Legislative Update from Rep. Frank Iler – May 22, 2017

Last week was an unusual week in the North Carolina House of Representatives We worked into the night on the state budget, we passed bills concerning juvenile justice and shared medical expenses, and I was able to attend an important event two states away.        

This article is being written on a beautiful Saturday morning in north Georgia, just outside of Atlanta.  I will explain near the end.

With the Senate having sent their budget to the House at the end of the prior week, we got to work early Tuesday morning and had constant appropriations meetings into the early or late evening for most of the week.  Each of the “area” appropriations committee chairs were meeting separately and then reporting to the “full” chairs periodically.  In my case, I was meeting with the other appropriations chairs on transportation.  Our budget comes from the highway use tax when one buys a car, the motor fuel tax at the gas pump, and other fees related to vehicle usage.  It also includes boating fees and boat fuel tax, as well as some federal funds.  What many citizens don’t realize is that this is separate from the general fund budget, which is funded by income taxes, sales taxes, and other taxes and fees.  The transportation budget is averaging about $4 billion, while the general fund budget for everything else is about $23 billion.  With the $4 billion, all highways must be built and maintained, ferries, ports and trains must operate, dredging must take place, roadsides must be maintained, and all other transportation needs must be funded.

During the week we also passed two important bills on the House floor.  House Bill 280 – Juvenile Justice Reinvestment Act raises the age of juveniles to include 16 and 17 year olds on misdemeanors and minor felonies.  It was thoroughly vetted in the Appropriations and Judiciary committees, and passed the House by a vote of 104 – 8.  House Bill 295 – Health Care Sharing Expenses Deductions makes the monthly or annual contributions to a health care expense sharing fund deductible on state income taxes, the same as premiums on health insurance.  These funds have the same function as health insurance, and now will be treated the same.  It passed unanimously 114 – 0.

On a personal note, I was able to break away Thursday afternoon to travel to suburban Atlanta, Georgia.  The occasion was the graduation from high school of my late wife’s granddaughter, Meredith.  Having known Meredith and her family long before she was born, I naturally claim her as my own granddaughter.  The graduation ceremony of 100 graduates from her Christian academy last night was very moving, helping us focus on those things that are important to us, such as family, friends, education, and determination to accomplish a goal.  She was recognized as top ten in her class.  She is moving on to the University of Georgia, just a short distance up the road in Athens, and will certainly continue to excel both inside and outside the classroom. 

I will now be driving back to North Carolina for another granddaughter’s soccer game in Iredell County, then home to Brunswick County.

This week I will be back in Raleigh by Monday, and will be focused on getting the budget approved by all the necessary committees and ready for the House floor.  I have to thank my fellow transportation appropriations chairs and our talented staff in fiscal research and bill drafting for the extremely hard work and long hours last week and in the days to come.