Seven bills would deal with North Carolina's signature crop.

The ones most likely to pass deal with where you can smoke.

One bill would prohibit smoking in state and local government buildings. Another bill would outlaw smoking in state-owned vehicles. A third bill is both more discretionary and more expansive, allowing community colleges to prohibit all tobacco products — including chew — on campus.

All three have multiple sponsors and companion bills.

A House bill, meantime, would study whether smoking should be prohibited in foster care homes.

Two other House bills would affect Big Tobacco's bottom line, but the odds area against them.

One bill would increase the state cigarette tax 75 cents per pack — far above Gov. Mike Easley's proposed 20-cent hike and in line with an anti-smoking campaign's push. Another bill would repeal manufacturing tax credits related to exported cigarettes.

Neither has a companion in the Senate.

Only one piece of legislation is relatively friendly to the tobacco industry, and that's not saying much.

That bill, filed by Burlington Republican Rep. Cary Allred, would allow school districts to choose whether to go tobacco-free, essentially undoing an Aug. 1 mandate created by a 2007 bill.

But the bill is not likely to go far any time soon, although it passed a first reading. It has only one sponsor, and there is no companion bill in the Senate.

Opponents argued the state shouldn't interfere with the free market.

Rep. Paul Stam, the House Republican Leader, noted that Bridgestone Firestone was turned down for a state grant years ago and decided to invest $60 million in its plant anyway. He argued that it's not possible to use incentives for work that's already underway.

"As a state representative, I call on all of us to abandon this folly and presumption of trying to pick the winners and thereby also choosing the losers in this game which is a spiral to the bottom," he said.

Rep. Cary Allred, an Alamance County Republican, pointed out that Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. would qualify for economic incentives even while it pays its CEOs millions of dollars a year. 

"Why shouldn't the $4 million a year come out of his salary, so that he would only make $13 million — which ain't bad?" he asked. 

The deal offering free state university tuition to graduates of the N.C. School of Science and Mathematics took a blow Thursday, with the state House voting to cancel it.

The bill is expected to win final House approval Monday, Jane Stancill reports.

Critics say it's not right to offer tuition grants to one high school's graduates.

Rep. Paul Luebke, a Durham Democrat and tuition grant critic, said $25,000 included in the bill to study an alternative grant for students who agree to teach science or math after college is a compromise.

The proposal is not likely to pass the Senate, where budget writer Sen. Kay Hagan, a Greensboro Democrat, is its champion. She says the grants help keep the state's best and brightest at home.

But the House debate gave Rep. Cary Allred, an Alamance County Repubilcan, a chance to rail against elitism.

State House Democrats quickly dismissed the Senate budget tonight.

Rep. Mickey Michaux, a Durham Democrat and chief budget writer, outmaneuvered Republicans by immediately calling for a vote to reject the Senate budget without debate, Dan Kane reports.

His motion succeeded, and House members then shot down the Senate budget by a 68 to 47 margin. House and Senate budget writers will now begin negotiations on a compromise spending plan, with the goal of having a budget in place by July 1, the start of the fiscal year.

House Republicans were seeking at least nine of their Democratic colleagues to support the Senate budget because they figured it was the best spending plan that would be put forward this session.

But not only did Democrats stick together, three Republicans joined them: Cary Allred of Burlington, John Blust of Greensboro and Debbie Clary of Cherryville.

More after the jump.

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The House passed a resolution against a Navy landing field in Eastern North Carolina.

Rep. Cary Allred said he drafted the resolution before U.S. Sens. Richard Burr and Elizabeth Dole came out against the outlying landing field.

The Burlington Republican said that even though he does not represent the area the landing field would be in, he opposes it for environmental, safety and cost reasons.

"It doesn't make sense for the taxpayers to have spent all the money to develop the Pocosin National Wildlife Refuge and then turn and around and allow the U.S. Navy to build a landing field," he said.

The resolution passed 109-8 and now heads to the Senate.

Among the 45 sponsors of House Bill 183, one name is missing: Steve Daniels.

That's because he's a reporter for ABC-11, not a state representative.

But that didn't stop Rep. Cary Allred from calling it "the Steve Daniels bill" for a news report he did in February about school bus drivers using cell phones that led to the legislation. He also testified during a committee hearing on the bill.

Allred noted that Daniels had mentioned his role in getting the bill written during last night's telecast.

"I'm looking forward to the bill passing so that we won't have to hear so much from him about how much he's done for the state with regard to this bill," Allred said.

The bill passed the House unanimously and now heads to the Senate.

State Rep. Cary Allred thinks older adults should be able to keep their licenses longer.

The Burlington Republican tried to amend a bill making minor changes to drivers' licenses this afternoon to allow North Carolinians up to the age of 65 to get a license for eight years.

Under the law, adults over age 54 can only get a license for five years at a time.

Allred, who is 60, said that "discriminates against senior citizens," especially since 18-year-olds can get an eight-year license.

"Who is more mature: The 18-year-old or the 59-year-old?" he asked.

The amendment failed 36-80, and the bill passed unanimously. It now heads to Gov. Mike Easley.

The state House approved its version of the state's $20.3 billion budget shortly after midnight.

The budget would give state workers a 4.25 percent pay raise, extends two "temporary taxes" from 2001 another two years and sets aside $900 million for a rainy day fund. (Char-O)

During several hours of debate, the House rejected an attempt by Rep. Cary Allred to eliminate free university tuition for graduates of the N.C. School of Science and Math in Durham. (AP)

Legislators also approved $100 million to help counties pay for Medicaid, tax credits for adoption and long-term care and an Earned Income Tax Credit. (W-SJ)

House leaders were proud of their handiwork:

"We came up with a good, tasty product that everyone can enjoy," said Rep. Mickey Michaux, a Durham Democrat who led the budget-writing effort in the House. (N&O)

Rep. Cary Allred unsuccessfully tried tonight to make out-of-state high school students pay full price tuition at the N.C. School of the Arts .

The Burlington Republican said that half of the students at the Winston-Salem school are from out of state and are not paying any more than state residents. He said that meant taxpayers were subsidizing the out-of-staters by $14,000 a year.

"I believe that the N.C. School of the Arts was established for North Carolina students," he said.

Rep. Dale Folwell, a Winston-Salem Republican, said that wasn't true. He said the school was designed to be a regional institution — the "Juilliard of the South."

He also brought up George Clooney — budget magic for the second time this week — noting that the actor and Renee Zellweger have been at the school for the last few weeks.

The amendment was defeated on a 41-74 vote.

The House approved a more restrictive motorcycle helmet law this afternoon.

The bill would change the wording of the state statute on helmets to only allow bikers to wear helmets with chin straps that meet the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard.

Opponents said that chin straps can be dangerous and warned that bikers would avoid North Carolina, hurting coastal tourism.

Rep. Cary Allred, a Burlington Republican, proposed two failed amendments to eliminate the chin-strap requirement and allow bikers to go helmet-free in 35-mph speed zones.

"People who ride motorcycles — like the speaker of the House — are fiercely individual people," he said. 

The bill passed 92-24, to the dismay of a group of bikers in the gallery who said it would allow police officers to harass them. 

"This law is going to allow discrimination against motorcyclists," said retiree David Gore, 49, of Raleigh.