Chuck Edwards Senate Desk | NCGA 2019-2020 Sine Die
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From My Senate Desk
The N.C. General Assembly is not currently in session, but there is plenty of activity taking place in Raleigh.
 
Following are just some of the stories in which I thought you might have an interest.



Chuck Edwards, Senator
NC District 48
Buncombe County DSS Subpoenaed
The Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Health & Human Services took up my request to subpoena Buncombe County DSS Director Stoney Blevins regarding a decision his agency told police in March regarding a 9-year-old girl.

When I found out about this situation, I was absolutely appalled and horrified. When this child needed help the most, she was let down. If it wasn’t for the Black Mountain police, this young girl could have been left in an extremely dangerous situation. It is unacceptable to have social services suggest leaving a child in a hotel room with a stranger and drugs. Buncombe County DSS hasn’t been forthcoming with information about this situation. We need answers, and the subpoena will allow us to get those answers.

The committee agreed with and voted to issue the subpoena. I was disappointed that even this issue turned political, and the Democrats on the committee voted against the subpoena and stood to protect government over the interest of NC’s children. I brought this issue before the committee to investigate what went wrong as soon as possible, but Democrats on the committee felt it was okay to wait 10-plus months to answer why Buncombe County DSS failed this child. The state legislature has the constitutional duty to conduct oversight over executive agencies. The fact that Democrats would want to push this critical issue off until the next session profoundly saddens me. 

The Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Health & Human Services will reconvene on Tuesday, October 13 at 10:00 AM in 643 LOB to hear from Buncombe County DSS Director Stoney Blevins. You can watch or listen to the committee meeting.
Defund Cities that Defund Police
As anti-police sentiment has taken over Asheville, an unprecedented 31 police officers have resigned their post since June. Last week, the Asheville City Council bowed to the radicals calling for a 50% cut to the APD and defunded their department by $770,000. Asheville is now one of roughly a dozen cities throughout the country that have reduced police funding.

Defunding police and hammering their morale until dozens resign will result in more crime, not less. After hearing the Council’s decision, I announced my commitment that the first bill I will introduce will defund cities that defund the police when the legislature reconvenes next year. We must maintain law and order. While municipalities have control over their local budgets, the state legislature has control over its budget. I intend to help create an environment where public safety is a top priority. The far-left Asheville City Council’s decisions are reckless and endanger public safety.
State Elections Board Denies Voters Civil Rights
It’s important to acknowledge that the 2020 election has created unique challenges. Almost everyone involved in the election process projected that the pandemic would prompt a shift in voting patterns. Voting by mail was sure to become more popular—the N.C. General Assembly recognized the need for adaptation.

The elections board asked the legislature in March this year to end the witness requirement of absentee ballots. The General Assembly rejected that request but did change state law, which had required two witnesses to sign packets containing completed absentee ballots. H.B. 1169 passed by a 105-14 vote in the House and 37-12 in the Senate. Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper signed the bill into law. Thanks to the new bipartisan law, absentee ballots now require one witness signature, not two. The law gave elections officials more flexibility in staffing election precincts. It added options for people other than the voter to deliver completed ballots to county elections boards.

In a state lawsuit, the union-backed N.C. Alliance for Retired Americans tried to get the absentee ballot rules loosened. The group argued older voters might live alone, be afraid to vote in person during a pandemic, and have a tough time finding a witness for a mail ballot.

The elections board, by a unanimous vote during a closed-session meeting in September, authorized Executive Director Karen Brinson Bell to negotiate a settlement. But the settlement she OK’d wasn’t the settlement presented to the board. The board’s two Republican members resigned the next day. They claim elections staff and lawyers with N.C. Justice Department had misled them about the settlement’s details.

The board continued pursuing the settlement. On Friday (10/2), Collins approved that settlement. Election changes in the proposed “consent agreement” that violate current state election laws include:

  • Permit anonymous outdoor absentee ballot drop boxes
  • Eliminate witness requirements for absentee ballots
  • Extend the period in which the county board of elections office can receive an absentee ballot to nine days after the election

Without federal action, the State Board of Elections will get away with seizing and holding power without legal right. In other words, the board will have followed the dictionary definition of usurping power.

But over the weekend, U.S. District Court Judge James Dever issued a temporary restraining order on Saturday, October 3, blocking a proposal to remove witness signature requirements from absentee ballots. His order suggested the elections board’s moves reducing absentee ballot protections after some ballots have been cast would violate the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause. “The NCSBOE inequitably and materially upset the electoral status quo in the middle of an election.”

This is a win for every voter in the state who would prefer not to see the Board of Elections change the rules of the game after it’s already started. Lawmakers warned that Attorney General Stein and Governor Cooper could not be trusted to administer elections law and proposed a Bipartisan Board of Elections to prevent their partisan schemes from being struck with help from radical state court judges — we were right.
Read Judge Dever’s full ruling HERE
No Voter ID in 2020 Elections - Why?
On September 15, the Court of Appeals voted 2-1 in NAACP v. Moore to overturn a lower court’s rejection of the voter ID constitutional amendment North Carolinians voted for in 2018. In short, voter ID remains part of the state’s constitution, as amended by voters. Not quite just yet…

Earlier this year in February, another voter ID lawsuit (Holmes v. Moore) had a different outcome from the Court of Appeals. The judges temporarily banned our legislative efforts to implement voter ID in N.C. elections. This case is still pending, which means the law we successfully passed implementing voter ID is blocked in the judicial system indefinitely.

Voters will not be required to show photo ID for elections held in 2020. NAACP v. Moore will head to the NC. Supreme Court, where Democrats currently hold a 6-1 majority. 
Increased Weekly $50 Benefits Begins October 30
North Carolinians who are eligible for the COVID-19 Increased Benefit Amount (IBA) will receive a $50 retroactive increase in their weekly unemployment benefit amount starting with the benefit week of September 6 through no later than the benefit week ending December 26, 2020. DES estimates that approximately 15 – 20% of current claimants will be eligible for IBA.

The Division of Employment Security expects that payments for IBA will begin by October 30, 2020. People do not need to file a separate claim for IBA; eligible claimants will receive payments when the program is in place.

The state’s unemployment benefits system is currently being reprogrammed to determine claimants’ eligibility for IBA, recalculate weekly benefit amounts, and generate correspondence to notify claimants about the changes in their benefits. These changes must be programmed and tested carefully to ensure they do not disrupt any other unemployment benefit programs being administered by DES. 

Who is eligible for IBA?

Based on state law and federal guidance, a person’s eligibility for the Increased Benefit Amount depends on:
  • whether they are receiving state unemployment benefits or federal unemployment benefits; and
  • when they initially filed for benefits.

The following chart provides more detail about eligibility.
Cooper's Phase 3 Too Little Too Late?
Governor Roy Cooper announced that North Carolina would move to Phase 3 of easing COVID-19 restrictions beginning on Friday, October 2, at 5:00 pm and will remain in effect through Friday, October 23.

Details of Phase 3 include:
  • Large outdoor venues with seating greater than 10,000 may operate with 7% occupancy for spectators.
  • Smaller outdoor entertainment venues (i.e., arenas or amphitheaters) may operate outdoors at 30% of outdoor capacity, or 100 guests, whichever is less.
  • Movie theaters and conference centers may open indoor spaces to 30% of capacity, or 100 guests, whichever is less.
  • Bars may operate outdoors at 30% of outdoor capacity, or 100 guests, whichever is less. 
  • Amusement parks may open at 30% occupancy (outdoor attractions only).
  • The limits on mass gatherings will remain at 25 people indoors and 50 people outdoors. 
  • The 11 pm curfew on alcohol sales for in-person consumption in restaurants and outdoor bars will be extended to October 23. 

Riddle This...
You can get a beer and sit at a table inside a restaurant in NC, but you can’t if that place is a bar.
You can get a coke and sit at a table inside a bar in NC, but you can’t if that coke has rum in it.
Science.

Don’t’ let Governor Cooper fool you. He didn’t reopen bars, he gave them 30% capacity OUTDOORS ONLY starting in October, but WNC fall temps will drop soon. How will these businesses survive when limited to 7 customers per 1,000 sq ft outside? That’s assuming IF they have an established outdoor space to utilize. Why are bars at 30% when restaurants reopened months ago at 50% - who also sell alcohol? These businesses need a life raft, but the Governor handed them a rubber chicken instead.

Phase 3 was supposed to be a complete reopening of our economy. Instead, it seems Cooper is continuing to play politics. Even as his science and data show positive tests have fallen to about 5%, which was supposed to be the goal, he has refused to acknowledge that North Carolinians are ready to move on. Instead, he keeps moving the goal line to reopen, hurting small businesses further.
NC Voter Important Dates & Deadlines!
T-27 days until Election Day. YOU can make a difference!
Have you made your voting plan to make your voice is heard on November 3?

  • Friday, October 9 at 5:00 pm – Regular Voter Registration Deadline. Voter registration application form must be postmarked or delivered to your county board of elections office by 5:00 pm. North Carolinians may submit their voter registration application online through the DMV. Voters may also same-day register at any one-stop early voting site in their county from October 15-31.
 
  • Thursday, October 15 – On-Stop Early Voting Begins. Find an early voting site near you to cast your vote. Eligible individuals may register to vote during this period.

  • Tuesday, October 27 at 5:00 pm – Deadline to Request an Absentee Ballot. Complete the absentee ballot request form and email, fax, mail or return the form in person to your county board of elections office by 5:00 pm.
 
  • Saturday, October 31 at 3:00 pm – One-Stop Early Voting Ends. Find an early voting site near you to cast your vote. Eligible individuals may register to vote during this period. One-stop early voting sites close at 3:00 pm.
 
  • Tuesday, November 3 - ELECTION DAY! Registered voters can vote at their assigned polling place. Be sure to look up your polling place. Polls open at 6:30 am and close at 7:30 pm for in-person voting. Absentee mail-in ballots must be postmarked on or before Election Day.
 

Helpful Tips
  • Check your voter registration status to verify your information is correct and to view your Sample Ballot
  • Same-day registration is NOT available on Election Day.
  • Voters are not required to show a photo ID to vote in the 2020 elections.
  • Curbside Voting is available for voters who cannot enter the voting place without physical assistance due to age or disability. Check your county board of elections office for more information.
  • On Election Day, if your name is not on the voter list at your assigned polling place, you may request a provisional ballot. About 10 days after an election, provisional ballot voters can check the status of their ballot with the Provisional Search tool.
  • Masks are not mandatory but are strongly encouraged. Please be considerate of other voters and workers. If you don’t have a mask, they will be available for free at all police places.


If you have any questions about the voting process, reach out to your county’s Board of Elections.

Buncombe County Board of Elections
77 McDowell Street, Asheville, NC 28801 | (828) 250-4200 | Website
 
Henderson County Board of Elections
75 E. Central Street, Hendersonville, NC 28792 | (828) 697-4970 | Website
 
Transylvania County Board of Elections
150 S. Gaston Street, Suite A, Brevard, NC 28712 | (828) 884-3114 | Website
Staff Spotlight: Hunter West!
Hunter is the newest addition to my Raleigh office.

Hunter joined the NC48 team this Fall as our Senate Intern. She attends the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, majoring in Public Policy and Mathematics.

Hunter is currently working in my office to see firsthand the processes of the state legislature and gain a deeper understanding of our multitiered government structure. Though undecided, Hunter is considering working in DC as a Congressional staffer after she graduates and then later attending law school. Growing up in Kinston, N.C., Hunter has always had an appreciation for how public policy promotes the flourishing of a community. Her interest in policy came during the 2016 election, when she first started listening to the debates occurring at the federal level concerning a host of issues, from Obamacare to immigration. In her new role here as a Senate intern, Hunter is eager to learn how state representatives navigate political processes in order to provide for the needs of their constituents.

In her free time, Hunter enjoys working out, frequenting coffee shops, and listening to any podcast by Francis Chan or John Piper. Because of her Tar Heel devotion, Hunter enjoys watching all things UNC basketball. Further, Hunter greatly values the gift of community and travel, always ready to take on an adventure with family and friends.  
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