In a move that raised eyebrows and drew criticism from members of the public and Democratic lawmakers, the North Carolina Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday — the day of the national Juneteenth holiday — advanced a controversial bill to ban diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in state government.
Juneteenth has been a federal holiday since President Joe Biden designated it as such in 2021. It is an optional state holiday in North Carolina. An event long celebrated by Black Americans, Juneteenth commemorates the event that took place 160 years ago in which enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, learned they had been freed — after the conclusion of the Civil War and two years after President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation.
While many businesses and government offices (including the North Carolina House of Representatives) were closed or on very limited schedules Thursday in observance of the holiday, that was not the case in the North Carolina Senate.
In addition to placing nearly 20 bills on the chamber’s calendar for floor debate (an unusually heavy load for a Thursday, which is normally a getaway day for lawmakers, and one on which nine of the chamber’s 50 members were absent), Senate Republican leaders scheduled a busy slate of committee meetings. Several controversial proposals on topics that included the confirmation of a new Stein administration cabinet secretary, concealed handguns, and gender-affirming health care, were debated and approved in those meetings.
But if there was a subject that seemed to raise the most questions of appropriateness on a national holiday set aside to lift up the end of the nation’s original sin of human slavery, it was the decision to schedule and advance the DEI ban legislation — a bill that was approved on a party-line vote in the House on May 1 and has resided in the Senate ever since.
Rep. Brian Echevarria (Photo: NC General Assembly)Judiciary Committee co-chair Senator Buck Newton (R-Greene, Wayne and Wilson) saved the discussion of the issue for the end of a lengthy meeting and the bill was presented by a freshman House Republican, Rep. Brian Echevarria (R-Mecklenburg) — a lawmaker who was not one of the bill’s chief sponsors, but who is the only person of color in the House Republican caucus.
In his presentation, Echevarria framed the bill — which seeks to ban all state government programs designed to promote diversity, equity and inclusion and that would subject violators to large personal fines — as a straightforward attack on racial discrimination, which he characterized as wrong in all forms.
Echevarria struggled, however, to explain details of the legislation or to answer basic questions posed by Democratic senators Lisa Grafstein (R-Wake), Sophia Chitlik (D-Durham) and Dan Blue (D-Wake) regarding its mechanics, or the intent of specific provisions. Repeatedly, Echevarria responded to questions about issues like the standing of third parties to sue, and the reasoning behind the decision to shift authority for assessing discrimination complaints in state government to the auditor’s office, by attempting to defer to legislative staff or stating only that these were decisions that the House had made.
Sen. Lisa Grafstein (Photo: NC general Assembly)After allowing a few members of the public to offer very brief comments, Newton chose not to allow Senate Minority Leader Sydney Batch (D-Wake) to pose additional questions — saying only that she would have an opportunity at a later time and quickly proceeded to a vote. The bill passed on a voice vote and now heads to the Senate Rules Committee, of which Batch is not a member.
Grafstein concluded her remarks to the committee by sardonically observing “Happy Juneteenth, everyone.”
Other bills of note
Among the other measures advanced on Thursday:
House Bill 193, which would allow private schools to authorize staff members to carry concealed weapons on campus. Supporters described the bill as a tool to provide additional security, but critics warned that it would lead to accidents, confusion and more violence. The bill was approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee and advances now to the Rules Committee. Senate Resolution 767, which would confirm Gov. Josh Stein’s nominee for Secretary of the Department of Adult Correction, Leslie Dismukes. Though they voted ‘yes,’ Republican committee chairs expressed reservations about the nomination and questioned whether Dismukes possesses the experience to take on the position. The measure was approved by the Judiciary Committee and now heads to the Select Committee of Nominations. House Bill 805, which contains an array of changes sought by social conservatives to target transgender people and establish new rules for censoring access to schoolbooks and giving parents veto powers over classroom instruction. The bill was approved by the Senate Rules Committee and now heads to the floor. Senate Bill 266, the latest version of a controversial measure sought by Duke Energy and opposed by environmental and consumer advocates that would, among other things, eliminate the goal for Duke Energy to cut its carbon emissions by 70% by 2030 — a goal that had been set in a law adopted in 2021. The Senate voted to concur with House amendments and the bill now heads to the governor. House Bill 328, which would regulate hemp-derived consumables like and ban their sale to minors. The bill was approved by the full Senate and now heads back to the House for concurrence in Senate amendments. House Bill 832, an omnibus education bill that, among other things, enhances the authority of the Charter Schools Review Board at the expense of state Superintendent of Public Instruction Mo Green. The bill passed the Senate and now returns to the House for concurrence. Republican senators also tabled an amendment offered to House Bill 388 (a bill amending state business corporations law) by Sen. Michael Garrett (D-Guilford) that sought to adopt a state tax credit for businesses harmed by federal economic tariffs. Read More Details
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