Power-shifting bill could replace NC Board of Transportation

Every member of North Carolina’s Board of Transportation would lose their seat at the end of June under a bill that cleared the North Carolina House Wednesday.

A new board would be appointed July 1, with the General Assembly’s Republican majority gaining eight appointments at the governor’s expense. It’s part of a power-shifting bill still under construction at the General Assembly. The final bill will likely shift appointments to several state boards that set environmental regulations, decide grants and, potentially, approve electricity rates.

GOP leaders driving the bill say the General Assembly is closer to the people than a statewide elected governor and will produce better mix of appointees to unelected boards that have a major impact on people’s lives. Democrats see the bill as another power grab from the legislature’s Republican majority, and potentially an unconstitutional one.

Senate Bill 512 cleared the House of Representatives Wednesday on a party-line vote, 72-46. It passed the state Senate in April, but the House made several changes, and the two sides will have to negotiate away their differences before finalizing the bill.

The House version ends current Board of Transportation members terms as of June 30, resetting the board. It would go from a board where the governor appoints 14 members and the General Assembly six to one where the General Assembly appoints 14 and the governor six.

Senate Republican Leader Phil Berger said Wednesday that he supports this change, making it more likely it’s included in the final bill. Current board members didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment sent through the Department of Transportation’s communication’s staff. These board members terms wouldn’t normally expire until 2024 or 2026.

The House also tweaked this bill to expand the UNC System’s Board of Governors from 24 members to 28. Berger, R-Rockingham, said he doesn’t agree with that, giving House and Senate leadership something to debate as the bill is finalized.

The Senate version of this bill would shift some appointments at the N.C. Utilities Commission, which regulates Duke Energy and approves electricity rates, from the governor to the legislature. That was dropped from the House version but Moore, R-Cleveland, said he expects some utility commission changes to be in the final version of this bill.

Other boards affected by the bill are: The Economic Investment Committee, the Environmental Management Commission, the Commission for Public Health, the Coastal Resources Commission, the Wildlife Resources Commission, the N.C. Railroad Board of Directors, the UNC Health Care System Board of Directors, the UNC System Board of Governors.

Assuming Republicans pass the bill over Gov. Roy Cooper’s near certain veto — something the GOP majority has enough legislative seats to do — the new law would likely spark a lawsuit. The governor’s office and the legislature have sparred before over appointment powers, and five former governors, including two Republicans, wrote lawmakers a letter earlier this year opposing this bill and others.

WRAL reporter Brian Murphy contributed to this report.