What has Gov. Beverly Perdue signed into law?

As of mid-week in crossover, the governor has signed 14 bills into law:

* S.B. 287: Reduces benefits to State Health Plan in effort to keep it solvent.

* S.B. 89: Designates Grandfather Mountain as a state park.

* H.B. 494: Allows Superior Court judges to perform weddings.

* H.B. 613: Says state does not approve of building a Navy landing field in a county that does not already have a military base.

* S.B. 198: Allows the governor to name another public school employee to the State Board of Education.

* S.B. 127: Restricts state management of institutional funds.

Correction: An earlier version of this post incorrectly included local bills and resolutions that do not require the governor's signature. 

More after the jump.

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A bill requested by Richard Petty would help Nascar drivers haul their stuff.

The Nascar legend asked Sen. Jerry Tillman, a Randolph County Republican, to give motorsports drivers an exemption from state laws limiting the length of vehicles on state roads.

The bill would allow drivers to attach a trailer to the back of a motorhome when driving to competitions, repair sites or testing on tracks, as long as the total length did not exceed 90 feet.

It would also allow the state Department of Transportation to declare certain roads off limits to the motorhome-trailer combos.

Tillman said he filed the bill because Petty lives in his district, but also because he wants to help the drivers.

"Nascar is a huge business in our state," he said. "This is one of the business-friendly things that we can do for the motorsports industry."

Related: House bill would honor Jimmie Johnson

A few of the interesting new House bills:

H.B. 74: Spend 65% of School Funds in Classroom, Rep. John Blust

H.B. 75: Salary Funds/Spend Only for Salaries, Rep. Blust

H.B. 76: School Board Candidate Filing Fee, Reps. Rick Glazier, Doug Yongue

H.B. 78: Honor Jimmy Johnson, NASCAR Nextel Champ, Rep. Bill Owens

H.B. 83: Modify Out-of-State Tuition Exemption, Reps. Pricey Harrison, George Cleveland, Wil Neumann, Jennifer Weiss

Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory raised $6.4 million in his run as the Republican nominee for governor.

McCrory, who entered the race after his fellow Republican candidates were well underway, raised $1.1 million from Oct. 19 to the end of the year, according to campaign finance disclosure reports.

McCrory's biggest donors in the quarter included Morrisville developer Benjamin Ward, NASCAR chief executive Brian France, Carolina Panthers owner Jerry Richardson, Jerry Smith, president of the Le Bleu water company, Ronald Day, chief operating officer of RBC Centura Bank.

He also received major contributions from the N.C. American Indian PAC, the Green Industry Council, the N.C. Association of CPAs and the N.C. Chiropractic PAC.

McCrory spent about $6.4 million on his campaign, leaving him with $66,700.

Gov. Beverly Perdue's inaugural address focused on the economy.

Speaking to thousands of assembled North Carolinans in front of the state archives on Jones Street, Perdue said that the state is "in the midst of a global economic crisis."

"People are actually worried about losing their jobs, about paying their mortgage, about their own personal future," she said.

She pledged to rebuild the state's economy, citing the creation of UNC-Chapel Hill, Research Triangle Park and a Kannapolis biotech center as precedents. She also earned a laugh by citing an unlikely economic development engine.

"No other state can claim to have turned the practice of hauling moonshine into the high-tech, fast-growth engine known as Nascar," she said.

Perdue ended by echoing words she had once used to criticize former Gov. Mike Easley.

"I pledge to be a fully-engaged, hands-on governor," she said. "The people's problems will be solved when we listen to them."

After the jump, the speech as delivered.

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Junior Johnson is getting out the word for Barack Obama.

In a post on BlueNC, the Hall of Fame NASCAR driver says that he is the last person you'd expect to be promoting the Democratic presidential candidate.

"I've voted for many Republicans over many decades. And let’s face it — NASCAR car drivers and Democrats don't usually mix," he writes. "But then again, no one expected my state of North Carolina to be a toss-up a few days before the election, either."

He says that he supports Obama because he will fight corporate lobbyists, help small business owners and protect Second Amendment rights.

"I've been in a lot of races in my life," he writes. "But I do believe this may be the most important one yet. Because if we put the pedal to the mettle for this final turn, when that checkered flag waves on November 4th we'll win something far greater than any trophy — we'll win the change our beloved country needs, and the future all of our children deserve."

NASCAR driver Richard Petty has endorsed John McCain. 

Joe Biden compared the presidential race to a real race Thursday.

"Everyone talks about North Carolina being the capital of NASCAR," the Democratic vice presidential candidate told about 4,000 to 5,000 people at a nighttime rally at Meredith College. "Right now, our campaigns are trading paint. That means we are banging each other. What most worries me is that the McCain campaign is getting a little loose on the road out there." 

The Delaware senator barnstormed by bus across the state, seeking to counter two recent visits by Republican Sarah Palin. He drew 1,200 people in Charlotte and 4,500 in Winston-Salem.

He argued that John McCain's campaign should stop running negative robocalls and took exception to Palin's recent comment that North Carolina was part of the "pro-American part of the country."

"There are heroes all over Amercia in every state and in every town," he said. "We all love this country." (N&O)

CHARLOTTE — The Democratic vice presidential nominee lobbed some colorful volleys at the Republican ticket at Halton Arena this morning.

Speaking before a crowd that grew to 1,500 by the time he took the stage, Joe Biden focused mostly on the economy, Peter St. Onge of the Charlotte Observer reports.

"There is not one fundamental economic issue, not one fundamental economic issue, on which John McCain has taken issue with George Bush," Biden said.

Biden criticized McCain for supporting policies that give tax benefits to companies that ship jobs overseas — an issue that resonates with N.C. audiences — and he knocked John McCain for not yet supporting a second economic stimulus plan targeting the middle class.

Barack Obama, he said, would emphasize growing the economy through the working class. Said Biden: "Ladies and gentlemen, it's all about jobs, it's all about jobs at the end of the day."

Biden, as he has frequently in recent stops, also criticized McCain for a negative campaign.

"Right now, our campaigns are trading a little paint," he said, offering a NASCAR reference that fell somewhat flat. "But what worries me most is that the McCain campaign is getting a little loose."

He added: "I don't recognize him anymore. I used to know him well."

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.