Raleigh, North Carolina — RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper on Monday signed into law nearly every bill that remained on his desk from the pile of bills the Republican-dominated Legislature sent him before the end of this year's work session. But he vetoed another bill and intends to let the Legislature's annual “regulatory reform” bill pass without his signature.
Governor Cooper signed 12 bills into law, including measures to allocate $68 million for the next six months to replace expired federal child care subsidies, ensure teacher pay increases scheduled for this school year are implemented, and reinstate automatic expungements of criminal charges that have been dismissed or resulted in “not guilty” verdicts.
The state Constitution gave Governor Cooper until late Monday night to act on 14 measures. The vetoed bill, which was approved almost unanimously by the Assembly, addresses in part the format of certain documents filed in court. But Governor Cooper said in his veto message that another provision “creates legal ambiguity” about eviction orders, which could negatively impact low-income earners and make it harder to appeal in court.
The vetoed bills bring the number of bills the president has formally blocked to five, out of roughly 30 bills lawmakers left before him in late June. Republicans hold slim veto-proof majorities in the House and Senate, making those vetoes likely to be overridden.
But it's unclear when the Legislature will attempt to override the veto. The Legislature is scheduled to meet briefly at intervals from Wednesday through the end of the year, but is unlikely to take any action beyond formally receiving Cooper's veto message. An override would be difficult if even a few of its Republican colleagues can't make it to Raleigh.
Cooper said the Regulatory Reform Act he refused to sign contains some important changes that should become law and will do so because of his inaction, but he said the law also contains provisions that would allow the Legislature to interfere with the charter and rules of North Carolina railroads, which are private companies with state stock ownership.
“This is not about improving transportation for North Carolinians, it's just an unconstitutional power grab by Republicans,” Cooper said in a news release.
Cooper on Monday signed two budget bills that the Legislature passed as stopgap measures after the House and Senate could not agree on a rough adjustment to the second year of the biennial budget enacted last fall. One of the bills includes language formalizing an average 3% base pay increase for public school teachers starting this fall that lawmakers previously agreed to. The other includes child welfare grants.
Lawmakers should significantly raise teacher salaries, find a way to extend subsidies through 2025 and increase investments in early childhood education, Cooper said in a news release.
Other bills signed by Governor Cooper into law created new sexual exploitation and racketeering crimes, and a comprehensive alcohol control bill he signed gives local alcoholic beverage control boards discretion to allow retail stores to be open on New Year's Day, the Fourth of July, and Labor Day, but not on any Sundays that fall on January 1 or the Fourth of July.
Other bills Cooper has vetoed recently include those relating to the use of all-terrain and utility vehicles on public roads, and one that would block local governments from passing housing rules that would prohibit landlords from rejecting tenants who use federal funds for rent assistance. The governor also vetoed bills last week that would amend the state's building codes and ban the state from accepting payments in cryptocurrencies developed by the central bank.
