The House passed a bill to allow habitual drunk drivers to get their licenses restored if they had a clean record after 10 years.

State Rep. Ronnie Sutton, a Robeson County Democrat, said he filed House Bill 1185 to help people who "screwed up their life early" if they can show they have reformed.

Currently, North Carolinians convicted of being habitual drunk drivers have their licenses revoked for life.

The bill would allow people to petition to get their licenses restored after a decade if they had not had a drinking- or driving-related offenses since. It would allow the state Division of Motor Vehicles to put conditions on their license.

"This is something to allow a person who has had a real problem to straighten their lives out and hopefully find themselves on the straight and narrow," he said.

Rep. Edgar Starnes, a Caldwell County Republican, said the bill sends the "wrong message."

"Drunk driving is still a serious problem," he said. "This statute was enacted beccause we have to recognize that there are some people in this state who have no business with a license. A driving license is a privilege."

More after the jump.

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A bill would set tougher standards for older drivers.

Rep. Ric Killian, a Charlotte Republican, filed a bill to require more frequent drivers license renewals for people 65 and older and mandate road tests for people older than 85.

He cited an academic study that shows the oldest drivers have more crashes per miles traveled than anyone except younger teen drivers.

The bill would require drivers older than 75 renew their licenses every three years instead of every five.

"There's clearly a connection between a person's age and their ability to operate a motor vehicle," he said.

The state office of AARP is ramping up opposition to the bill, asking its 66,000 active state members to call legislators about it. (N&O) 

An alcohol research center has been funded by drunk drivers.

The Bowles Center on Alcohol Studies has received money from a fee paid by people who had their licenses restored after charges of driving under the influence.

For years, $25 of the $75 fee has gone to the University of North Carolina system to for an endowment for the alcohol research center at UNC-Chapel Hill. Next year, the payments would have totaled about $500,000.

The fee was designed to sunset when the endowment reaches $10 million, which is expected on June 30. Gov. Beverly Perdue proposed to use the half-million dollars to help balance next year's budget.

Rob Nelson, a spokesman for the UNC system, said that the center will now rely on interest from the endowment and grants from national health groups.

Already, some in the state Senate are pushing back.

Sen. Richard Stevens, a Cary Republican, has filed a bill that would continue to give the money to the Bowles Center for annual expenses. One of his cosponsors is Democratic Sen. Linda Garrou, a budget writer.

Update: An earlier version of this post was unclear. The $25 fee itself, not just the transfer of money, would expire this summer if no action is taken. 

A bill would look into asking you about end-of-life plans at the DMV.

Sen. Eddie Goodall, a Union County Republican, said he filed the bill to try to prevent situations like the Terri Schiavo case, in which the husband and parents of a Florida woman in a vegetative state fought over whether to keep her on life support.

Goodall wants to study whether the N.C. Department of Motor Vehicles should ask drivers whether they have an advance directive or living will when they renew their driver's license.

The state would not advocate for or against having a living will or what it should say, but the response would be noted on licenses.

That would help family members determine if they should keep searching for a living will and might encourage some who don't have one to look into it, Goodall said.

"I've talked to a lot of nurses and people in palliative care," he said. "They say there's a big need for more education about living wills becaues families go through misery trying to make these end-of-life decisions.

"It would make it much easier if their loved one made the decision for them."

What does North Carolina think?

The latest Elon University Poll shows significant agreement on a number of issues that are before the legislature.

Below, the percentage who agreed with a sentiment:

77: The state should make commuter rail available in urban areas.

74: The state should not charge a fee based on miles driven each year.

67: The state should ban smoking in public places, such as restaurants and bars.

— Support a $2 billion bond referendum for bridges and roads.

66: Offshore drilling should be allowed off the coast of North Carolina.

— Except in emergencies, it should be illegal to use a cell phone while driving.

The live phone poll of 758 residents was conducted Feb. 22-26. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.6 percentage points.

After the jump, the rest of the results.

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A few of the more interesting Senate bills:

S.B. 172: Allow Charter Schools in 100 Counties, Sen. Eddie Goodall

S.B. 178: Repeal Ban G.S. 95-98, Sen. Larry Shaw

S.B. 179: Sterilization Compensation, Sen. Shaw

S.B. 181: Drivers License Change Expir./8 yrs to 65, Sen. Shaw

S.B. 182: Honor Bob Scott, Sen. Tony Foriest

Senate bill filings are picking up. Here are some interesting ones:

S.B. 31: Bioptic Lenses / Drivers License Tests, Sen. John Snow

S.B. 32: Employers Must Use Federal E-Verify Program, Sen. Snow

S.B. 36: Expand Chem. Analysis Sites / Contr. Substance, Sen. James Forrester

S.B. 37: Motorsports Vehicle Combination Lengths, Sen. Jerry Tillman

S.B. 43: Require Boating Safety Education, Sen. Ed Jones

S.B. 47: Unauthorized Wireless Phone Use / $50 Limit, Sen. Steve Goss

More bills were filed this morning in the House:

H.B. 7: Victory Junction Gang Camp License Plate, Reps. Harold Brubaker, Pat Hurley

H.B. 8: Prohibit Cell Phones in Prison, Rep. Garland Pierce

H.B. 9: No Texting While Driving, Pierce

H.B. 10: Garnish Wages to Satisfy a Judgement, Reps. Tim Moore, Laura Wiley

H.B. 11: Regulation of Golf Carts in Grover, Moore

H.B. 12: Bioptic Lenses/Drivers License Tests

H.B. 13: Horn in the West Funds, Rep. Cullie Tarleton

H.B. 14: Chiropractic Services/Insurance, Tarleton

H.B. 15: Military Family Assistance Centers/Funds, Tarleton

The Republican Governors Association is targeting Beverly Perdue on jobs.

In a mailer sent to North Carolina voters, the national group argues that the Democratic gubernatorial candidate's "failed policies are killing jobs in North Carolina."

Inside, it argues that Perdue has failed to lower taxes, reduce pork barrel spending or crack down on illegal immigration.

It also repeats a claim that a 2001 bill made it easier for illegal immigrants to get driver's licenses.

As noted previously, that bill actually made it slightly harder.

The back page of the mailer argues that Republican Pat McCrory "successfully recruited dozens of new companies" and brought the NASCAR Hall of Fame to North Carolina, while the number of homicides in Charlotte decreased.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee has a new ad attacking Democratic candidate Kay Hagan's record as a state senator.

What it says: The ad shows images of Kay Hagan with graphics similar to the Olympics. Narrator: "What if they gave gold medals for financial irresponsibility?" Announcer: "The gold medal goes to Kay Hagan." Narrator: "Budget writer Kay Hagan helped double state debt. The gold for government waste?" Sports announcer: "Kay Hagan." Narrator: "Hagan's budgets pushed North Carolina to the highest taxes in the Southeast. And the gold for twisting the truth?" Sports announcer: "Kay Hagan." Narrator: "The press said Hagan’s TV ad was 'overstated, inaccurate.'" Sports announcer: "Kay Hagan." Narrator: "The National Republican Senatorial Committee is responsible for the content of this ad." The ad says "Highest Taxes in Southeast 2006."

The background: The ad raises three issues: high taxes, state debt and a previous Hagan ad.

TAXES: Every year, the Tax Foundation, a Washington-based think tank, analyzes the combined state and local tax burden in all 50 states.

According to its overall ranking, North Carolina had the 17th highest burden in 2006.

The think tank does not break out the rankings by region, but the John Locke Foundation, a conservative think tank in Raleigh, has compared those numbers to other states in the region.

The Locke Foundation defines the Southeast as Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.

The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, the only federal agency to define the Southeast, includes those states as well as Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi and West Virginia.

If those states were included, North Carolina would have been second highest in 2006, after Arkansas.

DEBT: The state constitution requires the legislature to balance the budget, so North Carolina's debt does not come from annual budget deficits.

Instead, the debt comes from bonds issued by the state to pave highways, build jails and college buildings and pay for other projects. The bonds are backed by the state's expected tax revenue.

From 2002 to 2007, Hagan was a co-chairwoman of the Senate Appropriations committee.

During those five years, the state's overall debt went from $3.5 billion to $6.9 billion — nearly doubling.

However, the increased debt has not hurt North Carolina's credit rating. The three agencies that rate government bonds — Moody's, Fitch and Standard & Poor's — each give it a top-tier ranking.

North Carolina is one of only seven states to have top rankings from all three.

HAGAN'S ADS: In an ad run in August, Hagan's campaign claimed that she "reach(ed) across party lines to ban driver's licenses for illegal immigrants."

A previous Claims Department by the N&O found that claim overstated the supporting role she played in that bill and the Senate Democrats' previous opposition to stronger proposals from Republicans.

The ad's "account of Hagan's role on the driver's license bill is overstated and inaccurate," the article noted.

Is it accurate? Yes and no. The claims about state debt and Hagan's previous ad are true. But the definition of the Southeast used by the John Locke Foundation is bizarre. Though the ad correctly cites the foundation's research, the claim is misleading.

— Ryan Teague Beckwith