The News and Observer from Raleigh, North Carolina • 6

The News WEDNESDAY JANUARY 28 2009 6a From Page One A difficult dozen Here are 12 issues that will present lawmakers with serious challenges: BUDGET BUDGET AND OH YEAH THE BUDGET Putting together a spending plan for the next two years will consume lawmakers as the economy spirals downward The gap between revenue and planned spending could reach $2 billion and there appears to be no appetite for significant tax increases That means cuts lots of cuts Unlike the federal budget North Carolina's budget must be balanced STATE HEALTH PLAN It needs a booster shot of at least $300 million this year and likely another $900 million during the next two years Lawmakers will have to weigh higher premiums reducing benefits and squeezing contract savings JOBS Gov Beverly Perdue is likely to offer a package with elements such as retraining construction and environmentally friendly endeavors also known as "green jobs" gg- im i 1 MM UUF" ilW lffi Eve Williamson gets the Senate chambers ready for today's opening The Legislative Building as well as the Legislative Office Building is open to the public while the legislature does its business Committee meetings are open too STAFF PHOTO BY CHRIS SEWARD A CITIZENS GUIDE TO JONES STREET This is your legislature You hire and fire lawmakers at the ballot box Your tax dollars pay the salaries of legislators and their staffs And you have to live with the consequences of their actions The easiest way to keep up with House and Senate business is through the legislature's Web site wwwnclegnet Schedules bills votes laws glossaries and scores of other facts and tidbits are found on the site which also features streaming audio of sessions and key committee meetings You can also call the House and Senate clerks offices for information (House 733-7760 Senate: 733-7761) Mass transit is one of many transportation issues that faces a slog as the legislature deals with a tough budget year STAFF FILE PHOTO TRANSPORTATION The backlog of projects be it road maintenance construction or mass transit keeps growing Officials hope for help from the federal stimulus package EDUCATION After years of performance rewards for essentially every teacher legislators are looking at turning them into raises ANNEXATION Lawmakers are expected to revisit municipalities' largely unchecked power to snatch up neighboring communities but not necessarily provide services House Speaker Joe Hackney is opposed to requiring a public vote for annexing BEACH INSURANCE Legislation likely will start moving to make a long-term fix for the government-created organization that offers home and property insurance on the coast How much should homeowners across the state pay for coverage at the coast? MENTAL HEALTH The mental health system is struggling from overcrowded state hospitals to gaps in community care Cries to fix the system are coming from patients' familiest health-care providers and law enforcement officials who have seen the problems i creep into their jails PROBATION The probation system has had difficulty keeping track of criminals There will be a push for manpower and resources DEATH PENALTY North Carolina is in the third year of a de facto moratorium on executions brought on by a legal dispute that has reached the NC Supreme Court The NC Medical Society objects to a state requirement that a doctor be present at executions because it violates their tenet of doing no harm Republicans want By the numbers Democrats have solid majorities in both chambers In the House there are 68 Democrats and 52 Republicans The Senate has 30 Democrats and 20 Republicans Only six senators are women In the House 36 members are women How to track a bill In the last full session 3645 bills were introduced in the House and Senate Only 17 percent passed both chambers To follow a bill search it by number on the legislature's Web site That page will include links to all versions of the bill plus information about its sponsors and procedural history Nothing like live Watching a bill become law can be a fascinating display of democracy in action It can also bring new meaning to the words "raring" "jargon" and "technical" But to keep tabs on an issue there's nothing like watching in person The legislature does its business in two locations: the Legislative Building 16 Jones St and the Legislative Office Building behind the Legislative Building The office building is also home to key committee and conference rooms Both buildings are open to the public Parking is available in three lots scattered around the state government complex Committee meetings are open to anyone The floor of the House and Senate chamber are reserved for lawmakers staff and a few others Both chambers have a publie gallery Grab lunch at the legislative cafeteria in the basement Your tax dollars help make it one of the best values in downtown dining Who represents me? Click the "Representation" link along the top of the legislature's Web site to find out You can contact your representative through e-mail messages telephone or snail mail These numbers and addresses are listed for each legislator Or call the main switchboard 733-7928 and ask for your legislator's office How did my representative vote? All votes can be found on the legislature's Web site Click "LegislationBills" at the top of the page and then click "Member votes" The News Observer runs a list each week of how Triangle legislators voted on key bills Did special interests influence a vote? Campaign contributions are available at the state Board of Elections Web site: wwwsboestatencus Click "Campaign Finance" and then "Search reports" Staff writer Benjamin Niolet the legislature to step in SMOKING Rep Hugh Holliman a Lexington Democrat will try again to ban smoking in public places and workplaces No 12: Local concerns ALEIGH is seeking a $5 increase in its $25 annual automobile registration fee supports legislation to let municipalities restrict smoking in parks and supports legislation to streamline permitting for reservoirs with the goal of speeding the Little River reservoir project DURHAM city and county want to block portions of the proposed Jordan Lake Nutrient Strategy regulations The regulations would require local governments to bear the cost of retrofitting developments with new storm water controls Durham estimates the requirement could cost its taxpayers between $330 million and $680 million CARRB0R0 wants the authority to prohibit housing discrimination on the basis of gender identification or sexual orientation and the power to prohibit homeowners associations from limiting the use of green-building features such as solar panels clothes lines rain barrels and garden fences Bp staff writers Mark Johnson Ryan Teague Beckwith David Bracken Jesse James DeConto and Jim Wise New faces new roles Each new legislative session brings a host of new faces to Raleigh There are 21 first-term legislators (a figure that includes the likes of Debbie Clary who moves over to the Senate after having served in the House) and scores of people in new roles Here's a look at some of the new faces and new roles: due has made "and no one's going to be happy with them" Sen Josh Stein a different seat at the table Josh Stein a newly elected Democrat from Raleigh is used to navigating the legislature and speaking in committee rooms He's done it as a witness getting grilled by A new feature on Under the Dome With the legislature back in town Under the Dome is launching the Dome Memo to give you a quick take on what happened in government that week If you've been busy or simply weren't paying attention this will be an easy way to rnfnVl iin nn tirViif nnnnla nia foil 1 tin1 nlnt wm v-mvvw uj un vvimi aiC UUIUIJK aUUUL ill legislators Now he on the side that lobs the questions Stein a former senior deputy attorney general ran the consumer protection division for Attorney General Roy Cooper and routinely briefed lawmakers "There are times when Andy Willis the governor's representative The best training for Andy Willis' new job as legislative liaison for Gov Beverly Perdue was probably right out of college when he worked for his native Pamlico County He was county planner fire marshal emergency management coordinator and for several months acting county manager "I was not the dog catcher" Willis said "but pretty much everything else" Now Willis will immerse himself in an equally diverse range of problems and tasks He needs no introductions after six years of lobbying first for NC State University his alma mater and then for the UNC system Willis long ago adjusted to the sometimes glacial pace of legislation He takes meticulous care of his lawn at home because he sees the results immediately a balance to work that requires keeping an eye on goals better schools or a new highway that are-years down the road Willis' excitement about a new job is tempered by anxiety over the state's economic struggles Shrinking revenues and rising demands on government will lead to unappealing options "The tough decisions are going to be made" Willis said echoing comments Per A peek at a few others SEN DAVID R0UZER REPUBLICAN: A former aide to Jesse Helms Rouzer took the Johnston County seat of Fred Smith who unsuccessfully ran for governor Rouzer's Washington experience proximity to Raleigh and easy manner could give him more influence than your typical freshman Republican SEN DON DAVIS DEMOCRAT: Davis took the GreenePittWayne counties seat held by former Sen John Kerr Davis the former mayor of Snow Hill is a former chairman of the 11th congressional district party giving him connections throughout Eastern North Carolina SEN DEBBIE CLARY REPUBLICAN: Clary captured the seat held by Democrat Walter Dal-ton who moved up to lieutenant governor As a former House member she knows the system and is part of a faction of GOP moderates REP RANDY STEWART DEMOCRAT: Stewart snared an open seat in Rocky Mount in a contested district His moderate approach and ties to the business community could help him establish himself REP JONATHAN RHYNE REPUBLICAN: 16 years after the Lincolnton lawyer left the legislature Rhyne returns with no need for on-the-job training Staff writer Mark Johnson Stein a i I I II government ana pouucai circles It might be the latest on the budget an date on a controversial bill or an assessment of how the governor fared It may dip into what our congressional delegation is up to in DC or what the bureaucracy is doing in Raleigh Here's a taste of what you'll find each week in the Dome Memo both in print and online (domenewsobservercom): POOL REPORT: US Sen Kay Hagan may need a fact-checker After criticizing a "men-only" pool at the Senate gym the Greensboro Democrat learned she was mistaken The pool is open to female senators but none use it As Dome's former editor used to say nothing ruins' a good storv like checking it nut you think it'd be pretty nice to be the one making the judgment on which way to go" he said Stein acknowledges there will be an adjustment in moving from running part of an agency where he could directly make things happen to the more deliberative realm of the legislature "Your ability to have an impact depends on how hard you're willing to work" he said "and how compelling your argument is" i Afcf" tV r- -ISPS DRILLING DOWN: Have legislative leaders stacked the deck against drilling? A task force looking into offshore drilling has so many professors it could qualify as a faculty meeting Industry representatives? Not so many And a co-chair has already come out very publicly against drilling IN OTHER NEWS: Former Tar Heel James Taylor addressed attendees at the Eastern inaugural ball in Washington as "fellow Yankees" but he made up for it by getting them to sing along to "Carolina in My Mind" Perdue has already dropped in on a state men may drive companies out of the state Because they don't need a retail store or warehouse it's easier for them to move "It sends a message to the digital vendor community" Kranz said "that North Carolina is on the 'do not call list' for locating their companies" mjohnsoncharlotteobservercom RINGT0NE CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1A ties" said Rep Paul Luebke a Durham Democrat who is co-chairman of a legislative committee that overwhelmingly recommended a bill Tuesday to impose the ring tone tax Vendors will collect the tax only if they have a physical pres- ii i outlets Wal-Mart and Best Buy Apple stores may qualify as a toehold in the state for the company's online iTunes store and other vendors may have computer server farms or other network installations Otherwise it's up to the consumer to pay voluntarily As many as 17 states including Alabama and Tennessee have asserted the authority to tax digital products such as ring tones Those are music or sounds downloaded on to a computer and then into a cell phone and emitted whenever the phone rings For example an Eric Clap-ton tune rang out from someone's cell phone at Tuesday's meeting Digital service companies oppose the tax Steve Kranz a Washington lawyer who represents digital vendors across the country said such taxes Don't look for these off the NC coast any time soon AP FILE PHOTO tal hospital and Department of Lcjdiiment ot rr i Transportation workers Probation officers might want to look busv for the next couple of weeks writer Ryan Teague Beckwith CIJLC II' uie suiic suui aa icuiu or 9-821 -829-4774.