On June 5th, the House of Representatives and the Senate sent members to agree on a final version of the 2025 State Budget, but so far, no compromise bill has been made. This does not mean that the General Assembly has not been working over the Summer; here are some of the more significant pieces of legislation enacted by the North Carolina General Assembly this summer.

   One law that was signed into law this summer, which is already affecting Broughton students, is House Bill 959 or “Various Education Changes”. HB 959 requires school districts to provide education about social media and mental health, develop a policy that limits students’ use of the internet, and, most importantly, prohibits students from having their cell phones or other devices out during class time. Students will only be allowed to use their phone if their teacher lets them for educational purposes or in an emergency, or for their Individualized Education Program or Section 504 plan. This law became effective on September 1.

   Some of the laws that were enacted over the summer became law without the support of Governor Josh Stein. House Bill 318, the Criminal Illegal Alien Enforcement Act, was vetoed on the 20th of June, but the veto was overridden at the end of July with every Republican and one Democrat, Carla Cunningham (D-Mecklenburg), voting to override. Under HB 10, enacted last year despite the previous Governor’s veto, county sheriffs must determine a detainee’s residency status for certain offenses, and if they are unsure of a detainee’s residence status, then they must contact Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Under the new law, the number of offenses has been expanded to include all felonies, class A1 misdemeanors, or Driving While Impaired. HB 318 also requires defendants awaiting trial to be released within two hours to ICE custody.

   The General Assembly has adjourned for the rest of the summer to reconvene on October 20 to pass the last bills of the 2025 session, including Senate Bill 257, the State Budget. In the session thus far, the General Assembly has enacted 94 laws, while the US Congress has only enacted 36 pieces of legislation.