October 20, 2010 From the Office of Representative Jimmy L. Love, Sr.

Over the past few years, we have worked steadily in North Carolina to make voting more convenient and to do our best to ensure the integrity of our campaigns and candidates. With early voting already underway and Election Day closing in, I thought this week would be a good time to remind you of some of the improvements in our laws.

I encourage you to vote early this year if you can, and I hope you will contact me if you have questions, or if I can be of service. Thank you as always for your support and your interest in our state.


Voting

_ We approved a new law that allows residents to register and vote right away at one-stop voting sites during the last 2½ weeks before an election. Under the old law voters could vote early at one-stop voting sites, but registration ended 25 days before an election. The law (SL2007-253) has opened up the voting process by eliminating some of the time barriers. Early voting has become a popular and effective way for citizens to vote in our past two elections.

_ North Carolina’s absentee voting laws have been changed to better able military and overseas voters to cast timely ballots (SL2009-537). This is incredibly important because it is vital that those defending our democracy have the opportunity to participate in the democratic process. This law was updated during this past session to streamline applications for absentee ballots for deployed members of the military. (SL2010-192)

_ Breaching ballot secrecy or trying to convince a person to select a party affiliation other than one of the person’s own choosing is now illegal. The law (SL2007-391) also allows combined ballots and provides civil penalties for officials who are late reporting campaign contributions and expenditures. Penalties can be as high as three times the amount of funds concealed if the State Board of Elections finds that the officials deliberately concealed contributions or expenditures.

Campaigns

_The Government Ethics and Campaign Reform Act of 2010 (SL2010-169) establishes stronger standards for elected officials and government workers. Among other things, the act increases the penalty for illegal campaign donations and improves the state’s campaign finance database by making it easier to search. The law also makes it illegal for a member of the Council of State to coerce political contributions from those who do business with the state by promising preferential treatment or discipline.

_ North Carolina has had publicly financed judicial elections for the past several years, but candidates for state auditor, superintendent of public instruction and insurance commissioner now also have the option to participate in the program. The intent of the law (SL2007-540) is to open up elections to anyone with an interest in running and reduce the influence of increasingly large amounts of money being raised for campaigns. Candidates must raise a total of $30,000 from at least 750 people to qualify for the public financing program. They must then agree to strict fundraising and spending limits. The Government Ethics and Campaign Reform Act of 2010 established a 10-member commission to study issues related to public funding of Council of State races.

_In response to a federal ruling that now allows corporations to spend money on political races, we added new disclosure rules (SL2010-170) to assure that the companies report how much money they are spending on political activity and how it is being used.

_ Candidates for public office must now report when they file for office whether they are convicted felons. (SL2007-369) The conviction will not have to be reported if it was reversed on appeal, pardoned or expunged. Candidates who have a past conviction will be required to report the name of the offense, the date of conviction, the date their citizenship rights were restored, and the county and state of conviction. A prior felony conviction does not prevent a person from holding elective office if the candidate's citizenship rights have been restored. Candidates who do not complete the statement will be barred from appearing on the ballot. A separate bill (SL2010-49) will allow voters to decide this year whether they want to change the state Constitution to prohibit convicted felons from running for sheriff.

_ Legislators who establish legal defense funds must now report donations to those accounts. Under the law (SL2007-349), legislators with these accounts now have to report donations and expenses each quarter. In addition, they also have to abide by restrictions similar to those for campaign accounts. Donations from labor unions, insurance companies, corporations, business entities, or professional associations cannot exceed $4,000 each year. Cash donations must be less than $50 and the report must include detailed information about contributors.

_ The General Assembly established a new Joint Legislative Elections Oversight Committee to give greater attention to both election and campaign finance matters. The 18-member committee will examine budgets, programs, and polices of the State Board of Elections and county boards of elections; election statutes and court decisions; election initiatives in other states, and other matters as necessary.

The law creating the oversight committee (SL2008-150) was a large bill that also included several other provisions to improve elections in North Carolina.

Among the new provisions are:

_ Reauthorization of the instant runoff voting pilot. This provision allows the State
Board of Elections to use instant runoff voting in up to 10 jurisdictions during the 2010 and 2011 elections. Instant runoffs allow voters to pick winners without having to hold costly separate runoff elections. The communities selected will be required to develop and participate in a plan to educate voters and candidates about instant runoff voting.

_ A prohibition on commingling campaign funds with other accounts. The treasurer for a
candidate or political committee must now keep all campaign money in accounts separate from private accounts or accounts into which other money is deposited.


Notes

_ Forbes magazine ranks North Carolina the 3rd Best State for Business in America. North Carolina improved from last year’s Forbes ranking of fifth. In addition, recent statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics show North Carolina is the 3rd best state for declining unemployment and 4th in the nation for job creation.

_ Saertex USA, a manufacturer of technical fabrics for lightweight composite structures for the green energy sector, will expand in Mecklenburg County. The company plans to create 178 jobs and invest $6.5 million over the next three years in Huntersville.

_ Siemens Energy, Inc., a global supplier of products and services for the generation, transmission and distribution of electric power, will expand its operations in Wake County. The company plans to add 139 jobs and invest at least $2.9 million by the end of 2014.

_ Reich LLC, a leading manufacturer of precision vehicle parts will bring a new production facility to Buncombe County. Reich plans to create 56 jobs over three years, while investing $28 million. The company plans to create 79 jobs and invest $33 million over a 5-year period.

_ Save-A-Lot, Ltd., a leading discount grocery chain, will build a new distribution center in Davidson County. The company plans to create 43 jobs and invest $24.45 million during the next three years in Lexington.

Prepared with the assistance of the Speaker’s Office of Communications