State Rep. Melanie Wade Goodwin has announced she will not seek a fourth term in the House.

The Hamlet Democrat announced her decision in a statement published on a blog run by her husband, Insurance Commissioner Wayne Goodwin.

Making my decision now allows others in Richmond and Montgomery counties who are interested in public service the time to weigh the very sizable commitment of personal and professional time, as well as resources, that it takes to be a member of the North Carolina General Assembly.

My decision also allows me to spend more time with my young children, and to focus on other personal goals and priorities in my life.

Spouses could not file alienation of affection lawsuits after they separated from their spouse under a bill that cleared a Senate committee Tuesday.

North Carolina is one of only seven states that still has such a law allowing a husband or wife to sue their spouse's lover effectively for causing the marriage to break up, according to legislative staff. The bill would permit lawsuits only over extramarital affairs that occur while the couple are still married and living together.

Advocates argued that bitter spouses were filing lawsuits after separation as a means of harrassment and leverage in settling a divorce. Tami Fitzgerald, of the Christian Action League, said the bill removes an incentive for separated couples to focus on whether they want to reconcile their marriage.

"It doesn't give the couple time for talking, for counsel," Fitzgerald said, "for putting their marriage back together."

The bill also prohibits lawsuits against a spouse's employer for somehow making an affair possible, such as with a co-worker.

The House voted in favor of a bill that tweaks the state's laws that allow lawsuits over adultery.

In North Carolina, a man or woman can sue his or her spouse's lover for "alienation of affection." The jilted person can sue his or her spouse for "criminal conversation."

The bill states that the ability to sue doesn't apply if a couple has separated but not yet divorced. The bill sets a three years limit, beginning at the last act, for filing such lawsuits and it prohibits suits filed against businesses.

Rep. Johnathan Rhyne, Jr., a Lincolnton Republican, tried unsuccessfully to amend the bill to say that the law applied until a couple had obtained a legal separation agreement. Without the amendment, couples would have no incentive to try to save their marriages, he said.

"In North Carolina we have a one-year period of separation before you can get a divorce," Rhyne said. "Marriages are considered precious things and we've given a cooling off period."

Rep. Melanie Wade Goodwin, the bill's sponsor and a Hamlet Democrat, said the amendment ignores the reality, that many people don't get separation agreements until their lawyers have investigated the spouse's finances.

Rep. Mark Hilton, a Conover Republican, said the bill weakened marriage.

"What we're going to be doing if this bill passes is saying it's open season," Hilton said.

The local bill was the latest attempt by Rep. Paul Stam, an Apex Republican, to give more municipalities the ability to advertise public hearings on their own Web sites rather than buy space in the classified section of a newspaper.

The idea has encountered objection from newspaper publishers and editors who argue that a significant number of people have Internet connections, and that government should not be the sole advertiser of public hearings.

The bill also comes as newspapers are coping with dramatic losses in advertising revenue.

More after the jump.

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Rep. Melanie Wade Goodwin has not filed any spending bills.

The Richmond County Democrat has filed special appropriations bills in the past seeking money in the state budget for projects back home.

But she said there was no point in doing so in a year when the state budget is at least $2 billion short already. 

"Most of the folks who have contacted me say that we would love to have some funding, but we know it's a tough budget year, so we're not going to ask you to spend your time pursuing funds that are not going to be available," she said.

In a better budget year, Goodwin said she might have filed a bill requesting $2 million for a waterline to serve rural residents of Richmond County whose home wells have tested positive for pesticides. 

She said other legislators may be filing bills this year that they know won't pass as a "show of support" for a local project and to keep them in the discussion. 

Some interesting bills filed in the House recently:

H.B. 120: Public Municipal Campaigns, Reps. Rick Glazier, Melanie Wade Goodwin, Pricey Harrison and Winkie Wilkins

H.B. 123: Death Penalty / Proportionality Review, Reps. Glazier, Dan Blue, Deborah Ross and Earline Parmon

H.B. 125: Raise the Cap on Charter Schools, Reps. Jim Gulley, Marilyn Avila and Ric Killian

H.B. 126: Eliminate the Cap on Charter Schools, Reps. Gulley, Avila, Killian and Nelson Dollar

H.B. 128: Authorize Grandfather Mountain as State Park, Reps. Phil Frye, Edgar Starnes and Cullie Tarleton

Several more House bills were filed this afternoon:

H.B. 21: Eugenics Program - Support and Education, Reps. Larry Womble, Ronnie Sutton, Earline Parmon and Martha Alexander

H.B. 22: Enhance Youth Employment Protections, Reps. Jennifer Weiss, Melanie Wade Goodwin, Paul Luebke, Angela Bryant

H.B. 23: Strengthen Child Labor Violation Penalties, Reps. Weiss, Luebke, Bryant and Goodwin

H.B. 24: Funds for Cochlear Implants / CASTLE, Rep. Verla Insko

H.B. 25: Clarify SCFAC Appointments, Rep. Insko

H.B. 26: Stay Beach Plan Rates, Deductible Surcharges, Reps. Timothy Spear, Carolyn Justice

The 2007 effectiveness rankings for the legislature have arrived.

The rankings, conducted by the N.C. Center for Public Policy Research, is based on a survey of state senators and representatives, a dozen capital correspondents and 614 registered lobbyists after the biannual long session.

Senate President Marc Basnight was the most effective senator for a record eighth time in a row. The other most-effective senators were: Tony Rand, David Hoyle, Dan Clodfelter and Linda Garrou.

The five most effective members of the House were House Speaker Joe Hackney, Bill Owens, House Majority Leader Hugh Holliman, Rick Glazier and Jim Crawford.

Rep. Melanie Goodwin made the biggest jump in effectiveness in the House from 73rd in 2005 to 31st in 2007; while Sen. Bill Purcell joined the Senate's Top 10 most effective for the first time.

For the first time, the center asked respondents to consider ethics when ranking effectiveness.

Jim Long will not run for re-election.

The longtime Democratic insurance commissioner will not seek a seventh term in office.

Wayne Goodwin, a former four-term state representative and failed candidate for labor commissioner in 2004, filed today to replace Long, shortly before the noon deadline.

He was accompanied to the State Board of Elections by Long and by his wife, state Rep. Melanie Wade Goodwin, a Richmond County Democrat.

When asked about his failure to file so far, Long spokeswoman Chrissy Pearson said Wednesday that Long intended to file for re-election on Friday.

Long, 67, was first elected insurance commissioner in 1986. He is the longest-serving member of the Council of State.

"I felt it was time to 'pass the torch' to a new generation of leadership for the Department," Long wrote in an e-mail to supporters.

Update: Former Raleigh City Councilman John Odom has also filed.