PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Raleigh, N.C. - Yesterday Rep. Jon Hardister (R - Guilford) successfully passed his first bill in the NC House. HB 250 - Charter School Enrollment - cleared the NC House on third reading with a vote of 114-1. The bill, which is supported by the NC Alliance for Public Charter Schools and the NC Public Charter Schools Association, will now go to the NC Senate for consideration.

"This bill will provide charter schools with more flexibility in how they conduct enrollment procedures," Hardister said. "It is an honor to promote this bill, and I am thankful that it passed overwhelmingly. I appreciate each individual who supported the passage of this bill."

Contact: Jon Hardister (jonhardister@gmail.com)

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PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Raleigh, N.C. - Yesterday Rep. Jon Hardister (R - Guilford) filed HB 273, which addresses accounting issues related to charter school funding. The bill would require local education authorities to provide an accounting of charter school funds and a time line for the transfer of funds. It would also require local education authorities to transfer charter school funds on time. Reps. Marcus Brandon (D - Guilford), Chris Malone (R - Wake), and Paul Stam (R - Wake) have joined Hardister as primary sponsors of the bill. 

"The purpose of this bill is to bring more transparency to the funding of charter schools," Hardister said. "It is reasonable to require details on how funds are transferred to charter schools. It is also reasonable to require charter school funds to be transferred on time. This is a bipartisan bill, and I am hopeful that it will move forward successfully."

Contact: Jon Hardister (jonhardister@gmail.com)

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PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Thursday, March 7, 2013

Raleigh, N.C. - Yesterday Rep. Jon Hardister (R - Guilford) filed HB 250, which addresses enrollment procedures for charter schools in North Carolina. The bill would expand preferential enrollment to the children of all school employees; allow for all siblings to enter a charter school under a lottery; and allow re-enrollment priority for a student who leaves a charter school for less than two years due to special circumstances. Reps. Marcus Brandon (D - Guilford), Donny Lambeth (R - Forsyth), and Paul Stam (R - Wake) have joined Hardister as primary sponsors of the bill.

"It is important that we work to improve our charter school system in North Carolina," Hardister said. "This is a bipartisan bill, and I am hopeful that it will move forward successfully in the NC House."

Contact: Jon Hardister (jonhardister@gmail.com)

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NC House Update

We are now several weeks into the 2013 legislative session. Although we have been faced with some tough decisions, I feel as though we are on the right track. Here are some updates...

  

Unemployment Insurance

We passed HB 4, which will allow North Carolina to retire a debt of $2.5 billion to the federal government. This bill brought unemployment benefits in-line with surrounding states, and adjusted contributions to the system. Although this was not a pleasant bill to support, it was the best possible approach to address this problem.

Medicaid Expansion

We need to focus on improving our current Medicaid system before expanding bureaucracy and incurring additional costs. Expanding Medicaid was simply not a prudent idea given the fiscal uncertainty that would be associated with the expansion. Ultimately, we passed SB 4, which blocked both the expansion of Medicaid and the establishment of a state healthcare exchange.  

Vocational Education

We passed SB 14, which will increase opportunities for high school students to enroll in career and technical education programs, particularly in areas with employment needs. This legislation also establishes high school diplomas that indicate whether a student is "college ready," "career ready" or both. This was the first bill that Governor McCrory officially signed into law.

Annexation Amendment

HB 79, which I have introduced as a primary sponsor, would set forth a constitutional amendment to protect private property from forced annexation. If this bill makes it through the General Assembly, it will be submitted to the voters for approval as a constitutional amendment.

  

Estate Tax

  

We recently advanced a bill in the House Finance Committee that will abolish the estate tax in North Carolina. I am firmly opposed to the estate tax, and I believe it should be eliminated as part of our tax code. I expect this bill to move forward successfully in the current legislative session.

Notable Bills

Here are some notable bills that I have sponsored:

HB 8 Eminent Domain

HB 9 Speaker/Pro TEM Term Limits

HB 17 Gun Permits / Restaurants & Confidentiality

HB 65 Restore Partisan Judicial Elections

HB 67 Permanent License Plates for Charter Schools

HB 118 Consular Documents Not Acceptable as ID

Quote to Remember

"Courage is what it take to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen."

- Winston Churchill

  

It is an honor to serve in the NC House. Each day, I dedicated myself to making informed decisions as to what is best for my constituents. Thank you for the opportunity to serve, and feel free to contact me any time.