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Tues.: Everything old is...
posted at 2009-03-03 23:42 | Last modified 2009-03-03 23:42
It was one of those déjà vu days on Jones St. The two biggest stories of the day were proposals we’ve all written about at least a dozen times: an attempt to ban smoking in public places, and an attempt to ban same-sex marriage even more than it’s already banned.
"Protect the Divine Design"
This year’s incarnation of the anti-gay-marriage rally was a much smaller affair than the 2007 version. Then again, it was whole lot warmer last time. Today, it was a windy 25 degrees with snow on the ground when the event kicked off at 11am.
A shivering crowd of around 1000 gathered to listen to a handful of lawmakers, preachers, and musical acts. NC4Marriage director Tami Fitzgerald told the crowd that the Obama administration is “planning to roll back” the federal Defense of Marriage Law. (That’s the first I’ve heard of that, BTW.) Without a constitutional amendment, she warns, North Carolina will be a “prime target” for litigious gays and lesbians seeking to overturn the state’s DOMA law.
The goal of the rally was to increase the number of co-sponsors of H361 , the “Marriage Protection Act.” The signup deadline was 3pm today. I don’t know yet how many more co-sponsors they got, but it may not matter. Speaker Joe Hackney sent the bill serially to four committees – Rules, Election Law, Judiciary I, and Approps. (FTR, I can’t remember any other bills that have been subject to a quadruple referral.) The odds this one will make it through all four before crossover are, well, not good. Still, they could be worse: the Senate companion bill was waved off to a committee that hasn’t met since 2002.
Where there's smoke
The other big event of the day was the House Health Committee vote in favor of H2, Majority Leader Holliman’s indoor smoking ban. The proposal would prohibit smoking anywhere people are employed – bars, restaurants, factories, garages, you name it.
If this sounds familiar, it ought to. Holliman backed similar bans in '05 and '07, but neither made it through the House. This year, though, some things have changed: Fewer people smoke, the bill contains fewer exceptions, and the bar and restaurant lobby isn’t fighting it.
Still, today didn't lack for drama. Peg O'Connell, widow of recently departed Insurance Comm. Jim Long, asked lawmakers to support the ban, saying she blames Long’s smoking for his recent death. On the nay side, Alamance Rep. Cary Allred decried the measure for creating what he called a “Gestapo atmosphere.” (NCNN’s Matt Willoughby has the video.) In the end, it wasn’t even close. Only three Health Comm. members voted against it: Allred and Wake Republicans Nelson Dollar and Marilyn Avila.
The next stop is House J1, where the bill’s complaint-based penalty system could get a workover. But I’d be surprised if Dem leaders let that happen. Last time, every exception the bill accrued seemed to weaken its overall support. This time, I'm expecting less concern about consensus -- it’ll probably be all or nothing.
Up next
Tomorrow’s shaping up to be a crazy day. We’ve got Gov. Perdue’s first bill-signing going head-to-head with a paid sick leave presser at 10:30. House committees will be taking up the animal euthanasia bill at noon and public funding for municipal elections at 1:00pm, which is the same time UNC researcher Brent Lane returns to Senate Finance for a presentation on economic incentives, and House Ways & Means takes up Garland Pierce’s texting-while-driving bill. Time to find out just how many places you can be at one time.
State of the State
Gov. Bev Perdue has been invited over to give her SOS (quit giggling) next Monday evening. Joking aside, it’s likely to be a pretty grim speech, stimulus (or “recovery”) funds notwithstanding. That was the topic of today’s State of Things, where I joined Mike Munger, Andy Taylor, and Chris Estes, while Frank Stasio did his level best to referee. If you missed it, it’s online here.
One more thing
I’d be remiss not to call your attention to a very cool series on the air this week. WUNC’s health reporter Rose Hoban won a travel grant to go to Africa to report on health issues in some of the world's poorest countries, and what some dedicated Tar Heels are doing to help. Her series is airing all week. If you missed the first couple of installments, you can find them here, along with all sorts of photos, Rose’s travel blog, and other cool extras. Check it out!
Comments? Drop me a line.
