By Kirk Kovach

There have been a small number of contentious issues so far in the North Carolina General Assembly, but now that we are quickly approaching crossover and the budget, expect things to heat up.

First,  let’s talk about crossover.

The General Assembly basically mirrors the same legislative process as the United States House, the process we learn in high school civics.

A bill goes through committees, receives a vote on the floor of either the House or Senate and then goes to the other body to be considered. A bill approved by the House has to be approved — word for word — by the Senate.

Crossover is a deadline that the legislature imposes on itself to ensure that it actually finishes legislating. After the crossover deadline, only bills that have already been approved by one house of the legislature are considered in the other house. Otherwise, there would be no limit to how much legislation needs to be addressed, or at least voted on, before they finish for the session.

This year, it will likely fall in the early days of May.

Crossover will see a flurry of votes, as legislators attempt to get their bills across to the other chamber.

Beyond simply wrapping up unfinished business in each chamber, crossover also provides an opportunity to quickly introduce and vote on controversial legislation. Before crossover, legislators have ample time to consider and debate legislation on its merits.

As crossover approaches, the process becomes hurried. Leadership throws around its weight to have legislation introduced and fast-tracked. Debate falls off, and legislators vote on proposals about which they know very little. Controversial legislation will inevitably appear and, unfortunately, the bills most discussed by the public will likely be the least discussed by the legislators.

Crossover allows potentially unpopular legislation to appear out of nowhere, with little time for press coverage and public discourse. Additionally, legislators are often reading, considering and voting on legislation in a marathon setting, with new bills conjured out of thin air.

The process alone is not negative, because the legislature has to transition from writing new bills to refining existing drafts at some point, but the way it occurs in practice should make the public and media focus in on crossover week specifically.

Also, it isn’t necessarily an indictment of the legislators. Unlike members of Congress in Washington, D.C., this is not their full-time job. The North Carolina General Assembly is a part-time body, and many of the members commute to Raleigh from all every corner of our quite large state.

The environment isn’t always conducive to reasoned consideration of complex issues.

The most important legislation that the General Assembly undertakes is the budget.

While our state continues to grow rapidly, the resources available for the budgeting process are shrinking. Since 2013 and the Republican takeover of Raleigh, the revenues taken in by the state have decreased about 14%, or just over $4 billion.

Every budget is a challenge, and this year will be no different.

What will be different, though, is the makeup of the General Assembly. In Gov. Roy Cooper’s first two years, the Republicans wielded a supermajority in both houses, allowing them to override his vetoes. Now, though majorities remain, they aren’t super and Republicans will have to play ball in negotiations.

Budgets show the priorities of their authors, and the Governor has already released his.

What remains to be seen are the priorities of Senate Leader Phil Berger and House Speaker Tim Moore.

Kirk Kovach is from Rowan County and contributes to politicsnc.com.