Legislative Update from Rep. Iler — March 31, 2025

               Last week at the General Assembly we saw important bills for education, illegal drug control, and many local bills.  There were plenty of lobbyist groups and other visitors calling on our offices.

             House Bill 87 – Cell Phone-Free Education came to the House floor for a vote on Tuesday.  It requires local school boards to come up with a local plan to eliminate or limit cell phone use during school hours or at least in class.  It contains exemptions for educational purposes authorized by the teacher, specific use contained in the individual’s educational plan, or a documented medical condition.  It leaves the details to the 115 local school boards.  I was a co-sponsor of this bill, and it passed the House 114 – 3 and went to the Senate for their approval.

House Bill 330 – Controlled Substances Act – Updates added many new street drugs to the statutory list of controlled substances.  Rep. Miller was one of the primary sponsors of this bill.  It passed 117 – 0 and it also went to the Senate.

             Other bills were before the House were on subjects including: patriotic symbols, criminal checks on local government job applicants, prevent misbranding of food products (like lab-grown meat), gift card theft, and various local bills on town charter changes.

     There was some limited time for various lobbying groups dropping off information or speaking briefly to me or my Legislative Assistant, Carla.  A group discussing autism was the most memorable of the week for me. 

            Carla is very careful that we use our time at the office very efficiently, and she also keeps my ever-changing meeting schedule straight.  She also deals with many dozens of phone calls and call-back messages every day.  She has long experience working with Brunswick County issues with both my predecessor and me.  I get many compliments on her handling of our constituents’ issues.

     This week is the deadline for filing most types of bills, so we expect more bills being filed, as well as bills moving through committees and to the floor of the House and Senate.