Our State Legislature Has Been Busy

The Senate has signed onto the House bill that will make it so that you as an adult have to buckle up even in the back seat. The bill is off to the governor's desk. No word yet on the thousands of kids that ride in state owned buses back and forth to state owned schools without seatbelts. My question still is, is it for safety or for money? Also this week with a lot of finger pointing and name calling the Senate 49-0 (after a second call, when lt governor Purdue refused to break a tie) passed the House version of the pledge bill. The House pledge bill allowed time each school day for the Pledge of Allegiance to be recited (if a student wanted to say it). The Senate republicians wanted this plus a time devoted to civics and NC symbology. Off to the governor's desk it goes. The Senate also has passed a ban on third party checks and incomplete checks for campaign contributions. They also made it so that anyone donating over $50 will be revealed. The North Carolina Medical Board has been granted more powers on what they can to do doctors that don't follow board approved methods of treatment. NC minimum wage will be raised for the first time in 10 years. Easley is waiting for this one to cross his desk. So while low wage workers will gain $1 an hour their employers will loose money and this lost will most likely be passed onto the consumer or employees in the form of layoffs or cutbacks on benefits. Way to go! And let's not forget that 1 week after the start of the fiscal year Easley has signed our state's huge $18.9 billion budget! Bureaucracy lives on in NC.