House committee substitute to the 1st edition makes the following changes.

Modifies the proposed changes to GS 14-45.1(b1), regarding required recordkeeping and reporting by a physician who advises, procures, or causes a miscarriage or abortion after the sixteenth week of a woman's pregnancy, to require the physician to provide a signature attesting that the information that is contained in the report to the Department of Health and Human Services is true and correct to the best of the physician's knowledge, without a requirement for the attestation to be made under oath.

Makes a technical correction to the act's short title.  

House committee substitute amends the 2nd edition as follows.

Repeals Section 1 of the act, amending pistol permit provisions set forth in GS 14-404 and related access to mental health orders of permit applicants under GS 122C-54, if HB 398 becomes law. Effective on the date the act becomes law. 

Enacts GS 14-32.5, making it a Class A1 misdemeanor to use or attempt to use physical force, or threaten the use of a deadly weapon, against another person when the offender is either (1) a current or former spouse, parent, or guardian of the victim, (2) a person with whom the victim shared a child in common, (3) a person who is cohabitating with or has cohabitated with the victim as a spouse, parent, or guardian, or (4) a person similarly situated to a spouse, parent, or guardian of the victim. Effective December 1, 2021. Makes conforming changes to the act's long title. 

House committee substitute to the 1st edition makes the following changes.

Modifies the directive that all interim guidelines issued by the Department of Health and Human Services, executive orders issued by the Governor, and other guidance issued by executive or local government agencies in response to the COVID-19 pandemic relating to fitness centers and gyms require indoor fitness centers and gyms to provide at least one operating water fountain or touchless water bottle refill station. Conditions the requirement upon the facility currently having an operational water fountain or touchless water bottle refilling station. Eliminates the proposed provision explicitly providing that the act does not require installation of water fountains or refill stations where not required by law.

House committee substitute to the 1st edition makes the following changes. Amends new GS 15A-1340.16(e)(14a) by correcting the reference to the federal definition of combat zone. Makes additional clarifying and technical changes. Changes the effective date of the act to December 1, 2021 (was, October 1, 2021).

House committee substitute to the 1st edition makes the following changes.

Modifies the proposed definition given for the new term in-service retired law enforcement officer in proposed GS 128-21(11e). Expands the term to provide an alternate definition to include a member of the Local Governmental Employees' Retirement System (LGERS) who (1) is at least 59.5 years of age, with at least five years of membership service as a law enforcement officer, (2) is actively employed as a deputy and transitions to employment by a sheriff's office or a police department as a school resource officer in a capacity that meets the definition of employee under the Chapter, or is elected to the office of sheriff, and (3) elects to commence receiving a retirement allowance during employment as an in-service law enforcement officer (subdivision a.). Revises the previously proposed definition to include a beneficiary of LGERS who (1) is at least 59.5 years of age, with at least five years of membership service (was creditable service) as a law enforcement officer, (2) is reemployed by a sheriff's office or a police department as a school resource officer in no less than 90 days after separation from service in a capacity that meets the definition of employee under the Chapter (previously did not provide a time period limitation), or is elected to the office of sheriff, and (3) elects to continue receiving a retirement allowance during employment as an in-service law enforcement officer (previously not included) (subdivision b.). 

Revises proposed GS 128-24(5)f., to specify that the previous provision providing that in-service retired law enforcement officers are not subject to the reemployment limitations specified in sub-subdivision c. applies to in-service retired law enforcement officers meeting the definition set forth in new GS 128-21(11e)b. Adds the following, applicable to in-service retired law enforcement officers meeting the definition set forth in new GS 128-21(11e)a. Requires continued receipt of a retirement allowance for the duration of the employment as an in-service retired law enforcement officer, without limitation, and requires the employee to contribute as a member of LGERS at the applicable uniform contribution rate. Requires recomputation of the member's allowance in accordance with the service retirement provisions pertaining to law enforcement officers upon separation from service as an in-service retired law enforcement officer and upon written notification to the Board of Trusteed of the member's desire to retire, as specified. 

Requires LGERS to correct any sheriff's office or police departments' noncompliance with new GS 128-21(11e) as the Retirement System determines to be appropriate under State and federal law, with the employing sheriff's office or police department liable for costs of the correction. Provides for correction costs to be transferred to the Pension Accumulation Fund under rules adopted by the LGERS Board of Trustees. 

House committee substitute to the 1st edition makes the following changes.

Eliminates the proposed appropriations to the Department of Justice. Makes conforming changes. Makes conforming changes to the act's titles. 

House committee substitute deletes the content of the 1st edition and replaces it with the following. 

Enacts GS 115C-102.1 to require the governing bodies of public school units to ensure the following information is posted on each school's website, organized by subject area and grade level: (1) the lesson plans that were used at the school during the prior school year, identifying, describing, and linking the instructional materials and associated activities; (2) any procedures for the documentation, review, or approval of the lesson plans by the principal, curriculum administrators, or other teachers; and (3) the procedure established by the governing board for requesting an in-person review of instructional material not publicly available online. Specifies that digital reproduction of the materials or separate reporting of material components is not required, and requires listing the teacher as the author when appropriate. Defines instructional material and lesson plan. Requires the governing board to provide access from the public school unit's website to the required information by June 30th annually through a manner specified, with public access maintained by fiscal year. Authorizes the public school unit to provide lesson plans to be updated throughout the school year if all updated are completed by June 30, and use online collaborative software, documents, or spreadsheets to allow multiple users to update content, during the school year. Does not require compliance by a governing body that is responsible for the operation of schools with fewer than 400 students cumulatively.

Amends GS 115C-12, GS 115C-47, GS 115C-238.66, and GS 115C-218.85 to require the State Board, local boards, regional school boards of directors, and charter schools to ensure that the information about instructional materials is displayed on the websites of innovative schools, schools for students with visual and hearing impairments, each school in the respective administrative unit, regional schools and charter schools as appropriate for each authority and in accordance with new GS 115C-102.1.

Similarly enacts GS 116-69.2, and enacts a new subsection to GS 116-235, to provide identical requirements of the Boards of Trustees of the NC School of the Arts and the NC School of Science and Math to ensure that information about instructional materials is displayed on the each school's website for all programs of the School of the Arts and for the School of Science and Math, respectively, in accordance with new GS 115C-102.1.

Similarly amends GS 116-239.8(b), enacting a new subdivision to require chancellors to ensure that information about instructional materials is displayed on the website of laboratory schools in accordance with new GS 115C-201.1.

Applies beginning with the display of instructional materials used during the 2021-22 school year, no later than June 30, 2022.

Part I.

Enacts new GS Chapter 86B entitled "Barber and Electrolysis Practice Act." Organizes the new Chapter into three Articles. Recodifies specified sections of GS Chapter 86A, governing the Board of Barber Examiners, barber certification, and barbershop and barber school permitting, into Articles 1 and 2 of new GS Chapter 86B. Recodifies specified sections of GS Chapter 88A, governing the Board of Electrolysis Examiners and electrologist licensure, into Article 3 of new GS Chapter 86B. 

Revises and adds to the sections recodified in new GS Chapter 86B as follows.

Makes the following changes to Article 1. Eliminates the NC Board of Barber Examiners. Establishes the seven-member NC Board of Barber and Electrolysis Examiners (Board), consisting of four licensed barbers, one practicing electrologist, one licensed physician, and one unlicensed public member, all of which are appointed by the Governor. Eliminates the prohibition of the previous Board of Barber Examiners which prohibits serving more than three complete consecutive three-year terms. Eliminates the powers and duties of the Board of Barber Examiners, and grants the Board of Barber and Electrolysis Examiners the powers and duties necessary to carry out and enforce the provisions of GS Chapter 86B. Authorizes the Board to adopt necessary rules. Empowers the Board to investigate any licensee or establishment subject to the Chapter's provisions if the Board has reasonable cause to believe a violation of the Chapter's provisions has occurred, either on its own motion or upon receipt of a complaint from any individual. Provides for the Board to maintain a Wake County, rather than Raleigh, office. Eliminates the annual reporting requirement to the Governor, previously required of the Board of Barber Examiners. Authorizes the Board to apply for an injunction or restraining order to prevent further violation of the Chapter's provisions, but not to prevent violations of the Chapter or the Board's rules, as the Department of Health and Human Services and local health directors are authorized to do. Makes conforming changes throughout the Chapter to refer to the NC Board of Barber and Electrolysis Examiners. 

Makes the following changes to Article 2. Now provides for licensure to practice barbering rather than certificates of registration, and expands shop permitting to include mobile barbershops. No longer requires applications for examination to include proof of the applicant's qualifications under oath, or places a deadline to require applications to be submitted at least 30 days before the examination. Modifies the qualifications for licensure of applicants who hold a license in another state to require the applicant to have practices one of the last five immediately preceding years (was, three out of five years).

Modifies language to consistently refer to the permitting of barbershops, mobile barbershops, and barber schools. Enacts a new section, authorizing motor homes to be used as a mobile barbershop for the practice of barbering. Provides for permitting, the Board's rulemaking, and other requirements regarding mobile barbershops, including sanitation standards that must be met and requiring owners to provide the Board with a written monthly itinerary listing locations, dates, and hours of operation. Sets the permit application and annual fee for mobile barbershops at $50, with a $45 late fee, and sets inspection of newly established mobile barbershops at $120. Expands the sanitary rules and regulations and inspection requirements applicable to barbers, barbershops, and barber schools to include mobile barbershops. Now requires the Board to adopt rules regarding the disposal of wastewater in a barbershop or mobile barbershop (previously required lavatories to have a drain pipe to drain wastewater out of the building). Provides for use of Board-approved sanitizing solutions for equipment and instruments, rather than providing specified solution ingredients and thresholds.

Modifies the qualifications of barber schools or colleges to now require the school to employ at least one (was, two) instructors for the first 20 (was, 40) enrolled students and employ one additional instructor for every additional 20 enrolled students. Allows for online theoretical training with one instructor present (two instructors required for simultaneous practical training and theoretical training). 

Makes the following changes to Article 3. Eliminates the Board of Electrolysis Examiners and makes changes throughout to refer to the new Board of Barber and Electrolysis Examiners as the governing board of electrologist licensing. Eliminates outdated language which grandfathered in electrologists practicing before July 1, 1993, for licensure without examination. Enacts a new statute to require the Board to issue a license to any individual who completes a Board-approved electrology apprenticeship program consisting of 625 hours, visits two electrologist offices that are not the same office as the program instructor, and passes a clinical exam conducted by the Board. Requires the Board to inspect an electrology apprenticeship program's facility prior to approval. Requires application to the Board for a student permit prior to enrollment in a program. Establishes four qualifications for apprenticeship program instructors. Provides for the Board's rulemaking regarding apprenticeship programs, including reporting and record-keeping. Revises fees for licensure, setting the fee for an initial electrologist license at $125 (was $150) and examination or reexamination at $150 (was, $125). 

Makes technical and clarifying changes throughout the new Chapter; makes language gender neutral. Updates statutory and internal cross-references throughout. Makes conforming repeals of specified sections of GS Chapter 88A, and conforming repeals of references to that Chapter in new GS Chapter 86B.

Makes the above changes effective January 1, 2022, and applicable to applications for licensure, examination, and renewal submitted on or after that date. 

Part II.

Directs the Board of Barber and Electrolysis Examiners (Board), as established, to review the licensing fee limitations and fees adopted by rule of the now abolished Board of Barber Examiners and Board of Electrolysis Examiners to determine if fee reduction is appropriate given consolidation of the Boards. Directs the Board to report to the specified NCGA committee by March 1, 2023.

Directs the Board to review the licenses established by the act and determine where consolidation or elimination of licenses is appropriate given consolidation of the Boards. Directs the Board to report to the specified NCGA committee by March 1, 2023.

Provides that licenses and registrations issued by either abolished Board prior to January 1, 2022, remain valid until their expiration, revocation, or renewal by the Board of Barber and Electrolysis Examiners.

Vests and transfers all property and assets owned by the now abolished Board of Electrolysis Examiners to the Board. 

Provides for continuance of all proceedings pending prior to January 1, 2022, in the name of or against either abolished Board in the name of the Board of Barber and Electrolysis Examiners. 

Directs the Department of the State Treasurer to separate funds received in the name of the new Board from funds received in the name of either abolished Board prior to January 1, 2022. 

Provides for the continued validity of rules adopted by either abolished Board. 

Grants the Board of Barber and Electrolysis Examiners the authority to expend funds to conduct audits and prepare financial statements as would have been required under GS 93B-2 and GS 93B-4. 

Directs the newly established Board to adopt rules to implement the act.

Provides for the appointment of members to the Board of Barber and Electrolysis Examiners by October 1, 2021, for one-, two-, and three-year terms, as specified, with terms beginning January 1, 2022. 

Makes the provisions of Part II effective on the date the act becomes law. 

Reenacts GS 105-151.29 and GS 105-130.47, individual and corporate income tax credits for qualifying expenses of a production company, as they existed immediately before repeal and makes the following changes. Amends both GS 105-153.29 and GS 105-130.47 by removing the sunset provision. Changes to GS 105-151.29 apply to qualifying expenses occurring on or after January 1, 2021.

Repeals GS 143B-437.02A, the Film and Entertainment Grant Fund.

Repeals GS 105-259(b)(34a), which allowed tax information to be disclosed to exchange information concerning a grant awarded under GS 143B-437.02A with specified entities. Allows the Department of Revenue to continue to disclose tax information concerning a grant awarded under GS 143B-437.02A prior to its repeal with the Department of Commerce or a contractor hired by that Department as necessary for the administration of the grant until the term of the grant has expired.

Repeals GS 150B-1(d)(18b), which exempted the Department of Commerce in administering the Film and Entertainment Grant Fund under GS 143B-437.02A from rulemaking. 

Allows a production company that has been awarded a grant for a production under GS 143B-437.02A to: (1) return or decline the grant and claim the credit reenacted in this act for the production or (2) retain the grant and not claim the credit allowed for the production, as reenacted in this act. Prohibits a production company from receiving a grant under GS 143B-437.02A and claiming the reenacted credit for the same production.

Amends GS 166A-19.24 (remote meetings during declaration of emergency) to do the following:
(1) Establish the presumption that remote meetings held pursuant to this statute are open to the public if the statute is complied with;
(2) Permit public bodies to amend meeting notices to provide the public the means to access a remote meeting when a member of the public body decides to attend remotely;
(3) Require that amended notices for a remote meeting be issued at least 6 hours prior to the meeting and be distributed and posted in accordance with notice requirements for non-regular meetings set forth in GS 143-318.12;
(4) Change the period for submission of written public comment for a public hearing during a remote meeting to the time between publication of the meeting notice and 24 hours before the scheduled start of the meeting; and
(5) Make a technical change.
Effective July 1, 2021, and applies to meetings held on or after that date.

Amends GS 20-4.01 (motor vehicle related definitions) to define “neighborhood occupantless vehicle,” as a low-speed fully autonomous vehicle designed to be operated without an occupant and used for cargo. Amends Article 3 of Chapter 20 of the General Statutes (Motor Vehicle Act of 1937 – motor vehicle regulations) to add GS 20-121 authorizing the operation of neighborhood occupantless vehicle on streets and highways with a speed limit of 45MPH or less and requiring neighborhood occupantless vehicles to operate on the far right of the roadway when not turning left and to pull off the roadway when there are five or more cars behind it that cannot safely pass on highways with two lanes. Also defines “operator” for purposes of neighborhood occupantless vehicles and exempts fully autonomous vehicles designed to be operated exclusively and at all times by an automated driving system from regulations requiring installation, maintenance, or inspection of equipment necessary for vehicles with human drivers, but not necessary for autonomous vehicles. Effective October 1, 2021.

Amends GS 136-18 to give the Department of Transportation (DOT) authority to construct conduits for telecommunications cables within the State right-of-way, with construction borne through the leasing of the conduit to private telecommunications companies, provided that the construction and leasing is not otherwise prohibited by any other federal or State law. Creates the Conduit Installation Account in the Information Technology Fund to receive revenues from conduit leasing with funds in the Account used to fund the installation and maintenance of telecommunications conduit within the State right-of-way and to support the administration of this new subdivision. Requires excess revenues in the fund to remain in the fund to advance additional projects across the state.

Enacts GS 136-44.18 to require DOT, in collaboration with the North Carolina Department of Information Technology, to include in its planning for roads with a minimum length of 2,500 feet the installation of conduit for telecommunications  cables when: (1) less than 90% of households in the county where the road project is located have access to high-speed data or telecommunications services and (2) before advertising the project, a provider of high-speed data Internet provides DOT with a letter indicating its interest in leasing the conduit and enters into a lease agreement or provides a bond in the amount of the anticipated construction costs.

Requires DOT, in collaboration with the Department of Information Technology, to report annually beginning by May 1, 2022, to the specified NCGA committee on its progress in implementing the program to install telecommunications conduit authorized by this act. Specifies information that is to be included in the initial and subsequent reports. 

Amends GS 106-121 by adding and defining the term cannabinoid-related compounds, as any phytocannabinoid found in hemp, including, but not limited to, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), tetrahydrocannabinolic acid (THCA), cannabidiol (CBD), cannabidiolic acid (CBDA), cannabinol (CBN), cannabigerol (CBG), cannabichromene (CBC), cannabicyclol (CBL), cannabivarin (CBV), tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV), cannabidivarin (CBDV), cannabichromevarin (CBCV), cannabigerovarin (CBGV), cannabigerol monomethyl ether (CBGM), cannabielsoin (CBE), or cannabicitran (CBT); specifies that cannabinoids do not include synthetic cannabinoids.

Amends GS 106-139 to require the Board of Agriculture to adopt rules to establish a voluntary certification program for good manufacturing practices in manufacturing, packaging, or labeling operations for cannabinoid-related compounds derived from hemp. Sets out labeling requirements that must be included in the voluntary certification rules. Prohibits the manufacture, sale, delivery, holding, or offering for sale of any cannabinoid-related compounds that are falsely certified and also subjects it to GS 106-123 (allowing the Commissioner (Commissioner) of Agriculture to seek injunctions restraining violations) and GS 106-125 (detention of product or article suspected of being adulterated or misbranded). Requires an application for certification of good manufacturing practices to be made to the Commissioner on forms provided by the Department of Agriculture; sets out items that must be included in the application. Requires the Board to develop a schedule of license fees with fees used to cover reasonable costs of administering the voluntary licensing program, including staffing. Effective January 1, 2022.

Amends GS 106-568.51 by amending the following definitions as they apply in Article 50E, Industrial Hemp. Changes the definition of hemp products to all products made from hemp that are prepared in a form available for commercial sale, excluding smokeable products. Removes the term "industrial hemp" and replaces it with hemp, defined as the plant Cannabis sativa (L.) along with any part of that plant, including the seeds and all derivatives, extracts, cannabinoids, isomers, acids, salts, and salts of isomers, whether growing or not, with a delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol concentration of not more than 0.3% on a dry weight basis. Effective October 1, 2021.

Enacts new GS 106-568.58 specifying that products that contain hemp or any part of the hemp plant or hemp derivative are not considered to be adulterated or misbranded based solely on the inclusion of hemp or any hemp derivative. Prohibits restricting or prohibiting the production, marketing, sale, or distribution of products that contain hemp or any derivatives of hemp, based solely on the inclusion of hemp or any hemp derivative. 

Amends GS 90-87, which defines marijuana as it is used in Article 5, North Carolina Controlled Substances Act, by providing that the term does not include hemp or hemp products (was, does not include industrial hemp produced and used in compliance with rules issued by the NC Industrial Hemp Commission).

Amends GS 90-94 to exclude from the tetrahydrocannabinols considered Schedule VI controlled substances those found in hemp or hemp products. Effective October 1, 2021.

Requires the Board of Agriculture to adopt temporary rules to implement this act by January 1, 2022. The temporary rules remain in effect until permanent rules that replace the temporary rules become effective; requires the permanent rules to be adopted by January 1, 2023.

Amends GS 6-21.7 (attorney fees; cities or counties acting outside their authority) providing courts must award reasonable attorney’s fees and costs to the prevailing party upon a finding that a local government’s action against the party was inconsistent with provisions of the local government's comprehensive zoning plan. Also makes conforming changes.

Enacts new Article 3A, Child Advocacy Centers in GS Chapter 108A, providing the following. Defines Children's Advocacy Center as a child-focused, trauma-informed, facility-based program in good standing with Children's Advocacy Centers of North Carolina Inc. or its successor, that assists in the coordination of the investigation of child abuse by promoting a coordinated, multidisciplinary response to cases of child maltreatment in which representatives from law enforcement, child protective services, or prosecution, mental health, forensic interviewing, medical, or victim advocacy groups or disciplines collaborate to make team decisions about the investigation, prosecution, safety, treatment, and support services to provide, directly or by formalized agreements, services that include forensic interviews, medical examinations, mental health and other related support services, court advocacy, consultation, and training for children suspected to be victims of child maltreatment and their nonoffending family members. Defines child as any individual under age 18, or any individual who has a developmental disability, as defined in GS 122C-3(12a), that severely impacts conceptual, social, and practical areas of living to the extent the individual cannot live in an independent environment. Also defines the following terms as they are used in the new Article: child maltreatment, department, forensic interview, and multidisciplinary team.

Requires a Child Advocacy Center to meet all of the following in order to receive State funds or federal funds administered or distributed by a State agency or any other funds appropriated or allocated by the NCGA: (1) found to be in good standing with State standards set forth by Children's Advocacy Centers of North Carolina Inc. or its successor; (2) is an independent nonprofit agency, which may be affiliated with an umbrella organization or a part of a governmental entity, with sound administrative policies and procedures designed to ensure quality of services and sustainability including specified standards; (3) provides a child-friendly, trauma-informed space for children suspected to be victims of child maltreatment and their nonoffending family members; (4) conducts on-site interviews of children by a forensic interviewer in appropriate cases of suspected child maltreatment; (5) maintains a multidisciplinary team that meets regularly and are routinely involved in investigations and multidisciplinary team interventions; (6) has a written interagency agreement signed by authorized representatives of all MDT participants that commits the signed parties to the multidisciplinary model for the investigation of child maltreatment, with the agreement reviewed and signed annually; (7) provides a space for multidisciplinary team meetings; (8) establishes and maintains written protocols governing the specified topics; (9) has a designated staff that is supervised and approved by the Children's Advocacy Center's Board of Directors or other governing entity; (10) provides case tracking of child abuse cases served through the Children's Advocacy Center, according to written protocols sets out additional items the Center must track; (11) provides medical exams or referrals for medical exams by health care providers with specific training in child sexual and physical abuse who meet required minimum State and national standards for training, documentation, and review, according to the Children's Advocacy Center's written protocols; (12) provides mental health services or referrals for such mental health services by licensed professionals who deliver trauma-focused, evidence-supported treatment who meet the minimum standards established by the Children's Advocacy Centers of North Carolina Inc. or its successor; (13) provides training for various disciplines in the community that deal with child maltreatment; (14) provides victim support and advocacy that meets State and national standards; (15) maintains cultural competency and diversity by completing a community assessment every three years, which does at least the listed items; (16) provides annual trainings or educational opportunities for multidisciplinary team member professional development; (17) ensures that Children's Advocacy Center employees and volunteers are properly screened and trained in accordance with State and national standards; and (18) provides all services to a child client regardless of the child's or child's family's ability to pay for those services. Makes the Children's Advocacy Centers of North Carolina, Inc., or its successor, responsible for tracking and documenting compliance and any funds it administers to an eligible Children's Advocacy Center.

Requires any pertinent or relevant information possessed by a member of a multidisciplinary team concerning a child whose case is being investigated or discussed by the team to be shared with the team members as part of the discussion and coordination of efforts for investigative or treatment purposes. Requires individuals and agencies to share information or records with the team when requested; sets out items that do not have to be disclosed. Requires information acquired by a multidisciplinary team to be kept confidential and not be disclosed except to the extent necessary to perform case consultations, to carry out a treatment plan or recommendations, or in compliance with the requirements of this Article. Provides that information, documents, or records available from the original sources are not immune from discovery or use in any civil or criminal action solely on the basis of the information, documents, or records being used in a case consultation. Gives team members immunity from any civil or criminal liability for disclosure of information, except in cases of gross negligence, wanton conduct, or intentional wrongdoing. 

Makes confidential and prohibits the release of reports, correspondence, memoranda, case histories, medical reports, and other materials compiled or created by a Children's Advocacy Center, except allows release in eight specified circumstances. Allows a court to order the release of the records for an in camera inspection if the court finds that the records are necessary to determine a matter before the court or grand jury and the information cannot be obtained from one of the listed entities. Allows the court to then release only information that is material and relevant to the matter before the court and necessary for the proper administration of justice. Sets out what information employees or designated agents of a Children's Advocacy Center may confirm or disclose. Prohibits duplicating an interview of a child recorded at a Children's Advocacy Center with an exception for prosecuting attorneys.

Provides civil immunity for a board member, staff member, or volunteer of a Children's Advocacy Center or Children's Advocacy Centers of North Carolina, Inc., or its successor when the person acts in good faith.

Effective July 1, 2022.

Amends GS 115C-218(b)(2), Membership of the NC Charter Schools Advisory Board (Board), to make the State Superintendent a voting member and secretary of the Board and to reduce the number of members appointed by the State Board of Education to one member. Establishes that three members appointed by the General Assembly to fill terms expiring in 2021 will serve two-year terms instead of four-year terms in order to stagger appointments to the Board.

Includes whereas clauses.

Amends GS 143-460, which includes the definitions for use in Article 52, Pesticide Board, of GS Chapter 143. Adds and defines the term neonicotinoid pesticide as any pesticide containing a chemical belonging to the neonicotinoid class of chemicals, including, but not limited to, imidacloprid, nithiazine, acetamiprid, clothianidin, dinotefuran, thiacloprid, thiamethoxam, and any other chemical designated by the North Carolina Pesticide Board (Board) as belonging to the neonicotinoid class of chemicals. Excludes from the term pet care products used to mitigate fleas, mites, ticks, heartworms, or other animals harmful to the health of a domesticated animal, personal care products used to mitigate lice or bedbugs, or any product regulated under the North Carolina Structural Pest Control Act. 

Amends GS 143-443 to make it illegal  to distribute, sell, or offer for sale within this state or deliver for transportation or transport in intrastate commerce or between points within this state through any point outside this state any neonicotinoid pesticide to the public at retail, unless the seller is authorized to sell a restricted use pesticide. Also makes it unlawful to use a neonicotinoid pesticide, unless the person is: (1) a licensed pesticide applicator, or a person working under the direct supervision of a licensed pesticide applicator; (2) a farmer, or person working under the direct supervision of a farmer, who uses the pesticide for agricultural purposes; or (3) a veterinarian using the pesticide in the practice of veterinary medicine. 

The above provisions are effective October 1, 2021.

Requires the Board, with the assistance and input of the Pesticide Advisory Committee, to monitor the final pollinator risk assessments undertaken by the US Environmental Protection Agency and report on any legislative or regulatory changes necessary to protect pollinators within the state, taking into account findings and any recommendations of the risk assessment. Requires the Board to forward its report and recommendations for statutory and regulatory changes to the Commissioner and the Environmental Review Commission within six months of the completion of the final pollinator risk assessments for neonicotinoid pesticides.

Requires the Board to study whether the State should have the authority to regulate the use and sale of seeds treated with systemic insecticides, and report study results to the Environmental Review Commission no later than November 1, 2021.

Amends GS 50-13.2 (various child custody provisions) to authorize courts to order mental health evaluations of parties in proceedings to establish or modify custody orders where one party objects to joint custody or seeks exclusive custody, and in proceedings to enforce custody or visitations orders where one party complies with the order and the other party either (i) demonstrates a pattern of willful non-compliance or (ii) has three violations of the order without reasonable excuse, or in other appropriate matters. The court may order the licensed mental health professional to submit a written report to the court on the evaluation in a reasonable time that is not to exceed three months, may consider the parties' good faith participation or lack of participation in the ordered evaluation when establishing, modifying, or enforcing custody orders; and may admit the mental health professional’s evaluation report into evidence regardless of any rules against hearsay. Effective October 1, 2021, and applies to pending and future proceedings regarding custody of a minor child.

Contains whereas clauses. Amends Part 1 of Article 22A of GS Chapter 163 (regulating contributions and expenditures in political campaigns) by adding GS 163-278.18A, which does the following:
(1) Directs social media companies to submit their reason for censoring a candidate for public office in writing to the State Board of Elections (Board) within three calendar days of censoring a candidate's social media page;
(2) Directs the Board to, within three calendar days of the required submission by the company, hold a hearing to determine if a company’s censorship of a candidate was justified according to the terms and conditions the candidate agreed to when they created their social media page;
(3) Directs the Board to notify the company and candidate in writing of its decision of whether the censorship was justified;
(4) Provides that a company or candidate may appeal the Board's decision of whether censorship was justified to the Joint Legislative Commission on Government Operations (Commission) and directs the Commission to convene and render a ruling on the appeal within three days of receiving the appeal;
(5) Provides civil penalties for illegal in-kind contributions between $250 and $250,000 per day that a candidate is censored if the Board finds the company has censored a candidate without cause;
(6) Requires that terms and conditions of a candidate’s social media page must not exclude any rights guaranteed by federal law;
(7) States this section does not prohibit candidates from seeking a separate cause of action for wrongful censorship and provides that candidates who succeed on a separate cause of action are entitled to declaratory relief, including attorneys' fees and costs, or injunctive relief; and
(8) Provides that the court, in an action brought under this section, should hold a company in contempt and use any lawful measures, including penalties, to ensure compliance. Effective at 5 p.m. on the day before the 2021 candidate filing period begins and applies to election cycles on or after that date.

Appropriates $300,000 in recurring funds and $150,000 in nonrecurring funds for 2021-22 to the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to be allocated to the Pre-Regulatory Abandoned Mine Program established below. Allows DEQ to establish up to three full-time positions with the funds.

Enacts new GS 76-69 requiring the Secretary of DEQ to a program for the location, assessment, and notification of threats to the public from land subsidence due to pre-regulatory mines (mine or quarry in the State abandoned before June 11, 1971) from funds appropriated for this purpose. Requires the Secretary to: (1) locate pre-regulatory mines and assess the level of threat they pose to human health and safety, to the environment, and to public or private structures or other improvements to real property; and (2) using a risk-based approach, determine the priority for remediation of the risks of pre-regulatory mines and develop and implement remedial action plans for pre-regulatory mines in the order of their priority. Requires the availability of sufficient funds to pay for development and implementation of a remedial action plan before one is developed. Allows a local government that voluntarily undertakes assessment or remediation of a pre-regulatory mine to request reimbursement from DEQ for costs of assessment of the pre-regulatory mine and implementation of measures necessary to remediate or mitigate risk at the site to eliminate an imminent hazard (as defined by the act); sets out four conditions that DEQ must find before making such a reimbursement. Also allows a private party that voluntarily undertakes assessment or remediation of a pre-regulatory mine to request reimbursement from DEQ for costs of assessment of the pre-regulatory mine and implementation of measures necessary to remediate or mitigate risk at the site to eliminate an imminent hazard; sets out three conditions that DEQ must find before making such a reimbursement. Requires DEQ to report annually to the specified NCGA committee and division on the activities of the pre-regulatory mine program, including specified items. 

Requires DEQ's Pre-Regulatory Mine Program to investigate the occurrence, cause, and monetary damages caused by sinkholes and other subsidence of land on residential structures in the State discovered by the Program incident to its establishment of the priority list of pre-regulatory mines. Requires a report on these findings to the specified NCGA committee and division by December 1, 2022.

Enacts new GS 39-51 to provide that in offering real property for conveyance, rent, or lease, the fact that the real property is located above a quarry, cemetery, mine, or a similar feature is deemed material. Prohibits knowingly make a false statement about the property's location above a quarry, cemetery, mine, or a similar feature. Enacts new GS 47E-4.2 to require the owner of real property to give a purchaser a hazardous land conditions mandatory disclosure statement, as specified, for transfers described in GS 47E-1 (providing that GS Chapter 74E applies to the following transfers of residential real property consisting of no less than one nor more than four dwelling units: sale or exchange, installment land sales contract, option, or lease with option to purchase) and GS 47E-2(b) (transfers involving the first sale of a dwelling never inhabited; lease with option to purchase contracts where the lessee occupies or intends to occupy the dwelling; and transfers between parties when both parties agree not to complete a residential property disclosure statement or an owners' association and mandatory covenants disclosure statement). Requires the North Carolina Real Estate Commission to develop and require the use of a hazardous land conditions mandatory disclosure statement to comply with the requirements of this statute. Effective October 1, 2021

Adds new Part 3, Policies Related to Movement of Earth, Sinkholes, or Any Other Round Collapse, to Article 44 of GS Chapter 58. Enacts new GS 58-44-125 requiring a homeowner's insurance policy to provide coverage against loss caused by movement of earth, sinkholes, or any other ground collapse if any portion of the residential real property is located above a quarry, cemetery, mine, or a similar feature. Specifies that the developer's policy provides primary insurance if, at the time of loss, a developer's policy covers the same risk. 

Adds new Article 47, Sinkholes, to GS Chapter 66. Enacts new GS 66-460 making the following applicable to a property developer when any portion of residential real property is located above a quarry, cemetery, mine, or a similar feature: (1) the developer assumes liability for movement of earth, sinkholes, or any other ground collapse; (2) requires the developer to notify the property contractor, before entering into any real property contract, of the existence of the quarry, cemetery, mine, or other similar feature; and (3) the developer must keep insured each building on the developed property to the extent of no less than 80% of the current insurable value against loss caused by movement of earth, sinkholes, or any other ground collapse.

Establishes the 17 member Commission to Study the Feasibility of Establishing a State Infrastructure Band (Commission) to study how the creation of such a bank could strengthen economic and community development, provide financial resources for infrastructure projects, and leverage State, federal, and private resources to address the need for access to sustainable financial assistance for projects that will contribute to economic growth, job creation, and support of local communities in the State. Sets out membership requirements. Provides for filling vacancies, establishing a quorum, meeting space, staffing, and compensation. Requires the Commission to hold at least five public meetings in distinct geographic regions of the State. Sets out 11 issues the Commission must study, at a minimum, including: providing financing for infrastructure related to housing development, public works infrastructure, educational infrastructure, student loans, and community quality of life projects; providing capital for continued expansion of the State's transportation, environmental, energy, and telecommunications infrastructure; examine various administrative and operational structures for organizing a State Infrastructure Bank; and the extent to which the State Infrastructure Bank should be allowed to compete with banking establishments operating in North Carolina. Allows the Commission to make an interim report to the 2022 Regular Session of the NCGA prior to its convening and requires a final report by the end of that session.

Enacts new GS Chapter 95, Article 2B (Retail Workers' Bill of Rights).

Lists legislative findings regarding employment in retail work, and defines seven terms including employer and retail establishment.

GS 95-­25.33, Advance notice of work schedules and schedule changes, requires employers to provide new employees with written nonbinding estimates of the employee's expected minimum number of scheduled shifts per month and the days and hours of those shifts. Allows employees to request employers to modify the proposed work schedule, and requires an employer to accept or reject the request prior to the start of employment. Requires employers to provide employees with at least two weeks' notice of work schedules by posting the schedule on a biweekly schedule, either at the workplace or online. Requires an employer to give notice to an employee of any change to the employee's schedule, and requires additional compensation to the employee based on how long before the changed shifts notice was given, and the length of the changed shifts. Requires pay for on­call shifts in which an employee is not called into work. Provides seven exceptions for the schedule change compensation and exceptions (appears to intend on­call shift compensation), including for acts of God and unexpected absences of other employees. Allows employers to provide greater advance notice than required by this statute.

GS 95-­25.34, Equal treatment for part-­time employees, prohibits employers from differentiating wages, paid and unpaid time off, and eligibility for promotion, between part-­time and full­-time employees based on status as a part-­ or full-­time employee. Provides that eligibility for promotion may be contingent upon the employee's availability for full­time employment.

GS 95-­25.35, Notice of employee rights, directs the Commissioner of Labor (Commissioner) to publish and make available to employers, in specified languages, a notice suitable for posting by employers in the workplace informing employees of their rights under this Article, by the effective date of this act. Directs the Commissioner to update the notice on December 1 of any year in which there is a change in the required languages (based on languages spoken by percentages of the state's workforce). Directs employers to post the notice in a conspicuous place at every workplace in the state under the employer's control visited by its retail employees.

GS 95­-25.36, Records; retention requirements, requires employers to retain work schedules and payroll records for three years, and to allow the Department of Labor (Department) access to them to monitor compliance with this Article. Grants the Commissioner access to all places of labor subject to this Article during business hours to inspect books and records, interview employees, and investigate matters necessary to determine whether the employer has violated this Article. Provides that failure to maintain adequate records, or failure to allow the Department reasonable access to them as required, creates a presumption that the employer did not comply with the Article, absent clear and convincing evidence otherwise.

GS 95-­25.37, Exercise of rights protected; retaliation prohibited, prohibits the interference with the exercise any right protected under this Article. Prohibits employers from taking adverse employment action in retaliation for the exercise of rights protected under this Article.

GS 95-­25.38, Investigation; enforcement, authorizes the Commissioner to enforce the Article, including investigation of possible violations of the Article. Authorizes the Commissioner to order temporary or interim relief to mitigate a violation that the Commissioner has reason to believe has occurred, or to maintain the status quo, pending the completion of an investigation. Provides for the Commissioner to provide notice to an employer that has been determined to be in violation, as described, and authorizes the Commissioner to order appropriate relief, including payment of lost wages, as well as an administrative penalty, to employees, and enforcement costs to the state. Provides for an appeal to the NC Office of Administrative Hearings, and subsequently to the Wake County Superior Court, and describes the steps required to pursue such an appeal. Provides that failure to appeal constitutes failure to exhaust administrative remedies.

Clarifies that the Article does not limit other rights and remedies provided by law to employees. Contains a severability clause.

Clarifies that the Article does not create rights, requirements, powers, or duties in conflict with any state or federal law.

Effective January 1, 2022.

Amends GS 153A-225 (medical care for prisoners) by adding subsection (a1) which does the following:
(1) Directs the administrator of a local confinement facility to, within five days of the suicide attempt, report an inmate’s suicide attempt using forms provided by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) to the local or district health director and the Secretary of DHHS;
(2) Directs DHHS to, following a reported suicide attempt, review a facilities compliance with its suicide prevention program and other relevant minimum standards DHHS has published for local confinement facilities;
(3) Directs DHHS to make a report following a review of a local confinement facility and submit the report to the local or district health director, the governing body, and others responsible for the facility within 30 days of conducting the review; and
(4) Defines “suicide attempt” for the purposes of the statute.
Appropriates $186,702 in recurring funds from the General Fund to DHHS, Division of Health Services Regulation, Construction Section (Section) in each year of the 2021-2023 fiscal biennium to hire two jail inspectors to inspect local confinement facilities as required by GS 153A-222 (local confinement facilities inspections).
Appropriates $110,296 from the General Fund to the Section in recurring funds is each year of the 2021-2023 fiscal biennium to the Division to hire a facility compliance consultant to conduct the reviews following a report of an attempted suicide required by GS 153A-225.
The amendments to GS 153A-225 are effective October 1, 2021, and the remainder of the bill’s provisions are effective July 1, 2021.

Part I.

Revises defined terms applicable to certificates of need laws in Article 9, set forth in GS 131E-176, as follows. Changes the threshold criteria for diagnostic center to include a facility, program, or provider in which the total cost of all medical diagnostic equipment used by the facility which costs more than $10,000 or more exceeds $1.5 million (currently, the cost threshold is set at $500,000). Changes the threshold criteria for major medical equipment to include a unit or system used to provide medical or other health services which costs more than $2 million (currently, the threshold is $750,000). Changes the threshold criteria for new institutional health services to include the obligation of capital expenditures exceeding $4 million (was, $2 million) to develop or expand a health service or facility or relates to the provision of health services. Makes conforming changes to reflect the revised threshold amounts in GS 131E-184. Requires the cost threshold amount for diagnostic center, major medical equipment and new institutional health services to be adjusted annually, beginning September 30, 2022, as specified. Amends bed capacity to specify space used exclusively for inpatient care at a health care facility. Amends the definition of health service to exclude activities performed at a facility that does not meet the definition of a health service facility; removes ambulatory surgical facilities from the definition of health service facility. Removes the conversion of a specialty ambulatory surgical program to a multispecialty program or the addition of a specialty to an existing program from the term new institutional health services (the same provision is deleted again in Section 2(a) of this act, effective 19 months after the act becomes law). Makes conforming and technical changes.

Amends GS 131E-184 by exempting from certificate of need review a new institutional health service if it receives prior written notice from the entity proposing the service for the development, acquisition, construction, expansion, or replacement of a health service facility or service that obtained certificate of need approval before January 1, 2022, as an ambulatory surgical facility. Also exempts a capital expenditure exceeding the $4 million (was, $2 million) threshold, when the specified conditions are met. Directs the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) to exempt from certificate of need review services or facilities for which a certificate of need has already been issued when those services or facilities are replaced, renovated, or relocated to another site in the same county where need was originally determined. Establishes an exemption from certificate of need review for the construction, development, acquisition, or establishment of an ambulatory surgical facility in a county with a population of 100,000 or more that meets four criteria, including requiring licensed physicians seeking the exemption to make every effort to enter into a joint venture with a licensed hospital as specified, agreement with a licensed hospital or hospital privileges to ensure inpatient hospital services are available as specified, capability to immediately transfer patients to an adequate emergency room, and compliance with statutory licensure requirements of ambulatory surgical facilities. 

Enacts GS 131E-189(d), providing for the expiration of a certificate of need issued for the construction of a health service facility upon the certificate holder failing to initiate authorized construction within four years after the approval becomes final for projects costing over $50 million or two years after the approval becomes final for projects costing less than $50 million.

Adds to the requirements for ambulatory surgical facility licensure under GS 131E-147 as follows. Requires all initial application and renewal applications to require statement of the number of procedure rooms on, and the number and type of procedures performed at, the named premises. Bars issuing or renewing a license to operate a facility developed, acquired, or replaced on or after January 1, 2022, unless the application provides (1) a commitment that the Medicare allowable amount for self-pay and Medicaid surgical cases minus all revenue collected from self-pay and Medicaid surgical cases will be the greater of either 4% of the total revenue collected for all surgical cases performed at the facility or the percentage of charity care ambulatory surgery services provided by the affiliated hospital; (2) a commitment to annually report the total number of self-pay, Medicaid, Medicare, commercial insurance, managed care, and other surgical cases to DHHS; and (3) a commitment to report use and payment data for services provided by the facility to the statewide data processor. 

Effective January 1, 2022.

Part II.

Includes a severability clause.

Part III. 

Makes the act effective on the date the act becomes law, unless otherwise provided. 

Amends GS 90-18 to revise the acts identified which constitute the practice of medicine or surgery, thereby triggering a requirement for licensure under Article 1. Makes the following changes to subdivision (c)(3a). Defines collaborative care services to mean patient care services authorized by a physician and delegated to a pharmacist for the purpose of drug therapy and disease management. Now requires the provision of patient care services by a licensed pharmacist under a collaborative practice agreement with one or more physicians to be performed in accordance with the rules developed by the NC Medical Board and the NC Board of Pharmacy and approved by both Boards. Authorizes a supervising physician to delegate to a licensed pharmacist, under a collaborative practice agreement, any patient care services that the supervising physician deems appropriate. Eliminates existing provisions of subdivision (c)(3a) that included the provision of drug therapy management, defined to include implementing drug therapy and ordering tests by a licensed pharmacist engaged in the practice of pharmacy pursuant to an agreement that is physician, pharmacist, patient and disease specific when performed in accordance with the Boards' rules and approved by the Boards).

Makes conforming changes to GS 90-18.4 concerning clinical pharmacist practitioners. Modifies the conditions to which clinical pharmacist practitioners authorized by physicians to provide patient care in accordance with GS 90-18(c)(3a) and GS 90-18.4A are subject. Now requires the Boards to have adopted rules developed by a joint subcommittee governing the use and oversight of collaborative practice in patient care settings that the Boards have determined to be in the best interest of patient health and safety. Additionally requires clinical pharmacist practitioners to register with the Board of Pharmacy and maintain annual requirements as a clinical pharmacist practitioner (previously only required current approval from both Boards), and requires the clinical pharmacist practitioner's unique identification number to be shown on any prescriptions he or she writes (previously required the Medical Board to assign an ID number to be written on prescriptions written by him or her). Eliminates the condition which required the agreement to prohibit the substitution of chemically dissimilar drug products without explicit consent of the physician and to provide for periodic review by the physician of the drugs modified. Adds a new subsection to require the supervising physician to evaluate the provision of collaborative care services by the clinical pharmacist practitioner in accordance with rules adopted by the Boards. Requires the physician to conduct periodic review and evaluation of the clinical pharmacist practitioner as stated in their agreement. Authorizes the physician to collaborate with and supervise as many clinical pharmacist practitioners as the physician deems safe and effective. Repeals subdivisions (c)(1)-(4) regarding conditions for certain clinical pharmacist practitioners working in hospitals and other facilities to order medications and tests from the facility's prescription drug formulary or other lists of drugs to be utilized in the facility. Recodifies subdivision (c)(5) as subsection (c1) and modifies it to now provide as follows. Requires any drug therapy order medications, tests, or devices written by a clinical pharmacist practitioner to be deemed authorized by the collaborating physician. Requires orders written by a clinical pharmacist practitioner to be documented to inform the collaborating physician or advanced practice provider for the patient. Requires the supervising physician to conduct periodic review and evaluation of the clinical pharmacist practitioner's prescribing patterns. Adds new subsection (c2) to allow institutional and group practices to implement an institution-wide, multiprovider collaborative practice agreement for the care of their patients under a policy for oversight and evaluation of clinical pharmacist practitioners by an appointed supervising physician. Repeals subsection (d), which authorized any registered nurse or licensed practical nurse who receives a drug therapy order from a clinical pharmacist practitioner for medications or tests to perform that order in the same manner as if the order was received from a licensed physician.

Amends GS 90-8.2 to allow rather than mandate the Medical Board to appoint and maintain a subcommittee to work with a subcommittee of the Pharmacy Board to develop rules to govern the performance of patient care services by clinical pharmacist practitioners. Authorizes the Pharmacy Board to determine reasonable fees to accompany the registry application not to exceed $50 and annual renewal of registration not to exceed $50 (previously required of the Medical Board with an initial application fee of $100 and renewal of $50). Requires rules recommended by the joint subcommittee to be made and adopted compliant with GS Chapter 150B (APA) by both Boards within six months of any approved statutory changes (was not effective until adopted by both Boards). Now places the responsibility to ensure compliance with collaborative practice rules with the Pharmacy Board rather than the Medical Board.

Enacts GS 90-18.4A (substantively similar to GS 90-18.4(b)(4), as repealed) to permit a collaborative practice agreement to include a statement of authorization regarding the clinical pharmacist practitioner's authority to conduct drug substitutions within the same therapeutic class. Requires documentation of any substitutions and notification of the physician. Requires the agreement to include a policy for periodic review by the physician regarding therapeutic substitutions made. Allows physicians to add advanced practice providers to an agreement if supervised in a manner separate from the collaborative practice agreement, so long as evaluation and supervision of the clinical pharmacist practitioner remains with the supervising physician.

Amends GS 90-85.3(b2), under the NC Pharmacy Act, Article 4A, to now define a clinical pharmacist practitioner as a licensed pharmacist who (1) provides collaborative care under a written collaborative practice agreement with one or more physicians, (2) has registered with the Pharmacy Board, (3) meets and maintains required annual professional development requirements, (4) maintains good standing with the Pharmacy Board, and (5) practices in accordance with GS 90-18.4, as amended, and rules established by the joint subcommittee of the Boards. Also defines collaborative care services as it is defined in GS 90-18(c)(3a), as amended.

Enacts GS 90-85.11B to direct the Pharmacy Board to maintain a registry of all pharmacists engaged in collaborative practice and to issue and track numbers unique to each participating pharmacist. 

Applies to licenses granted or renewed on or after October 1, 2021.