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Weekly Legislative Report
June 5, 2015
Now you see it, now you don’t! This has been the procedural history of a few bills this
week in the General Assembly. House Bill 562, Second Amendment Affirmation Act, has been
scheduled for consideration by the full House several times over the last few weeks, but each
time it has been removed from the agenda and not considered or voted on. It is currently
scheduled for consideration next Monday, June 8th and it may be considered or it may be
postponed further.
Senate Bill 2, Magistrates Recusal for Civil Ceremonies, has also been scheduled several
times for consideration by the full House. This bill was vetoed by Governor Pat McCrory on
May 28th and the veto was overridden by the Senate on Monday of this week. This bill remains
on the House calendar for consideration next Monday. It is unclear whether it will be handled on
Monday or if a vote on whether or not to override the Governor’s veto will be postponed. For a
Governor’s veto to be overturned, both the House and Senate must vote by a 3/5 majority of the
present and voting members in each chamber to override the veto.
Senate budget leadership spent most of this week behind closed doors crafting their
proposed version of this year’s budget bill. They are tentatively scheduled to vote on it next
week and then send it to the House. Thereafter, budget leaders in the House and Senate will be
appointed to work out the differences between the House and Senate proposed versions of the
budget bill.
The House and Senate adjourned on Thursday and will reconvene on Monday.
BILL STATUS
HOUSE BILL 82, Execution/Nonsecure Custody Order/Child Abuse, has been signed into law
by Governor Pat McCrory with an effective date of June 2, 2015.
HOUSE BILL 113, Protect Our Students Act, has been signed into law by Governor Pat
McCrory with an effective date of December 1, 2015. This bill is supported by the North
Carolina Sheriffs’ Association.
HOUSE BILL 222, Retention Elections/Supreme Court, has been approved by the General
Assembly and will be sent to Governor Pat McCrory for his signature.
HOUSE BILL 232, Study/Update Bicycle Safety Laws, has been signed into law by Governor
Pat McCrory with an effective date of June 2, 2015.
Weekly Legislative Report
North Carolina Sheriffs’ Association
June 5, 2015
HOUSE BILL 294, Prohibit Cell Phone/Delinquent Juvenile.-AB, has been signed into law by
Governor Pat McCrory with an effective date of December 1, 2015.
HOUSE BILL 315, Sheriff & Landlord/Tenant-Writs of Poss. Chg, has been signed into law by
Governor Pat McCrory with an effective date of October 1, 2015.
HOUSE BILL 346, Counties/Public Trust Areas, has been approved by the General Assembly
and sent to Governor Pat McCrory for his signature.
HOUSE BILL 352, Standard of Proof/Public Safety Dispatchers, has been approved by the
General Assembly and sent to Governor Pat McCrory for his signature.
HOUSE BILL 385, Sheriffs' Supp. Pension Fund Changes, has passed the House, and has been
assigned to the Senate Committee on Pensions & Retirement and Aging. This bill is supported
– high priority by the North Carolina Sheriffs’ Association.
HOUSE BILL 405, Property Protection Act. The veto of this bill by Governor Pat McCrory was
overridden by the General Assembly. This bill was enacted into law with an effective date of
January 1, 2016.
HOUSE BILL 465, Women and Children's Protection Act of 2015, has been approved by the
General Assembly and sent to Governor Pat McCrory for his signature.
HOUSE BILL 552, Graffiti Vandalism, has been approved by the General Assembly and sent to
Governor Pat McCrory for his signature.
HOUSE BILL 560, Assault Emergency Workers/Hospital Personnel, has passed the Senate
Judiciary I Committee with amendments, has passed the Senate and was returned to the House
for consideration of the Senate changes. If the House does not accept the Senate changes,
members from both the House and Senate will be appointed to reach an agreement on the bill.
This bill was amended to expand the category of workers covered under this proposed
legislation. The amended version of this bill would make it a Class I felony to assault hospital
personnel and licensed health care providers who are providing or attempting to provide
healthcare services to a patient in a hospital. The previous version of the bill covered only
hospital personnel. Therefore, the current version of the bill would expand the coverage of this
law to not only individuals who work for a hospital, but would also cover any healthcare
providers not employed by a hospital, but who are nonetheless providing or attempting to
provide care in the hospital.
HOUSE BILL 562, Amend Firearm Laws, has passed the House Committee on Rules, Calendar,
and Operations of the House with amendments, and is scheduled to be considered by the House
on Monday, June 8, 2015.
This bill has been amended several times since its original introduction. The most recent version
of this bill would make a number of changes to North Carolina’s firearms laws that would impact
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Weekly Legislative Report
North Carolina Sheriffs’ Association
June 5, 2015
criminal justice agencies. Unless otherwise indicated, the summarized provisions of the bill set
out in the May 8, 2015 Weekly Legislative Report remain in the bill. New provisions in the bill
are summarized below. These changes include the following:
1. Individuals would be able to carry an ordinary pocketknife in the State Capitol
Building or on the grounds of the State Capitol Building.
2. A legislator or legislative employee would be able to carry concealed handguns, if
the individual has a valid concealed handgun permit, on the premises of the State
legislative buildings and grounds, so long as the individual gives advance notice
to the Chief of the General Assembly Special Police, or his or her designee, that
the individual will be carrying a concealed handgun.
3. An applicant would be disqualified from receiving a concealed handgun permit
for a period of five years for a conviction for stalking under G.S. 14-277.3A or
former G.S. 14-277.3.
4. The requirement to have a pistol purchase permit for the purchase or transfer of a
handgun would be abolished in North Carolina effective October 1, 2021. The
North Carolina Sheriffs’ Association supports maintaining North Carolina’s
pistol purchase permit system.
5. Effective October 1, 2018, an individual would not need a pistol purchase permit
if the individual is receiving a handgun from a federally licensed firearms dealer
who conducts a background check through the National Instant Criminal
Background Check System (NICS). The North Carolina Sheriffs’ Association
supports maintaining North Carolina’s pistol purchase permit system.
6. Effective December 1, 2015, when evaluating the good moral character of an
applicant for a pistol purchase permit, the sheriff would be limited to considering
the applicant’s conduct and criminal history for the five year period immediately
preceding the date of the application.
7. An individual who was denied a pistol purchase permit would appeal that denial
to the superior court. Currently, a denial of a pistol purchase permit is appealable
to the chief judge of the district court.
8. The Department of Public Safety, in consultation with the North Carolina
Sheriffs’ Association, would be required to create a standardized pistol purchase
permit application to be used by all sheriffs. This application would be required to
be provided by the sheriff electronically and in paper form. Only the following
materials could be required to be submitted with a pistol purchase permit
application:
a. The permit application;
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North Carolina Sheriffs’ Association
June 5, 2015
b. A fee of $5 for each permit requested;
c. A government issued identification confirming the identity of the
applicant;
d. Proof of residency; and
e. A signed release form to allow the sheriff to receive any court orders
concerning the mental health or capacity of the applicant.
9. For purposes of concealed handgun permit applications, sheriffs would not be
allowed to request employment information, character affidavits, additional
background checks, photographs, or other information.
10. In the previous version of this bill, clerks of superior court would be required to
forward firearms-disqualifying information about an individual to NICS if NICS
requested such information. Additionally, in the previous version of the bill, the
Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) would be required to consult with the
State Bureau of Investigation to determine the feasibility of reporting additional
information to NICS. These requirements were removed from the bill.
The current version of this bill would require clerks of superior court, within 48
hours of receiving notice of certain court orders, to forward disqualifying orders
and information to NICS. Additionally, AOC would be required to send unserved
felony warrants, indictments, criminal summons, or orders for arrest to NICS
within 48 hours of issuance. Sheriffs would also be required, within 48 hours of
service, to send domestic violence protective orders to NICS.
11. Arresting law enforcement agencies would be required to fingerprint individuals
arrested for certain misdemeanors (such as domestic violence related crimes,
impaired driving offenses and controlled substance violations) and to forward
those fingerprints to the State Bureau of Investigation for the purpose of having
them forwarded to NICS. Law enforcement officers would also be required to
provide certain information after an arrest to magistrates. This information would
include the arrestee’s name, address, drivers license number, date of birth, gender,
race, social security number and domestic relationship to any victims.
12. By May 31, 2019, AOC would be required to send certain historical records to
NICS, such as all involuntary commitment orders, convictions for misdemeanor
possession of controlled substances and impaired driving convictions.
13. In the previous version of this bill, sheriffs would have been required to either
issue or deny an application for a concealed handgun permit within 90 calendar
days from the date that the application was received, regardless of whether all
required records had been received on the applicant. This provision has been
removed from this version of the bill so that sheriffs would continue under the
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North Carolina Sheriffs’ Association
June 5, 2015
current law to issue or deny concealed handgun permits within 45 days after
receipt of all requested documents.
This version of the bill would add the requirement that sheriffs make the request
for mental health records on a concealed handgun permit applicant within 15 days
of the receipt of the application.
14. Any form provided to a patient from a health care provider that asks for
information regarding the patient’s ownership or possession of firearms and
ammunition would also have to contain a notice that the patient is not required to
answer any of those questions.
15. An individual would be eligible to receive a concealed handgun permit if the
person was either a citizen of the United States or had been lawfully admitted for
permanent residence in the United States. Currently, only citizens of the United
States are eligible to receive a concealed handgun permit.
HOUSE BILL 570, Facilitate Successful Reentry, has been signed into law by Governor Pat
McCrory with an effective date of October 1, 2015.
HOUSE BILL 574, Opossum Exclusion From Wildlife Laws, has been approved by the General
Assembly and sent to Governor Pat McCrory for his signature.
HOUSE BILL 595, Military Experience/LEO Cert. Requirements, has been signed into law by
Governor Pat McCrory with an effective date of June 3, 2015. This bill is opposed by the North
Carolina Sheriffs’ Association.
HOUSE BILL 640, Outdoor Heritage Act, has passed the Senate and was returned to the House
for consideration of the Senate changes. The House did not accept the Senate changes, so
members from both the House and Senate have been appointed to a committee in an attempt to
reach an agreement on the differences in the bill.
HOUSE BILL 691, Assault on National Guard Member, has been approved by the General
Assembly and sent to Governor Pat McCrory for his signature.
HOUSE BILL 879, Juvenile Code Reform, has been signed into law by Governor Pat McCrory
with an effective date of December 1, 2015. This bill is supported by the North Carolina
Sheriffs’ Association.
SENATE BILL 2, Magistrates Recusal for Civil Ceremonies. The veto of this bill by Governor
Pat McCrory was overridden by the Senate. The bill is scheduled to be considered by the House
on Monday, June 8, 2015 to see if there are sufficient votes to override the veto.
SENATE BILL 60, No Contact Order/No Expiration, has passed the House Judiciary II
Committee with amendments, and is scheduled to be considered by the House on Monday, June
8, 2015.
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Weekly Legislative Report
North Carolina Sheriffs’ Association
June 5, 2015
SENATE BILL 83, Criminal Law/Filing False Document, has passed the House Judiciary III
Committee with amendments, and is scheduled to be considered by the House on Monday, June
8, 2015.
This bill was amended to provide that, in addition to not indexing or docketing a lien or
encumbrance against the property of public officials or their family members, a clerk of superior
court would not be allowed to file stamp the lien or encumbrance if the clerk has a reasonable
suspicion that the lien or encumbrance is false. Upon a determination by a judge that the filing is
not false, the clerk would then index the claim which would also determine the date and time of
priority interest for the lien or encumbrance. The bill was also amended to require the clerk of
superior court to serve orders declaring a filing null and void, and to return the original denied
filing to the individual or entity that presented it. An individual or entity whose filing was denied
would have 30 days after the denial to appeal. If no appeal is sought, the clerk would be able to
destroy the filing.
SENATE BILL 154, Clarifying the Good Samaritan Law, has passed the House and will be sent
to the Senate for consideration of the House changes. If the Senate does not accept the House
changes, members from both the House and Senate will be appointed to attempt to reach an
agreement on the bill. This bill is supported by the North Carolina Sheriffs’ Association.
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