March 26, 2025 | Proudly representing Guilford County and the 57th District

On Thursday the North Carolina State Senate passed a bill that would loosen requirements for North Carolinians to conceal carry a firearm. The bill would allow anyone over the age of 18 to carry a concealed handgun without any permitting or training process. North Carolinians overwhelmingly disapprove of this move, just as 3 in 4 Americans oppose concealed carry without a permit, including a majority of gun owners and Republicans.

A similar bill was rushed through House Committees this past week. House Democratic Leader Reives released a statement, calling the bill "a recipe for disaster" and that "either of this bills becoming law would make North Carolina a more dangerous place."

Moments after the Senate passed SB50, we scrambled together a press conference to speak out against the dangerous permitless concealed carry bills. Volunteers from Moms Demand Action, North Carolinians Against Gun Violence, Everytown for Gun Safety, and other advocates from across the state joined us to set the record straight on how this legislation makes North Carolina a more dangerous place.

Our office has heard loud and clear: the people of House District 57 overwhelmingly DO NOT support repealing permit requirements. From the floods of emails and phone calls, know that the voices of constituents matters.

States that enacted permitless concealed carry saw a 27% increase in gun homicides within three years of the change; more than double the rate of the US at large. No one in North Carolina wants to repeal our already limited gun safety laws, because they understand how reckless this is.

Click here to watch the full press conference.

Gov. Stein signs HB47 with Speaker Hall and other WNC Representatives

Last week the House and Senate passed a compromise bill on Helene Recovery. Governor Stein signed it into law soon after, his first bill to be signed as Governor. The bill includes $524 million in aid for Western North Carolina:

• $200 million for North Carolina farmers with crop loss due to Helene
• $120 million for CDBG-DR Home Reconstruction and Repair Program
• $55 million for local government infrastructure grants to help small businesses
• $100 million to help repair private roads and bridges
• $20 million for debris cleanup
• $9 million for school learning recovery program

The bill also includes $217 million to help wrap up recovery efforts in Eastern North Carolina from previous hurricanes. Governor Stein is advocating for $19 billion in federal funding as well. Hurricane Helene is estimated to have caused about $60 billion in damage.

Governor Stein delivered his first State of the State Address earlier this month. In it, he outlined his priorities for North Carolina during his first term in office. Here are some of the highlights. You can watch the full speech here, or read his remarks as prepared here.

Left to right: Lt. Gov. Hunt, Gov. Stein, Speaker Hall, President Pro Tempore Berger

Helene Recovery

The top focus of this legislative session is to help the victims of Hurricane Helene to rebuild. The storm caused nearly $60 billion worth of damage to Western North Carolina. On his first day in office, Governor Stein signed an executive order to help cut red tape and established GROW NC, an entity within his office to oversee recovery efforts.

Economy

Governor Stein emphasized that North Carolina's economy should work for everyone. He called for investments into apprenticeship programs and community colleges, as well as cutting red tape to increase housing supply. He created a bipartisan task force to help find solutions for the child care crisis in North Carolina, and reiterated the need to freeze corporate tax cuts in favor of cutting taxes for working families. Corporations must pay their fair share if we want to avoid the fiscal cliff.

Education

The Governor also called for substantial teacher pay raises in the budget and additional support staff. He said the state should put forward a ballot initiative for a multi-billion dollar bond to help finance school building upgrades and repairs. Gov. Stein criticized the expansion of vouchers for wealthy families, which is diverting state funding from public schools into private institutions.

Lady legislators with the Honorable Justice Allison Riggs!

I greatly enjoyed watching the State of the State! The excitement in the House Chamber was palpable and I am looking forward to passing a budget that works for all North Carolinians. It is so important that we fund our schools, pay teachers, build more housing, protect Medicaid, and stand up for the working class.

Gov. Stein released his proposed budget last week, which would make the changes needed to fulfill his North Carolina Strong agenda. You can read that here.

Thousands of bills are filed in the General Assembly by the end of each session. Many of them never see the light of day, so I want to highlight some of the important bills I've sponsored that are deserving of attention. A full list of my sponsored bills can be found here.

Primary Sponsored Bills:

• HB 115 - Child Care Facility Tax Exemption
• HB 166 - Allow ERPOs to Prevent Suicides & Save Lives
• HB 321 - School Calendar Flexibility/Guilford/Open Calendar
• HB 324 - Funds for Greensboro Transit Agency
• HB 342 - Guilford County Schools Funding Requests
• HB 350 - Report Lost/Stolen Firearm Within 24 Hours
• HB 366 - Reenact & Expand Pistol Purchase Permit
• HB 371 - DMV Materials in Additional Languages
• HB 448 - Safe Firearm Storage/Sales Tax Exemption

Other Bills I've Sponsored:

Several bills were introduced today to reinstate protections for private health. At a press conference today, I joined my colleagues to support legislation to defend our personal liberties. Included in todays rollout are the following bills:

• HB 509 - Right to Reproductive Freedom Act:
• HB 510 - Menstrual Equity for All Act:
• HB 474 - Right to Contraception:
• HB 473 - Right to IVF
• HB 503 - Don't Tread on Me Act

All of these bills address popular policies which ensure a woman's right to control her own body. I am deeply appreciative of my fellow freshman Rep. Beth Helfrich, a mother of five, for introducing HB 473 - "Right to IVF" and HB 474 - "Right to Contraception."

What's on the calendar?

I look forward to hearing from community members at our bipartisan, bicameral town hall hosted by the Guilford Delegation on Thursday, April 3 from 6-7:30PM. If you have questions, comments, or concerns about how North Carolina is run, I encourage you to show up and get engaged

Page Program Application Open

Our office is still taking House Page Applications! This program offers young students the opportunity to learn about, and participate in, the legislative process of our state. This is a four day long experience that allows high school students that are currently in grades ten, eleven, or twelve to observe firsthand how our laws are made.

Learn more about the House Page Program and apply here. Spots are limited and the program is competitive. Selected students can receive either 30 service hour credits for their school or a $150 stipend.