Greetings,

As many of you know, the conference report on H97 – Appropriations Act of 2015 – is out. The NC Senate is voting this afternoon with the NC House slated to vote later this week.

While many of the worst of the worst environmental provisions were removed from the final draft budget, there are still far too many damaging provisions that will push our state backwards at a time when we simply can’t afford to take one more step that direction.

Some that I want to draw your attention to include:

• allowing the Renewable Energy Investment Tax Credit (REITC) to expire. For every $1 in tax credit allotted to our renewable energy industry, it has generated $1.54 in new state and local revenue. That means more money is coming into our coffers, creating jobs and drawing in a total economic impact of $4.7 billion. Allowing the REITC to expire will likely damage North Carolina’s ability to attract new businesses and investors, especially for our state’s Tier 1 and Tier 2 counties that have received more than $1.9 billion in direct investment thanks to REITC.
• earmarking $500,000 for shale gas exploration (aka “fracking”). The irony of allowing a “subsidy” for solar to expire but include half a million dollars in handouts to an industry that already has the funds and the competitive advantage shouldn’t be lost on anyone. Regardless, this is a terrible use of state revenue dollars.
• creating loopholes for repeat violators and reducing penalties for those who break state sediment and erosion control laws. While we were pleased to see the Sedimentation Control Commission remain intact, this overseeing body won’t be able to actually enforce any of the rules and protect us and our natural resources from pollution with these gaping holes.
• extending funding for the botched SolarBee project to the tune of $1.5 million and delaying the implementation of the Jordan Lake Rules for at least three more years. This simply allows the pollution load to grow and grow, making future clean up efforts even more difficult and costly.

I invite you to review additional items that put our air, land, and water at risk in H97 here. Because of these damaging provisions, I am asking you to vote “No” on H97. This short-sighted budget puts what makes North Carolina such a great place to live, work, and play in jeopardy.

As always, please feel to reach out if you have any questions.

Thank you,

Dan Crawford, Director of Governmental Relations

NC League of Conservation Voters

The HotList is a weekly email the North Carolina League of Conservation Voters (NCLCV) sends out during session where we talk about relevant legislation and share information on key environmental issues as they come before the General Assembly. While primarily intended for elected representatives, the HotList is also made public to any and all who are concerned about the environment.