Casinos, marijuana, happy hour: What NC lawmakers left behind this year

When lawmakers finished up their work for the year last week, some of the highest-profile proposals of the 2023 session were left on the table.

While casino gambling, loosening alcohol laws and medical marijuana all had some bipartisan support, each received strong pushback from religious conservative groups that divided the Republican majority.

These bills aren’t necessarily dead yet, though: they could still resurface in the 2024 legislative session.

NC's move to legalize casinos, video slot machines

One of the most controversial bills of the session was never even officially filed as a bill, yet it dominated the debate over the state budget for months.

Some state lawmakers proposed legalizing up to four more casino “entertainment” complexes in economically disadvantaged areas of the state. One of the proposed sites would have been Rockingham County, home of Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger, just across the state line from a new casino that opened this year in Virginia.

One version of the proposal, which was negotiated for months behind closed doors, would also have legalized video slot machines under the aegis of the state lottery commission, which would get a percentage of the profits.

House lawmakers had envisioned the proposal as a standalone bill, but Berger, R-Rockingham, insisted it would have to be included in the state budget. It was ultimately not included in the budget due to opposition among House Republicans. However, the standoff over that issue delayed the passage of the budget by some weeks.

Speaking with reporters last week, Berger said the idea was likely to receive further consideration in the short session.

Some want NC ban on happy hour to come to an end

As has been the case in most sessions in the past decade, some lawmakers proposed loosening the state’s historically strict alcoholic beverage control laws.

This session’s proposal, championed by Sen. Tim Moffitt, R-Henderson, would have repealed the state’s ban on happy hours, given local ABC boards the option to allow ABC stores to open on Sundays and some holidays, and loosened mixed-drink sale maximums at some events. It would also have set up new rules for how rare or hard-to-get liquor is apportioned to county stores.

The bill, Senate Bill 527, didn’t get a hearing until fairly late in the session. It passed two key House committees, but did not advance to the House floor.

Under legislative rules, a bill has to pass at least one chamber by a certain date, known as crossover, to remain eligible for consideration in the next year’s short session. Lawmakers got around that, as is often the case, by taking a Senate bill that made it through by the crossover deadline, removing the original contents, and adding their own proposal, a process called a “gut and amend.”

NC House stalls move toward legal medical marijuana

For the second year in a row, a proposal to legalize marijuana use for patients with debilitating or terminal medical conditions, called the “Compassionate Care Act,” passed the Senate but did not get a vote in the House.

However, the House did hold a committee hearing on it for the first time in 2023, signaling at least some support among House Republican leadership.

Senate Bill 3, championed by Sen. Bill Rabon, R-Brunswick, would have legalized marijuana use with a doctor’s permission for patients suffering from cancer, epilepsy, HIV/AIDS, ALS, Crohn’s disease, sickle cell anemia, Parkinson’s disease, PTSD, multiple sclerosis or any terminal disease with six months or less to live.

Rabon, a cancer survivor himself, testified before a House committee that he didn’t believe he would have survived his very aggressive chemotherapy for colon cancer without the help of marijuana.

The bill would set up a tightly regulated system for growing, testing and distributing the drug. It would have allowed only a limited number of dispensaries, and some critics said it would still be too difficult for those who could benefit from the drug to access it.

The Senate passed the bill with strong bipartisan support, but did not have support from a majority of House Republicans, so did not advance there.