Senate Passes Bill to Improve Health Care Transparency, Reduce Costs

The North Carolina Senate unanimously passed major health care reform legislationThursday to improve medical billing fairness and transparency, reduce health care costs and help consumers make better-informed decisions about their treatment.

Senate Bill 473, the Health Care Cost Reduction and Transparency Act of 2013, requires hospitals to disclose the costs for the top 100 most common inpatient admissions. In addition, it requires similar cost information for surgical and imaging procedures performed in a hospital outpatient or ambulatory care setting. The information will be published for the first time by the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services.

The bill, sponsored by Sens. [...]

Berger Recognized as National Leader on Tax Reform

Americans for Tax Reform President Grover Norquist recognized NC Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger as a national leader on tax reform in a Tax Day op-ed in the Washington Times. Along with Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal and Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback, Norquist mentions Berger’s plans to cut, and possibly eliminate, the state income tax.

Norquist writes: “…today there are nine states with no state income tax and 41 states with income taxes ranging from 3.1 percent (Pennsylvania) to 13.3 percent (California). Could you imagine living in states with no income tax, such as Texas, Florida, Nevada, Wyoming, Alaska, South Dakota, [...]

Senate passes bill allowing City of Raleigh to lease destination park at fair market value while helping mentally ill

The North Carolina Senate passed legislation Tuesday directing the state and the City of Raleigh to enter into a new lease on the Dorothea Dix campus that complies with state law, charges fair market value and upholds the property’s longstanding purpose of serving the mentally ill. Under a new agreement, the city will be able to lease more than 200 acres of land for a destination park.

Senate Bill 334 fixes many problems resulting from the poorly-planned lease of the property in late 2012.  Prior to its signing, Senate leaders voiced strong opposition to the last-minute deal to former Gov. Beverly [...]

Goolsby Files Bill to End De-Facto Moratorium on Death Penalty in N.C.

Sen. Thom Goolsby (R-New Hanover) filed legislation Wednesday to restart the death penalty in North Carolina to ensure justice for more than 100 North Carolina families whose loved ones’ lives were brutally taken.

Despite having 152 inmates on death row, the state has not conducted an execution since 2006 due to a slew of legal challenges that have resulted in a de-facto moratorium on the death penalty.

“We have a moral obligation to ensure death-row criminals convicted of the most heinous crimes imaginable finally face justice,” said Goolsby. “Victims’ families have suffered for far too long. It’s time to stop the legal [...]

Senate advances Domestic Energy Jobs Act to stimulate energy production, job growth

The North Carolina Senate tentatively passed bi-partisan legislation Tuesday to put North Carolina on a path to a robust energy sector expected to lure thousands of jobs and generate billions of dollars for the state economy.

Senate Bill 76, the Domestic Energy Jobs Act, authorizes the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and the Mining and Energy Commission to begin issuing permits for shale gas exploration and development on March 1, 2015 – five months after the rules and safety standards governing the practice are mandated to be in place.

The bill encourages early job creation and corporate investment by implementing [...]