remainder of the term.
Read More at https://www.wral.com/story/nc-auditor-beth-wood-to-resign-following-new-charge-over-use-of-state-owned-vehicles/21141330/
FIRST BATCH OF WAKE SCHOOL PARENT POLICIES PASS
Five Wake County school policies are changing to adjust to Senate Bill 49, known by Republican proponents as the "Parents' Bill of Rights."
The new law is controversial in part because of concerns that it could "out" transgender students to their families.
The school board approved the policies Tuesday 6-2, with two members voting against approval because they remained unhappy with previous changes made to a book review policy earlier this year that were unrelated to the new state law.
The policy changes approved Tuesday are taken from the new state law and don’t add new requirements beyond that. The school board is compelled to comply with state law, without or without adopting it into their policies. However, approving the policy changes Tuesday places the language of the new state law into local documents that can be viewed by families alongside other school system rules.
The policies approved Tuesday include a requirement that parents to be notified of survey questions being asked of students, permitting parents to request a list of materials their children have checked out from the library, and stating that staff should never encourage or coerce a child into keeping a secret from their parents.
Currently, the school system already asks parents for their consent for surveys related to sensitive information. But the new law requires the school system to send them copies of the survey questions, as well, at least 10 days in advance. The school system would include information on how to find the survey questions with the opt-in form sent to parents for each survey. The anonymous survey on tobacco use and risk behaviors that came from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are exempt from the law and the Wake policy changes.
On top of the policies approved Tuesday, the law requires parental notification of students’ wishes to go by a different name or gender identity, schools to facilitate parental concern hearings upon request and tighter timelines for supplying information to parents and guardians, among other things. But policies related to those changes were not up for a vote Tuesday.
GOVERNOR COOPER WINS A LEGAL BATTLE
Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper won a court victory on Nov. 1 when a three-judge panel blocked the legislature’s attempt to strip his appointment powers regarding three state boards.
That’s part of the news. Here’s the other part: The win is partial, temporary and likely to be overturned by the Republican-dominated state Supreme Court despite a previous ruling protecting the governor’s appointment powers.
That’s the state of North Carolina’s judiciary, starting and ending with the state Supreme Court. To predict the outcome of a case, don’t look at its legal merits, look at the political parties involved.
Read More at https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/nc-courts-under-political-assault-093000955.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=A
NC Gerrymanders continue and Democrats will fight it:
North Carolina's new congressional maps just became law last week, and Democrats said they plan on challenging the redistricting in court, saying there's racial bias in the new maps.
The new maps are designed to give Republican candidates a large advantage in upcoming elections for Congress and the North Carolina legislature. Republicans say the maps are fair and will hold up in court, but Democrats told WRAL they think the maps are unconstitutional. The new maps could give North Carolina Republicans at least three more seats in the U.S. House after 2024, all at the expense of first- and second-term Democrats, according to state election data. That change could be enough to help Republicans keep a House majority in Washington.
Read More at: https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/politics/north-carolina-politics/north-carolina-redistricting-congressional-maps-political-gerrymandering-democrats-vow-lawsuits/275-bc014e82-872e-4644-9
Wake County Schools Considers New Rules for Public Hearings
People speaking at Wake school board meetings would need to refrain from personal attacks against other people or be asked to leave the podium, according to a proposed policy revision being considered by the Wake County Board of Education.
The board’s current policy merely encourages speakers to refrain from personal attacks. The change gives the board the authority to tell speakers it’s against the rules and instruct a meeting attendee to stop speaking if they refuse to comply.
Read More at https://www.wral.com/story/want-to-speak-at-a-wake-school-board-meeting-no-personal-attacks/21112693/
Corey Branch to run for Raleigh Mayor
Longtime councilman Corey Branch is running for Raleigh mayor in the 2024 election.
Branch, 45, made the announcement Thursday on a number of platforms, including Instagram. He has served on Raleigh City Council for almost nine years.
Read More at https://www.wral.com/story/corey-branch-longtime-city-councilman-is-running-for-raleigh-mayor/21116397/
Wake County Schools Roll out Student Reassigment Plan for 2024-2025
The Wake County School District presented its first draft of the 2024-25 enrollment plan to the school board Tuesday.
The district is proposing reassignments at 21 schools – 13 elementary schools, six middle schools and two high schools.
Pleasant Grove Elementary in Morrisville would be the focal point of several changes. A portion of its attendance zone would be reassigned into Brier Creek, Leesville Road or York elementary schools in Raleigh. Then, parts of Alston Ridge and Parkside elementary schools, in Cary and Morrisville, would be reassigned to Pleasant Grove Elementary.
The changes would reduce some overcrowding at the schools, although they would require some calendar changes for families to or from multi-track or traditional calendars.
Families of children who will be in fourth or fifth grade next year could apply to stay at their school instead of moving to Pleasant Grove, and they could apply for any younger siblings who will be kindergarten or older to stay, as well. They would not have busing.
Read More at https://www.wral.com/story/wake-county-school-district-proposes-to-move-students-from-21-schools/21054801/
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