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N.C. is a step closer to playing the ponies

North Carolinians are a step closer to being able to legally play the ponies, as the state’s Sports Betting Committee has begun taking public comment on a rules package to implement pari-mutuel wagering. Officials from the State Lottery Commission will take comment through Oct. 18, and host an in-person comment...

By Ray Gronberg

September 19, 2024

A quarrel about offshore wind

It’s looking like the state’s Energy Policy Council is going to have a fight next month about whether its biennial report to legislators and the executive branch signals any support for offshore wind energy. A council committee focusing on “energy innovation” left offshore wind out of its recommendations for inclusion...

By Ray Gronberg

September 19, 2024

Roadblocks for Cabarrus County project?

State Treasurer Dale Folwell has come under fire from Local Government Commission members John Burns and Ron Penny, who are suspicious that he’s abusing his authority to unilaterally throw roadblocks in front of a Cabarrus County project. The upshot of the commission’s recent discussion is that it will vote next...

By Ray Gronberg

September 17, 2024

Morrisville takes its turn under LGC microscope

The same undercurrent surfaced earlier in last week’s meeting as LGC members weighed whether to give Morrisville officials permission to sign a development agreement for its Town Center project. This is a public-private partnership between the Wake County community and Michigan-based Singh Development to create what Town Manager Brandon Zuidema...

By Welcome

September 17, 2024

DOT awards grants for EV chargers

The N.C. Department of Transportation has awarded contracts worth a combined $5.9 million to six business that will install WV charging stations in nine places along interstates and major highways. The awards are part of an funded by $109 million the state’s getting via the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law from the...

By Welcome

September 16, 2024

Congressional China-watchers warn ports about container-crane security

Two U.S. House committees have issued a “majority staff report” that reiterates worries about continuing to allow American ports to rely on ship-to-shore container cranes made in China. Issued Thursday, the report doubled down on past arguments that the products of Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries — maker of the Port...

By Ray Gronberg

September 13, 2024

Not ready yet for the Olympics?

Sen. Berger’s post-session gaggle with reporters on Monday also provided the first opportunity for me to ask him about what he might’ve learned from his July trip to the Paris Summer Olympics. Not-long story much shorter: It’s a pain to get around the City of Lights, especially when there’s a...

By Ray Gronberg

September 10, 2024

Auto parts and China

Some in Congress are demanding information from Raleigh-based Advance Auto Parts and five competitors about their dealings with a Chinese company the lawmakers suspect is trying to evade U.S. tariffs. The bipartisan query comes from half a dozen U.S. House members and senators, led by the chair and ranking member of...

By Ray Gronberg

September 9, 2024

Injunction hearing set in NIL-ban lawsuit

Court officials have scheduled a Sept. 30 hearing in Wake County Superior Court on Greensboro quarterback Faizon Brandon’s request for an injunction to block enforcement of the state’s ban on name, image and likeness deals for high school athletes. Presuming it happens, the hearing would occur the day before the public...

By Ray Gronberg

September 9, 2024

UNC Chapel Hill’s free-tuition proposal

Two and a half weeks after their counterparts at Duke University stepped up, UNC Chapel Hill’s leaders announced their latest initiative to reduce the cost of attendance for middle-income families.

By Ray Gronberg

July 10, 2023

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