Governor Roy Cooper and North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) Secretary Mandy K. Cohen, M.D. toured Chapel Hill Pediatrics and Adolescents, P.A. in Orange County to see their operations to vaccinate children ages 5-11. The pediatrician’s office will begin administering vaccines for children ages 5-11, following the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) authorization of a lower dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for children and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) recommendation that children ages 5–11 receive the vaccine.
The Family Accountability and Recovery Court (FARC) in Lenoir, Wayne, and Greene Counties has been selected as one of nine Rural Innovation Sites by the Rural Justice Collaborative (RJC) Advisory Council. These are the country’s most cutting edge rural justice programs that will serve as models for other communities. The RJC initiative will provide resources to enable other communities to replicate these Innovation Sites’ successes.
hief Justice Paul Newby continued his 100 county courthouse tour this week. He visited the Pender and Brunswick County courthouses yesterday and will visit the New Hanover County courthouse today. Newby's 100 county tour first began in Cherokee County in May and is expected to end in Dare County in 2022. When completed, Newby will be the first chief justice to visit all of North Carolina's courthouses from Murphy to Manteo.
State lawmakers voted unanimously Wednesday to block an automatic tax increase on employers. Senate Bill 311 would maintain the state's current tax for funding unemployment insurance.
The North Carolina General Assembly is slated to give final approval to the state’s new congressional and legislative district maps on Thursday. The three proposal boundary maps moved quickly through committees and floor votes this week. During Thursday’s sessions the House is slated to pass the map for U.S. congressional seats in North Carolina, and the map for N.C. Senate districts. The Senates will consider the N.C. House district map.
“It is important for eligible North Carolina families to apply for this credit before the rapidly approaching deadline,” said Governor Cooper. “These funds will help families recover from the pandemic and care for their children at a time when it is needed most.”
The N.C. House passed its district map proposal during evening session Tuesday, Nov. 2. The Senate is expected to vote on the N.C. House district map on Thursday. Redistricting maps do not go before Governor Roy Cooper, a Democrat, driving more pressure on the legislative process by opposition groups.
On Tuesday, November 2, The N.C. House voted along party lines in favor of its new House election district map, while the N.C. Senate approved new congressional maps. The votes come despite many Democrats saying the redistricting committee should “go back to the drawing board.”
Unemployment rates (not seasonally adjusted) decreased in all 100 of North Carolina’s counties in September. Scotland County had the highest unemployment rate at 7.8 percent while Orange County had the lowest at 2.8 percent.
A year ago, would you have correctly guessed that meetings of local school boards would be among the most politically charged events of 2021, and that school-board races would be among the most contested of the next election cycle? If so, more power to you. I would have gotten those questions wrong.
Children ages 5 to 11 can now receive a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine. The Food and Drug Administration has authorized a lower dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for children in this age group, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend all children 5–11 get the vaccine to protect against serious illness and help keep them healthy.
