2013-14 Priority Legislative Items:
1. Create a leaner, more efficient State Government with efficiencies found through increased utilization of the private sector.
2. Passage of “certificate of merit” protections for design professionals in order to insure that civil claims against engineering companies are deemed meritorious before the action can be filed.
3. Preserve critical State funding streams to preserve and grow engineering jobs in North Carolina. These funding streams include:
- NC Rural Center Grants Programs
- State matching dollars for EPA-funded State Revolving Fund
- NCDENR-PWS Drinking Water
- NCDENR-DWQ CG&L Wastewater
- NC Clean Water Management Trust Fund
- Highway Trust Fund
- Gap funding for NC Turnpike Authority
- Funding for capital projects for Universities, Community Colleges and State Facilities (new construction and/or repair & renovation)
- Funding for K-12 capital projects (new construction and/or repair & renovation)
- NC Parks and Recreation Trust Fund
- NC Housing Finance Agency
4. Support the modernization of our current tax system, including supporting a reduction in corporate and personal income taxes while offsetting the costs in ways that limit damaging impacts on the business of engineering.
Other advocacy issues:
Environmental
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Preserve language limiting the use of Clean Water Management Trust Fund monies to construction-only expenses and land acquisition only as it relates to the purchase of easements for water resources projects.
- Support legislative and administrative rules that use reclaimed water as a resource.
- Support the application of risk-based standards for remediation of groundwater for all waste management programs administered by DENR.
- Support legislative and administrative rules that regulate non-point sources of water pollution on a basin-by-basin basis.
- If passed as is, Senate Bill 10 will reconfigure the makeup of the Coastal Resources Commission and Environmental Management Commission by termination the existing board members and replacing them with new appointees. We would recommend staging the replacements so there is some experience retained on each board.
Transportation
- Support a revision to the six-month waiting period mandate for employees leaving state government employment to be employed by entities performing work for the State, reducing that time period to 30 days.
- Support the removal of the restriction on retired state employees that prevents them from being able to draw their state government retirement while being employed by a private engineering company.
- Support the creation and adoption of new transportation funding mechanisms, including but not limited to local-option revenue sources, the immediate removal of the cap on the gas tax, and those recommended by the 21st Century Transportation Commission.
- Support the continued phase-out of all non-transportation-related transfers from the Highway Trust Fund.
- Support investment in the North Carolina Mobility Fund and expanded use of Public/Private Partnerships.
- Support continued “gap funding” for projects to be undertaken by the North Carolina Turnpike Authority.
- Support continued investment in high-speed rail in North Carolina.
Economic Development
- Support the creation of a long-term, sustainable “Building Trust Fund” for capital improvements to State properties.
- Support increased investment in repairs & renovations to existing State-owned facilities, including but not limited to the University System and Community Colleges.
- Support a dedicated source of funding for the One North Carolina Fund and maintaining an availability of $20 million to keep NC competitive in the national and global marketplace.
- Support continuing to fully fund enrollment growth in the University of North Carolina System and the Community College System.
Professional
- Support securing legislative authorization for additional participation by registered professional engineers and scientists on state boards and commissions.
- Support the use and/or continued use of the Qualifications based Selection for the procurement of all professional services by all government entities in North Carolina and opposing any attempts to bypass Qualifications Based Selection for the procurement of professional services, regardless of the project delivery method.
- Support the strengthening of and/or enforcing of the provisions of North Carolina’s Umstead Act, which precludes state government from using tax dollars to:
- directly or indirectly sell goods in competition with N.C. citizens;
- render services to the public that are ordinarily provided by private businesses;
- lease space in a state owned or operated building for purposes of selling goods or rendering services in
competition with private business;
- contract with anyone to sell goods or render services in competition with private business.
- Support efforts to reduce employer costs associated with employee health insurance and workers’
compensation insurance.