Set to a backing track of protests, the House successfully overrode the veto by a 72-46 vote down party lines. This time, all three House Republicans that previously voted against the bill voted in its favor. The Senate overrode the Governor’s veto last week, so SB 382 is now law.

Governor-elect Josh Stein and Governor Cooper have since filed a lawsuit to block changes enacted by SB 382 that would prevent Stein from appointing a new commander of the North Carolina State Highway Patrol. To learn more about the lawsuit, click here.

The House also took up one of two constitutional amendments, and ultimately passed SB 921: Cons. Am./Require Photo ID For All Voters, which requires photo identification from absentee voters. The measure will go before voters statewide on November 3, 2026, before it is ratified. The House did not take up SB 920: Const. Ad. – Income Tax Rate Cap Modification.

The House Select Committee on Helene Recovery also met this week and received a brief overview of the General Assembly’s appropriations for Hurricane Helene recovery purposes (view here), along with presentations from Samaritan’s Purse (view here), the Office of State Budget and Management (view here), and the NC Division of Emergency Management (view here).

On the second day, Dr. Stephen Gainey, President of the NCHSAA BOD and Superintendent for Randolph County Schools, said the board wouldn’t be taking action on the item at that moment. “We had an item that was sent to the board regarding schools that do not have a clearly defined attendance zone, which the board saw that as probably representing charter schools and non-boarding parochial schools,” Gainey said, adding that ” … the board will explore this in future months, however our number one priority right now is to move forward, we are deep into the reclassification into eight classes, we’re deep into that process and we have to get that completed so our member schools know what to do in terms of planning for next year, the 2025-2026 school year.” To view the full recording of the meeting from Day 2, click here.

As this development is directly tied to the NCSBA 2025-2026 Legislative Agenda, we will continue to provide updates. If you happen to be colleagues or share a board with anyone on the NCHSAA BOD (view here), now may be the best time to reach out to discuss the issue with them.

These summaries highlight notable legislative additions and changes. Expanded details will be provided in the updated Legislative Session Summary (forthcoming).

Veto Overrides/Bills Passed into Law

S.L. 2024-57/SB 382: Disaster Relief-3/Budget/Various Law Changes

• New Cooperative Innovative High Schools: Impacts Dare Early College High School and Rockingham County CTE Innovation High School.
• Changes to the AI School Safety Pilot Program: Impacts New Hanover County Schools and Davidson County Schools.
• Changes to the Special Needs Pilot Program: Impacts Alamance County Schools, Catawba County Schools, Nash County Schools, Cabarrus County Schools, Union County Schools, and Vance County Schools.
• Expand Availability and Eligible Credits of SparkNC Pilot: Impacts all Public School Units (PSUs).
• Principal Licensure Portfolio Waiver
• Updated Advanced Teaching Roles Program: Makes multiple changes including that any approved K-3 class size flexibility resulting from an ATR classification would only last up to three years.
• Transfer Center for Safer Schools: From DPI to the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI).
• Reports on Opportunity Scholarship Testing

Constitutional Amendments

SB 921: Cons. Am./Require Photo ID For All Voters

• Additionally requires photo identification from absentee voters. The amendment will go before voters statewide on November 3, 2026.

NC State University’s Institute for Emerging Issues is holding a Future Forward Energy forum on February 19, 2025, in an effort to help local leaders, including education leaders, navigate NC’s evolving energy landscape (including affordability, reliability, and resilience). Further, according to Duke Energy, electricity demand in NC is growing at the fastest rate in 30 years but the workforce is reportedly struggling to keep up. Thus, the forum will also look at the growing effort to engage K-12 students in career opportunities related to the energy sector. If you’re interested, registration is open and available here.

The following highlights are summaries directly based on the Consortium of State School Boards Associations (COSSBA) Federal Education Report and reflect information and ideas provided by the Consortium. Click here to read more about these topics and others in the December 9^th report.

ED Policy Guide on Student Cellphone Use in Schools: The Department of Education (ED) recently released Planning Together: A Playbook for Student Personal Device Policies. This resource was created to address the negative impacts of unrestricted cellphone use in schools, including issues with focus, procrastination, mental health, and cyberbullying. The playbook is intended to “help schools, districts, and states create clear, research-informed policies for managing student use of cell phones and personal devices.” The guide, which includes sample policies and engagement ideas, takes into account a variety of learning and safety considerations. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona emphasized the importance of locally informed policies, acknowledging that different schools bring varying strengths and challenges.

STEM Education Federal Strategic Plan: The White House recently revealed the Federal Strategic Plan for Advancing STEM Education and Cultivating STEM Talent. This five-year strategy from the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) Committee on STEM (CoSTEM) focuses on teaching, recruiting, and retaining “diverse STEM talent.” The three guiding principles of CoSTEM’s plan: (1) access and opportunity, (2) partnerships and ecosystem development, and (3) transparency and accountability. It calls for initiatives that ensure STEM opportunities reach every community and all individuals interested in STEM fields. The full plan and release notice are available here.

The following links are recent news articles and reports on state and national education-related issues.

State News
News & Observer: Why this Western NC lawmaker flipped his vote, helping Republicans pass power-shift bill
NC Newsline: Proposed constitutional amendment to require photo ID for mail voting passes legislature
News & Observer: Federal government will cover more Helene recovery costs in NC with new Biden approval
WRAL: Truitt reflects on academic, financial challenges facing NC schools as she prepares exit
EdNC: State Board discusses learning recovery during Superintendent Truitt’s last meeting
NC Health News: School-based clinics, nurses bridge care gaps for kids, communities after Helene

National News
New York Times: U.S. Students Posted Dire Math Declines on an International Test
The 74: As College-Educated Workforce Has Diversified, Teachers Haven’t Kept Pace
Education Week: Language Barriers Keep Parents From Attending School Activities, New Data Show
The 74: In Ohio, Phonics-Based Science Of Reading for Preschoolers