RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — A back-and-forth is happening in the General Assembly this week as lawmakers prepare to end the session and take a break. Hundreds of millions of dollars in Hurricane Helene relief are hanging in the balance.
“We have to go ahead and deliver on the promise that in North Carolina and as a legislature, we’re going to take care of our neighbors,” Senator Sydney Batch said.
This week Senator Batch planned to file a discharge petition, essentially a maneuver to force a House relief bill to move through the General Assembly after it’s been sitting in committee. But Republicans moved the bill to another committee that does not plan to meet anytime soon. The move resets the clock to ten days, the minimum amount of time before another discharge petition can be filed.
Senator Batch says it’s just political games.
“I think it’s extremely cruel to go ahead and use everything that’s happening out west as a negotiation tool and frankly hold that bill hostage,” she said.
Democrats say Republicans want the relief tucked into the overall budget. But at least twice now, top Republican Senator Phil Berger has said the body will handle Helene relief before any breaks.
“The sense within the Senate is that if we do adjourn at the end of the month without a budget and plan to come back at a certain time, there are some things with reference to Helene recovery that we’ll probably need to do before we leave town,” Senator Phil Berger said.
Senator Berger doubled down on that commitment this week. Senator Batch says Republicans need to prove it.
“We can always be hopeful, but I haven’t seen a single bill that has moved and there’s been no discussion with myself or my caucus members about what that looks like,” she said.
The session is set to end next week, before lawmakers will take a long break and then come back to do more budget work. That means lawmakers now have less than five working days to get a Helene bill passed.