To date, Rowan County’s four lawmakers are the primary sponsors of more than 50 bills in the General Assembly. Six of those have made it through to the other chamber.

Of the 21 bills filed by Rep. Harry Warren, R-76, three are currently in the Senate. Those include House Bill 48, which would would allow emergency medical services personnel after completing specialized training to carry a weapon concealed when they’re working with a SWAT team in dangerous situations; H.B. 49, which allows those who have concealed carry permits to be exempt from another firearms safety and training course upon applying for permit renewals under certain conditions; and H.B. 62, which would authorize injunctive relief against cities and counties that adopt sanctuary policies, ordinances or procedures in violation of state law.

All three bills mostly passed along party lines, with both H.B. 48 and 49 passing 79-41 and H.B. 62 passing 68-50.

Rep. Julia Howard, R-77, is the primary sponsor of 12 bills, but only one has passed through the House. H.B. 76 is another attempt of Howard’s to prohibit debt settlement and declare it an unfair trading practice. It would also expand civil remedies. A similar bill passed the House and Senate during the short session in June but was ultimately rejected for a vote on the Senate floor.

H.B. 76 passed the House unanimously on March 3.

Rep. Wayne Sasser, R-67, is the primary sponsored of 12 bills, and two have passed the House. H.B. 89 designates September as “Childhood Cancer Awareness Month,” while H.B. 95 allows North Carolina organ donors to remain a donor on a permanent basis. Both passed unanimously.

Sen. Carl Ford, R-33, has sponsored 10 bills, but none have made their way through the House yet.

Tickets on sale for upcoming ‘Elizabeth Dole Dinner Honoring Republican Women’

Tickets are currently on sale for the first annual “Elizabeth Dole Dinner Honoring Republican Women.”

The dinner will be held Saturday at 6 p.m. at The Abbey on North Fulton Street in Salisbury. The keynote speaker is North Carolina’s Second Lady Yolanda Robinson, wife of Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson.

Tickets are $25 per person, and can be purchased at eventbrite.com/e/elizabeth-dole-dinner-honoring-republican-women-tickets-138503464591. Purchases include a raffle ticket for a $100 gift card.

Rep. Budd calls announcement to remove fencing around Capitol ‘step in the right direction’

Rep. Ted Budd, a Republican representing North Carolina’s 13th Congressional District, on Monday commended U.S. House leadership’s decision to remove some of the fencing that had been placed around the Capitol.

Fencing had been implemented following the riot at the Capitol on Jan. 6. Budd had been vocally opposed to the measure and formally called on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., in February to remove the militarized fencing around the complex. An additional 41 House members signed onto the letter.

“House Democrats are turning the Capitol into a permanent fortress,” Budd said in a video following his letter to Pelosi. “The Chinese Communist Party gives their citizens more freedom in Tiananmen Square than American citizens have in Washington. It’s unacceptable and it has to stop. I’m calling on Speaker Pelosi to order the removal of this fencing. Enough is enough. It’s time to reopen our country and reopen our Capitol.”

On Monday, the House Sergeant at Arms informed lawmakers that alterations would be made to the temporary fencing as “there does not exist a known, credible threat against Congress or the Capitol Complex that warrants the temporary security fencing.”

“For everyone who wants to reopen the People’s House, this is a step in the right direction,” Budd said in a statement. “I continue to believe that permanent fencing around the Capitol itself should also be removed and our National Guard troops should be sent home to their families. I will continue to monitor this situation until Americans can once again come to our nation’s capital and be free to witness the wonder that is the seat of our representative government.”