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.
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