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North Carolina House Bill H116

North Carolina 2025-2026 Regular Session

North Carolina House Bill H116 Compare Versions

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11 GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
22 SESSION 2025
3-H 2
3+H 1
44 HOUSE BILL 116
5-Committee Substitute Favorable 3/4/25
65
7-Short Title: Columbus Co. Bd. of Ed. Partisan. (Local)
8-Sponsors:
9-Referred to:
6+
7+Short Title: Make Columbus Co. Bd. of Ed. Partisan. (Local)
8+Sponsors: Representative B. Jones.
9+For a complete list of sponsors, refer to the North Carolina General Assembly web site.
10+Referred to: Election Law, if favorable, State and Local Government, if favorable, Rules,
11+Calendar, and Operations of the House
1012 February 17, 2025
11-*H116 -v-2*
13+*H116 -v-1*
1214 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
13-AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR THE PARTISAN ELECTION OF THE COLUMBUS COUNTY 2
14-BOARD OF EDUCATION. 3
15-The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 4
16-SECTION 1. Notwithstanding G.S. 115C-35, the Columbus County Board of 5
17-Education shall consist of five members elected to serve staggered four-year terms. Five members 6
18-shall be elected from residency districts. One member shall be elected from each residency 7
19-district by the qualified voters of the entire county, excluding the area encompassing the 8
20-Whiteville City School Administrative Unit. No person shall be eligible to file for or be elected 9
21-to the Columbus County Board of Education unless the person is a qualified voter and resident 10
22-of the residency district in which the person seeks to be elected. 11
23-SECTION 2. Notwithstanding G.S. 115C-37, members of the Columbus County 12
24-Board of Education shall be elected on a partisan basis at the time of the general election in each 13
25-even-numbered year as terms expire. Candidates for election to the Columbus County Board of 14
26-Education shall be nominated at the same time and in the same manner as other county officers. 15
27-Members shall take office on the first Monday in December following their election. Members 16
28-shall serve until their successors are elected and qualified. 17
29-SECTION 3. All vacancies in the membership of the Columbus County Board of 18
30-Education by death, resignation, or other causes shall be filled in accordance with 19
31-G.S. 115C-37.1. 20
15+AN ACT TO PROVIDE FO R PARTISAN ELECTIONS FOR MEMBERSHIP ON T HE 2
16+COLUMBUS COUNTY BOAR D OF EDUCATION AND T O REPEAL ANY 3
17+CONFLICTING STATUTES. 4
18+The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 5
19+SECTION 1. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the Columbus 6
20+County Board of Education shall consist of five members to be elected to staggered terms of four 7
21+years. Members shall be elected from five single-member residency districts. One member shall 8
22+be elected from each residency district by the qualified voters of the entire county, excluding the 9
23+area encompassing the Whiteville School Administrative Unit. No person shall be eligible to file 10
24+for, be elected to, or serve on the Columbus County Board of Education unless the person is a 11
25+qualified voter and resident of the district in which the person seeks to be elected. 12
26+SECTION 2. Members of the Columbus County Board of Education shall be elected 13
27+on a partisan basis at the time of the general election in each even-numbered year as terms expire. 14
28+Candidates for the Columbus County Board of Education shall be nominated at the same time 15
29+and in the same manner as other county officers. Except as provided by this act, the election shall 16
30+be conducted in accordance with the applicable provisions of Chapters 115C and 163 of the 17
31+General Statutes. 18
32+SECTION 3. Members shall serve until their successors are elected and qualified. 19
33+All members shall take office on the first Monday in December after the election. 20
3234 SECTION 4. This act does not affect the terms of office of any person elected in 21
33-2024 to the Columbus County Board of Education. Any vacancy on the Columbus County Board 22
34-of Education for a member elected in 2024 shall be filled by appointment by the remaining 23
35-members of the Columbus County Board of Education to serve the remainder of the unexpired 24
36-term. When a vacancy occurs in a seat elected from a residency district, the successor shall be 25
37-selected from the residency district of the vacating member. Each member of the Columbus 26
38-County Board of Education elected in 2024, or any member appointed to fill a vacancy for a 27
39-member elected in 2024, shall serve until a successor has been elected and qualified. 28
40-SECTION 5. All laws and clauses of laws in conflict with this act are hereby 29
41-repealed, including the following: 30
42-(1) Chapter 717 of the 1953 Session Laws. 31
43-(2) Section 1 of Chapter 114 of the 1961 Session Laws. 32
44-(3) Chapter 327 of the 1961 Session Laws. 33
45-(4) Chapter 754 of the 1961 Session Laws. 34
46-(5) Chapter 295 of the 1963 Session Laws. 35
47-(6) Section 1 of Chapter 1053 of the 1969 Session Laws. 36 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
48-Page 2 House Bill 116-Second Edition
49-(7) Section 3 of Chapter 192 of the 1981 Session Laws. 1
50-(8) Section 2 of Chapter 234 of the 1983 Session Laws. 2
51-SECTION 6. G.S. 115C-37.1(d) reads as rewritten: 3
52-"(d) This section shall apply only to the Hickory City Board of Education and the 4
53-Newton-Conover City Board of Education and in the following counties: Alexander, Alleghany, 5
54-Ashe, Beaufort, Brunswick, Burke, Cabarrus, Caldwell, Carteret, Catawba, Cherokee, Clay, 6
55-Columbus, Craven, Dare, Davie, Forsyth, Graham, Harnett, Henderson, Hyde, Iredell, Lee, 7
56-Lincoln, Madison, McDowell, Mitchell, New Hanover, Onslow, Pamlico, Pender, Polk, Rowan, 8
57-Rutherford, Stanly, Stokes, Surry, Vance, Washington, and Yancey." 9
58-SECTION 7. This act becomes effective the first Monday in December 2026, and 10
59-elections in 2026 shall be conducted accordingly. 11
35+2022 or 2024 to the Columbus County Board of Education. Any vacancy on the Columbus 22
36+County Board of Education for a member elected in 2022 or 2024 shall be filled by the remaining 23
37+members of the Columbus County Board of Education until the next election of the members of 24
38+the Columbus County Board of Education, at which time the remaining unexpired term of the 25
39+office in which the vacancy occurs shall be filled by election. Any person appointed to fill a 26
40+vacancy shall be a resident of the district in which the vacancy occurs. The members of the 27
41+Columbus County Board of Education elected in 2022 or 2024, or any member appointed by the 28
42+remaining members of the Columbus County Board of Education to fill a vacancy of a member 29
43+elected in 2022 or 2024, shall serve until a successor has been elected and qualified. 30
44+SECTION 5.(a) Vacancies on the Columbus County Board of Education shall be 31
45+filled in accordance with G.S. 115C-37.1. 32
46+SECTION 5.(b) G.S. 115C-37.1(d) reads as rewritten: 33 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
47+Page 2 House Bill 116-First Edition
48+"(d) This section shall apply only to the Hickory City Board of Education and the 1
49+Newton-Conover City Board of Education and in the following counties: Alexander, Alleghany, 2
50+Ashe, Beaufort, Brunswick, Burke, Cabarrus, Caldwell, Carteret, Catawba, Cherokee, Clay, 3
51+Columbus, Craven, Dare, Davie, Forsyth, Graham, Harnett, Henderson, Hyde, Iredell, Lee, 4
52+Lincoln, Madison, McDowell, Mitchell, New Hanover, Onslow, Pamlico, Pender, Polk, Rowan, 5
53+Rutherford, Stanly, Stokes, Surry, Vance, Washington, and Yancey." 6
54+SECTION 5.(c) This section becomes effective December 1, 2026. 7
55+SECTION 6. The following provisions of law are repealed: 8
56+(1) Section 1 of Chapter 717 of the 1953 Session Laws. 9
57+(2) Chapter 114 of the 1961 Session Laws. 10
58+(3) Chapter 216 of the 1961 Session Laws. 11
59+(4) Chapter 327 of the 1961 Session Laws. 12
60+(5) Chapter 295 of the 1963 Session Laws. 13
61+(6) Chapter 1 of the 1969 Session Laws. 14
62+(7) Section 2 of Chapter 1053 of the 1969 Session Laws. 15
63+(8) Chapter 836 of the 1973 Session Laws. 16
64+(9) Sections 1, 2, and 3 of Chapter 192 of the 1981 Session Laws. 17
65+SECTION 7. Except as otherwise provided, this act is effective when it becomes law 18
66+and applies to elections held on or after that date. 19