Hagan seeks $48m in state spending

ryanteaguebeckwith — Fri, 23 May 2008 13:05:03 -0400

Sen. Kay Hagan is seeking more than $48 million in state spending.

The Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate has sponsored one bill and co-sponsored 16 bills seeking appropriations in the upcoming state budget. As a longtime state senator, she is serving an advisory role on the budget in the short session.

Hagan is the primary sponsor of a bill that would give the Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering run by UNC-Greensboro and N.C. A&T University $2.9 million in the budget.

Among the larger appropriations bills she is cosponsoring: $12 million for the N.C. Housing Trust Fund, $9.5 million to the UNC system for 4-H camps, and $8.1 million to buy a building for a student services center at N.C. A&T.

She is also asking for $3 million for Boys & Girls Club programs targeting dropouts and teen pregnancy, $3 million for an International Civil Rights Center and Museum in Greensboro, $2.6 million for promoting the semiannual furniture market in High Point, $2.5 million for minority financial literacy programs, $2 million for arts programs and $1 million for a parental school involvement pilot program.

Among the appropriations under $1 million: Money for a literacy program in Wake County public schools, an electronic health information study commission, Kids Voting programs, a John Coltrane Music Hall in Greensboro, job training for the homeless and former inmates, a male-oriented teen pregnancy prevention program, and housing for recovering substance abusers in Greensboro.

Snow's job

ryanteaguebeckwith — Wed, 20 Jun 2007 09:59:31 -0400

State Sen. John Snow has joined the blogosphere.

The Murphy Democrat may be the first state legislator to start his own blog — let us know if he's not — about his daily doings in the capital.

So far, he's written about recent bills on virtual learning, vegetable-oil diesel and emergency prescription drugs. He's highlighted upcoming visits by North Carolina Voters for Clean Elections and the 4-H and he's linked to an NPR interview.

In other words, the standard stuff a legislator might note in a letter to constituents.

Still, the blog is an interesting idea, and he's got a pretty clean design for the site. It'll be interesting to see if the comments function attracts more feedback.