Former Brunswick County Republican Party chairman Frank Iler will replace former Rep. Bonner Stiller.

Members of the county party's executive committee who live in Stiller's district elected Iler Tuesday evening over Shirley Babson, chair of the county school board, according to committee member Frank Williams.

Stiller's resignation took effect Monday. He left the seat he has held since 2001 to be home with his family and tend to his law practice. 

Rep. Bonner Stiller, an Oak Island Republican, formally departed from the House Monday.

That was the date his resignation took effect.

He announced earlier this month that he was stepping down to spend more time with his family and law firm. Stiller has held the seat since 2003.

Brunswick County Republican Party leaders will elect a replacement.

APPLE BITES: This week it was all about Jobs — with a lower-case and upper-case J. The same day that Gov. Beverly Perdue signed into law changes to the state's corporate taxes designed to lure Apple, the company founded by Steve Jobs announced it would build a $1 billion data center. Opponents of corporate incentives, meantime, felt more like the biblical Job, suffering yet again.

BURR'S CRUSADE: U.S. Sen. Richard Burr stood up for tobacco in the Senate. The Winston-Salem Republican spent more than four hours on the floor arguing against a bill to allow the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to regulate tobacco. He said it would stifle innovation in nicotine delivery systems and hurt the "gold standard" of food and drug oversight. He and Democratic Sen. Kay Hagan proposed an alternate bill.

EMPTYING HOUSE? Another state representative is leaving. Rep. Bonner Stiller, a Brunswick County Republican, will step down this month to spend more time with his family. He joins four other legislators this term who've stepped down to accept a gubernatorial appointment (Rep. Linda Coleman) or move to the state Senate (now Sen. Dan Blue) or because they died (Sen. Vernon Malone) or were under investigation (Rep. Cary Allred).

IN OTHER NEWS: An East Carolina University professor will discuss his studies of the vice presidency with Joe Biden. ... Elizabeth Edwards is not interested in running for U.S. Senate, but she will open a furniture store in Chapel Hill. ... Former U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole will make her first political appearance since losing in November when she introduces one-time GOP presidential candidate Mike Huckabee in Charlotte next week. ... Hagan ran into Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor in the ladies' room at the Capitol.

A number of legislators have left this session.

Below, a running list of state lawmakers who have resigned, died, switched chambers or plan to leave before session's end:

Rep. Linda Coleman, Wake County Democrat: Resigned Jan. 11 after being appointed by Gov. Beverly Perdue to head the Office of State Personnel.

Sen. Vern Malone, Wake County Democrat: Died on April 18.

Rep. Dan Blue, Wake County Democrat: Resigned May 19 after being appointed to Malone's seat in the state Senate.

Rep. Cary Allred, Alamance County Republican: Resigned June 1 after allegations of impropriety with a teen-aged page and a speeding ticket.

Rep. Bonner Stiller, Brunswick County Republican: Announced he will resign June 15 to spend more time with his family and run his law firm.

State Rep. Bonner Stiller will leave the legislature on June 15.

The Oak Island Republican, who has served since 2002, said he needs to spend more time with his family and his Southport law firm.

Republican officials in District 17 will choose Stiller's replacement later this month, and Gov. Beverly Perdue will officially appoint their selection. (WS-N)

Stiller said he gave notice on June 3 after thinking about it for several months.

"I do it with a smile and with great humility," he said. "I'm not leaving under any cloud."

He speculated that former Brunswick County GOP chairman Frank Iler of Oak Island would be a front runner. Iler confirmed he is running. (Brunswick Beacon)

The House Education Committee approved a watered-down version of a bill that puts on paper legislators' displeasure with the graduation project that public school students must complete to earn diplomas.

House Bill 223 basically rubber-stamps an action the State Board of Education took last month by delaying the requirement for one year, Lynn Bonner reports.

Under the bill and the state board's April vote, the requirement is delayed until 2011, though local school boards can still require a project as a graduation requirement for 2010.

The bill would also require the legislative program evaluation division study the project's cost and effectiveness.

Rep. Jimmy Love Sr., a Sanford Democrat, opposed the requirement first as an unfunded mandate. He later started to worry later the requirement would increase the drop out rate.

More after the jump.

   Comments (1)

Rep. Bonner Stiller
Brunswick County Republican
Fourth Term

What two things would you cut in the state budget? He said the state should pay for state Department of Health and Human Services investigators who would end up saving the state money by searching out fraud.

He also said the state should look at how much its spending for construction and what kinds of  cars state agencies are purchasing.

Are there any taxes you would be in favor of increasing? No.

— Lynn Bonner 

New Hanover County politicians also don't worry about airport parking.

The Wilmington International Airport provides free passes to its employee parking lot for the five county commissioners, state Sen. Julia Boseman and state Reps. Danny McComas, Thomas Wright, Carolyn Justice and Bonner Stiller.

Airport Director Jon Rosborough said he would give the passes to federal officials as well, but so far none have asked.

"They're not down here very often," he said.

The passes save the politicians the cost of parking at the airport, which will soon rise to $14 a day in its short-term lot and $8 a day in its long-term lot. Employees pay $10 a month for parking.

Rosborough said he did not know how often they are used or when the program started. He said the airport authority does not report them as in-kind contributions.

As noted earlier, the Piedmont Triad International Airport has some reserved spots for federal politicians. The Raleigh-Durham International Airport, meantime, said it has no designated spaces.

The House approved the final reading of an official acknowledgement for the 1898 Wilmington race riots this afternoon in a 65-51 vote. Here's a summary of the arguments (not direct quotes):

Rep. Thomas Wright: This was recommended by the Wilmington Race Riot Commission as a first step. Rep. Bonner Stiller: Yeah, a first step toward reparations. No thanks. Rep. Phil Haire: Or a lawsuit... Rep. Dan Blue: Not gonna happen. We're about a century past the statute of limitations. Rep. Haire: Well, what about this bill? Rep. Blue: It's just an idea. It'll never pass. Rep. Louis Pate Jr.: I asked about commemorating the birth of Robert E. Lee and you guys told me not to. Who decides which history to acknowledge? Rep. Mickey Michaux: Usually the victors. Let's acknowledge the victims for once. Rep. John Blust: We ought to acknowledge some of the better parts of history, too. Less hand-wringing, more optimism.