North Carolina 2025-2026 Regular Session

North Carolina House Bill H197 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1		GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
2	2		SESSION 2025
3		-	H 1
4		-	HOUSE BILL 197
	3	+	H D
	4	+	HOUSE BILL DRH40094-MGa-60
	5	+
5	6
6	7
7	8		Short Title: Local Communicable Disease Programs/Funds. (Public)
8		-	Sponsors: Representatives White and Potts (Primary Sponsors).
9		-	For a complete list of sponsors, refer to the North Carolina General Assembly web site.
10		-	Referred to: Appropriations, if favorable, Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House
11		-	February 26, 2025
12		-	H197 -v-1
	9	+	Sponsors: Representative White.
	10	+	Referred to:
	11	+
	12	+	DRH40094 -MGa-60
13	13		A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
14	14		AN ACT APPROPRIATING FUNDS TO THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN 2
15	15		SERVICES, DIVISION OF PUBLIC HEALTH, TO CONTINUE THE STATE 'S 3
16	16		PROGRESS IN COMMUNICABLE DISEASE RESPONSE. 4
17	17		Whereas, there are over 80 reportable communicable diseases in North Carolina that 5
18	18		local health departments (LHDs) are responsible for investigating and managing; and 6
19	19		Whereas, LHDs must respond to the rise and spread of newly emerging and 7
20	20		re-emerging communicable diseases, such as tuberculosis, avian flu, Marburg virus, and Mpox; 8
21	21		and 9
22	22		Whereas, North Carolina has currently seen cases of avian flu in commercial poultry 10
23	23		flocks, requiring a high level of monitoring and support from LHDs to address the risk of human 11
24	24		spread; and 12
25	25		Whereas, LHDs in North Carolina remain understaffed, with an estimated 70% 13
26	26		shortage of public health staff at the local level, including communicable disease nurses and other 14
27	27		professionals, who are vital to the State's communicable disease response; Now, therefore, 15
28	28		The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 16
29	29		SECTION 1.(a) There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of 17
30	30		Health and Human Services, Division of Public Health, the sum of twenty-five million dollars 18
31	31		($25,000,000) in recurring funds for the 2025-2026 fiscal year and the sum of twenty-five million 19
32	32		dollars ($25,000,000) in recurring funds for the 2026-2027 fiscal year to be allocated to local 20
33	33		health departments, as provided in subsection (b) of this section, to do all of the following: 21
34	34		(1) To better prepare the State for emerging and re-emerging public health threats. 22
35	35		(2) To retain staff, hire additional disease staff, including public health nurses and 23
36	36		other public health professionals, and to expand public health programs and 24
37	37		services, which are vital not only to maintaining North Carolina's 25
38	38		communicable disease response but also to ensuring that the essential public 26
39	39		health services described in G.S. 130A-1.1 are available and accessible to the 27
40	40		population served by each local health department. 28
41	41		SECTION 1.(b) In the distribution of these funds to local health departments, for 29
42	42		each year of the 2025-2027 fiscal biennium, the Department of Health and Human Services, 30
43	43		Division of Public Health, shall do all of the following: 31
44	44		(1) Divide twelve million five hundred thousand dollars ($12,500,000) equally 32
45	45		among the local health departments based on the number of counties served 33
46		-	by each local health department. 34 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
47		-	Page 2 House Bill 197-First Edition
	46	+	by each local health department. 34
	47	+	H.B. 197
	48	+	Feb 25, 2025
	49	+	HOUSE PRINCIPAL CLERK General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
	50	+	Page 2 DRH40094-MGa-60
48	51		(2) Distribute the remaining twelve million five hundred thousand dollars 1
49	52		($12,500,000) to local health departments based upon the percentage of the 2
50	53		State population served by each of the local health departments. 3
51	54		(3) Begin distributing the funds allocated under this section no later than (i) 60 4
52	55		days after the date the Office of State Budget and Management and the Office 5
53	56		of the State Controller establish the certified budget for the Department of 6
54	57		Health and Human Services for the 2025-2026 fiscal year and (ii) 60 days after 7
55	58		the date the Office of State Budget and Management and the Office of the 8
56	59		State Controller establish the certified budget for the Department of Health 9
57	60		and Human Services for the 2026-2027 fiscal year. 10
58	61		SECTION 2. This act becomes effective July 1, 2025. 11