A state Senate bill would allow certain employees and volunteers at private schools to be armed, as well as permit individuals to carry a concealed weapon onto property that serves both an education and religious function.
has Sen. Steve Jarvis, R-Davidson, as primary sponsor and 13 Republican co-sponsors.
For the private-school setting, individuals are allowed to have a firearm or stun gun. They have to be authorized by the school’s board of trustees or school administrative director. The person has to have a concealed weapon permit and successfully complete at least eight hours of annual gun-safety coursework.
For the campuses that serve both an educational and religious purpose, a concealed weapon would be permissible when they are attending a worship service or other religious functions, such as funerals, weddings, Christenings and fellowship gatherings. Upon becoming law, the legislation goes into effect Dec. 1.
People are also reading…
There was a similar bill on the educational and religious campus legislation filed during the 2021 session in
HB134 cleared the House by a 72-44 vote in March 2021 with the support of five Democrats. Senate Republican leadership shelved the bill without a committee hearing.
Nursing fellows bill
There have been five bills submitted over the past week by Forsyth House representatives — two each from Republican Donny Lambeth and two each by Democrats Amber Baker and Kanika Brown — and one from Democratic senator Paul Lowe.
Lambeth filed , which would establish a nursing fellows program and provide state funding for curriculum support for students.
The program would provide forgivable loans of up to $5,000 to nursing students who are enrolled in degree programs at WSSU to receive a Bachelor of Science in Nursing or a Master of Science in Nursing Education, and are interested in preparing to become nurses in the state or instructors in qualifying nursing programs.
The program’s dean would determine forgivable loan recipient selection criteria and procedures and shall select the recipients, as well as be responsible for recruitment and coordination of the program. The student criteria includes: grade point averages; performance on relevant assessments; experience, accomplishments and other criteria demonstrating qualities; positively correlated with highly effective nurses and instructors in qualifying nursing programs, including excellent verbal and communication skills; and a demonstrated commitment to serve in North Carolina.
The program would recruit potential students from “regions of the state with the greatest need for nurses and nursing instructors in qualifying nursing programs.â€
Try again film grant bill
Lowe filed , which represents the latest attempt to increase the spending cap that film production groups can spend on a project and still receive a state Film and Entertainment grant. Expenses for a feature-length film would rise from the current $7 million to $12 million, as well as from $15 million to $20 million for a single season of a televised series, from $250,000 to $450,000 for a commercial, and $2 million for an independent film. An independent film company is required to spend at least $2.5 million, must be not publicly traded and a publicly traded company can’t have more than a 25% ownership stake, The bill lists priorities for grants “to maximize the benefit to the state ... identifiable attractions of locales, especially those emphasizing the state’s diverse geographical, landscapes and historic landmarks.â€
The bill also provides a higher grant qualifying expense for Tier 1 and Tier 2 counties, of which all 14 Triad and northwest North Carolina counties qualify, compared with Tier 3 counties.
Other local bills
, also filed by Lambeth, would allow the use of nasal epinephrine spray as a delivery system in schools along with auto injectors, beginning with the 2025-26 school year. , filed by Baker and Brown, would provide $250,000 in state funding for 2025-26 fiscal year to United Way of Forsyth County for use in summer learning programs through community agencies.
The funding would be geared toward students who are not eligible for summer learning programs through their local school system.
, also filed by Baker and Brown, provides a $250,000 state grant to the Arts Council of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County toward the three-day 1Love Festival. The festival is scheduled tentatively for June 26-28.
