Gov. Beverly Perdue signed a bill Wednesday that obligates homeowners across the state to pick up the tab if a mega-hurricane hits North Carolina and exhausts the state's emergency insurance pool.

The bill requires homeowners to pay a surcharge, not to exceed 10 percent of their annual premiums, to cover storm damage that exceeds the financial capacity of the Beach Plan, an insurance plan created by the state for people who can't get coverage elsewhere. For the average homeowner, the surcharge will be capped at $65 a year, based on the typical amount of insurance policies in the state.

The Property Casualty Insurers Association of America praised the new law.

"The General Assembly responsibly chose to solve the problem before the storm," said David Sampson, President and CEO of the group, "instead of after a devastating event."

Legislators passed the new law amid warnings that some insurers would stop doing business in the state without a financial backstop. The surcharge on all homeowners would be triggered only if the state endured what is often referred to as a once-in-a-century storm. The storm would have to cause $2.4 billion to exhaust the Beach Plan's resources. The largest payout by the plan so far was $130 million during Hurricane Fran in 1996.

The House and Senate dug in and heard scores of bills Wednesday.

Notable votes included bills on beer, reptiles and coastal insurance.

* HB 1595: Allows grocery stores to offer beer tastings similar to wine tastings that are already allowed. Beer can be served in portions no greater than 2 oz. The bill heads back to the House for a final vote.

* SB 307: Regulates possession and keeping of certain dangerous reptiles such as venomous snakes. Bill now goes to the governor.

* HB 1305: Would place the burden of paying for the damage caused by a catastrophic hurricane on homeowners across the state. Bill now heads to the Senate for consideration.

A bill that calls for a surcharge on homeowner insurance policies across the state if a catastrophic storm wreaks havoc along the North Carolina coast was tentatively approved by a wide margin by the state House.

The bill, which must be voted on again before it moves to the Senate, calls for homeowners to bail out a state-created insurance plan known as the Beach Plan if a storm generates more claims than the Beach Plan can pay, David Ranii reports.

In that event, homeowners would be assessed a surcharge of  up to 10 percent of their annual premiums.

Currently, insurers who offer homeowners policies can be assessed to cover damages the Beach Plan can't pay on a prorated basis, based on how much business they have in the state. Nothing in state law permits insurers to recover any of that money from their policyholders.

The bill proposes capping insurers’ exposure at $1 billion, which supporters — including the insurance industry — say is necessary to avoid insurers fleeing the state.

Bill sponsor Hugh Holliman, a Lexington Democrat, noted that, given the Beach Plan’s current surplus and level of reinsurance homeowners wouldn’t be liable for a surcharge until damages topped $2.4 billion.

So far, the most the Beach Plan has paid in claims for a single storm is $150 million.

A legislative study committee did not come up with a plan for beach insurance.

Instead, after months of effort, the committee decided to let the General Assembly decide whether and how much homeowners should pay to help bail out the Beach Plan if a major hurricane strikes.

The state-created plan offers insurance to coastal homeowners.

The committee also punted on the issue of whether insurers should have a cap on the amount they can be assesed for damages that go beyond the plan's financial resources.

It is recommending legislation that would limit Beach Plan homeowners' insurance coverage to a maximum of $750,000, half the current level.

The goal is to limit the Beach Plan's potential liability if a devastating storm occurs, although the committee couldn't put a dollar figure on how much the plan's liability would be reduced. (N&O)

MINNEAPOLIS — About 30 North Carolina delegates planned to attend a massive volunteer effort this morning for victims of Hurricane Gustav.

The group, wearing matching red polo shirts, were headed to the Minnesota Convention Center to create care packages, Barb Barrett reports.

The Republican National Committee organized the event and had hoped to get 200 volunteers from among the thousands of delegates, alternates, guests and staff attending this week’s convention.

State delegates heard first-hand about Gustav's destruction Monday when a former Louisiana governor attended their delegation breakfast and offered an update. And, being from a state that gets its own share of storms, N.C. delegates can appreciate first-hand the need for relief efforts.

Beverly Perdue says offshore drilling would not be safe.

In a statement sent to the press this afternoon, the Democratic gubernatorial nominee attacked her rival, Pat McCrory, for supporting oil exploration off the North Carolina coast. 

"North Carolina’s coast is in Hurricane Alley and has been called the Graveyard of the Atlantic for a reason," she said. "I haven’t seen anything that proves to me that drilling there can be done safely or bring down oil prices."

Echoing recent attacks, she also accused McCrory of "walking in lock-step" with President Bush, and said the state should focus on encouraging conservation and alternative energy sources.

The statement also cited an Associated Press article that noted this federal report said that it would take decades for offshore oil to reach the market and still might not reduce gas prices.