North Carolina Government News

Police and North Carolina Department of Corrections officials are searching for a man who left a work-release program in Chapel Hill.

U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan's list of potential appointees to the federal judiciary includes three candidates who could succeed a prosecutor whom she wants to stay on until the investigations of two fellow Democrats are complete.

Federal investigators have issued subpoenas for communication between former North Carolina Gov.

HEADLINES: _ House stalls vote on property annexation reform until lawmakers get cost estimate _ Youth employment, safety violation penalties would increase in bill approved by House _ Committee action would make it easier to recover legal fees after suing for open records _ Property tax deferrals on unsold homes gets final NC legislative approval ...

The North Carolina Legislature soon will consider changing the law following a Fourth of July fireworks explosion on the Outer Banks that left four workers dead.

During this decade, legislators overhauled the ethics code for public officials, toughened lobbying laws and instituted new public-disclosure requirements.

People and media organizations that successfully sue North Carolina governments for public records would be more likely to recover their legal fees under legislation approved Wednesday by a House panel.

Owners of arcade games and so-called ``sweepstakes'' machines asked lawmakers Tuesday to legalize video poker again in North Carolina, two years after the Legislature enacted a complete ban that since been threatened by legal challenges.

Two North Carolina legislators will have plenty as they compete in a milk-chugging contest for charity.

PERDUE SPEAKS UP: Gov. Beverly Perdue tried Tuesday to loosen a knot in the state budget negotiations by offering her own $1.6 billion tax plan that's larger than the $1 billion House or Senate Democrats have proposed.

A legislative office that examines state agencies says North Carolina could have saved up to $226 million on if regulators had acted more quickly to contain mental health costs.

The decade-long effort to overhaul North Carolina's tax system finally has some legs this year, but will they weaken if a budget stalemate drags on? Taxes are the central debate that delayed passage of the state's $18 billion-plus budget before the new fiscal year began.

Story from the Huffington Post here : One of the Democratic senators who was on the fence when it came to backing a public option for health insurance coverage is coming out in support of the measure.

" The N.C. Highway Patrol is reminding motorists to be careful as they enjoy the July 4th holiday.

Complaints about North Carolina laws that allow cities and towns to annex nearby property owners against their will are getting a further airing in the General Assembly.

Officials are considering plans to close schools at North Carolina's three psychiatric hospitals and shift the responsibility of educating young patients through local school districts.

The state Senate avoided a showdown on the eve of the new fiscal year Tuesday by agreeing to the House version of a temporary spending plan to run North Carolina government while a final budget gets worked out.

AAA Carolinas says it expects fewer people in South Carolina and North Carolina to travel by road for the July 4 holiday, in part because of the economy, high unemployment and financial uncertainty.

NC Prevention Partners today announced that, as of July 6, all acute care hospitals in North Carolina will have passed 100 percent tobacco-free campus policies.

North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper confirmed in a letter to state Senate Republican leader Phil Berger that SBI agents are investigating former Gov.