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N.C. near tops in revenue gains from migration

North Carolina ranks third nationally in a study of the states that are benefiting the most from the movement of taxpayers and their dollars from state to states. The report from the National Taxpayers Union Foundation reckons that Florida gained $196 billion in net adjusted gross income over the past decade due...

By Ray Gronberg

June 3, 2025

NC Senate debates legal shield for herbicide makers

The issues surrounding raw milk have gotten most of the attention in the Senate’s debate about this session’s farm act, but there’s also a debate going on about herbicides and any legal liability associated with them. Senate Bill 639 includes a provision that says the manufacturer of a state-registered pesticide has fulfilled its...

By Ray Gronberg

June 3, 2025

Student visas and North Carolina

The Trump administration’s crackdowns on student visas affect a sector that as of the 2023-24 academic year was bringing 24,468 international students and $914.5 million to North Carolina’s economy. According to the annual “Open Doors” report from the Institute of International Education — also funded by the U.S. State Department — more than three-quarters...

By Ray Gronberg

June 2, 2025

Dueling strategies for addressing DMV’s problems

Gov. Josh Stein and new DMV commissioner Paul Tine are pledging to work with legislators and State Auditor Dave Boliek to improve the operations of the beleaguered agency. “We are tackling this problem head-on,” Stein said, even as his aides noted that his budget proposal and the House’s agree DMV...

By Ray Gronberg

June 2, 2025

Energy study targets 2026 report

As for UNC Chapel Hill’s energy study, campus officials say they’ve hired Irvine, California’s Salas O’Brien to help them figure out the institution’s need’s and a road map for achieving them. UNC Chapel Hill’s energy services chief, Tony Millette, says the engineering firm “will give us the big picture” and has already “worked...

By Ray Gronberg

May 30, 2025

Trustee questions dorm-construction process

Speaking of dorm space, UNC Chapel Hill trustees this month gave Roberts’ team permission to permission to demolish a building to make way for a new dormitory and hire a construction manager at risk to run the project. The goal, University Architect Evan Yassky said, is to have “just over 700 beds”...

By Ray Gronberg

May 30, 2025

UNC’s enrollment plans spark unusual town-gown harmony

If you’re at all familiar with how town-gown politics usually roll in Chapel Hill, the lack of public dispute about UNC Chapel Hill Chancellor Lee Roberts’ hopes of boosting the flagship university’s enrollment is … unusual, to put it mildly. But there might be a reason for that. Namely, hope....

By Ray Gronberg

May 30, 2025

Dems ahead on generic General Assembly ballot?

Speaking of polls, the Strategic Partners survey for Conservatives for Clean Energy served up a somewhat different picture of the generic ballot for the General Assembly than another recent poll. It found a 2.1 percentage point split among the 650 registered voters who participated. Democrats were favored by 44.9%, Republicans by 42.8%....

By Ray Gronberg

May 29, 2025

Buc-ee’s building plan review is underway

In the spirit of tying up a loose end, I can report that the folks at Buc-ee’s have submitted building plans to Mebane officials for review. This occurred just a week ago, said Richard Allred, building plan reviewer in the Alamance County city’s Permits and Inspections office. It also comes a year and four...

By Ray Gronberg

May 29, 2025

NC voters back nuclear expansion, oppose utility surcharges, favor renewables over fossil fuels

While they don’t like the state Senate’s approach, North Carolina voters do seem receptive to legislation that would make it easier to build new nuclear power plants in the state. A poll conducted for Conservatives for Clean Energy found that 58.2% of the people Strategic Partners Solutions interviewers talked to in March...

By Ray Gronberg

May 29, 2025

Wayne, Mecklenburg land new businesses

North Carolina’s business recruiters have scored two more wins, via projects that promise to bring 216 jobs to Wayne County and 276 jobs to Charlotte. The Wayne County project will, if successful, become the first U.S. outpost of Pelsan Tekstil, a Turkish company that also operates in Russia and Switzerland. A...

By Ray Gronberg

May 28, 2025

Activists mobilize against gas station developments in Alamance and Pitt counties

Triangle-area activists are hoping to use disputes about the construction of gas stations in Alamance and Pitt counties to mount a broader campaign to further restrict the siting of such businesses. The primary flashpoint for the N.C. Environmental Justice Network and a like-minded group, 7 Directions of Service, is the planned 120-pump Buc-ee’s...

By Ray Gronberg

May 28, 2025

Lazzara pushing redevelopment tax break

A bill’s moving through the Senate committee process that would set up a process for some projects to get a property tax abatement. Sen. Michael Lazzara’s Senate Bill 695 made it through the chamber’s State and Local Government committee before the Memorial Day holiday and is now in the hands of the...

By Ray Gronberg

May 27, 2025

Country club case confounds YIMBYs

There’s been some media attention paid to the Raleigh Country Club’s litigation against the city over its willingness to allow a 16-unit townhouse project next to its 11th green and 12th tee. What’s flown a bit under the radar, however, is the scope of the club’s latest lawsuit. It has two big claims that...

By Ray Gronberg

May 27, 2025

Old-school pitchers shine as Peterson and Skubal go the distance

Since the start of the baseball season, I’ve been giving my MLB.tv subscription a workout. This past weekend was no exception, and it served up a couple of gems for folks like me who are fans of old-school pitching. The new school, if it’s been a while since you’ve tuned in, is...

By Ray Gronberg

May 27, 2025