1. NEWS & OBSERVER: NC parents ask House GOP to ‘keep your promise’ to fund private school vouchers

"North Carolina families hoping to get a private school voucher are ramping up their lobbying efforts to persuade House Republicans to agree on a funding deal. Republicans in the House and Senate have not been able to agree on a plan to provide nearly $500 million in additional money to clear the 55,000-student waiting list for the Opportunity Scholarship program. Dozens of parents and students who are on the waiting list rallied at the Legislative Building on Wednesday to make an impassioned plea for a deal to be reached. 'We are not going to be forgotten,' said Rachel Brady, a Wake Forest parent who organized the rally. 'We’re not going to take this lying down. You’re going to see our faces and you’re going to see these students.' Time is running short for families because many private schools are starting the new school year in August."

Read more: https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/education/article290566329.html

Click here for more photos and a video livestream of the event.

2. NORTH STATE JOURNAL: Judge strikes down one NC abortion restriction, upholds another

"A federal judge ruled Friday that a provision in North Carolina’s abortion laws requiring doctors to document the location of a pregnancy before prescribing abortion pills should be blocked permanently, affirming that it was too vague to be enforced reasonably. The implementation of that requirement was already halted last year by U.S. District Judge Catherine Eagles until a lawsuit challenging portions of the abortion law enacted by the Republican-dominated General Assembly in 2023 was litigated further. Eagles now says a permanent injunction would be issued at some point."

Read more: https://nsjonline.com/article/2024/07/judge-strikes-down-one-nc-abortion-restriction-upholds-another/

3. NEWS & OBSERVER: New rule protecting transgender students is on hold at these NC schools. Here’s why.

"More than 200 North Carolina public schools are exempt from a new federal rule meant to expand discrimination protections for transgender students. Earlier this month, a federal judge in Kansas issued a preliminary injunction preventing the Biden Administration from enforcing a new rule that bans discrimination in schools based on sexual orientation or gender identity. The injunction covers any school in the nation that has members of Moms for Liberty and two other groups who are opposing the rule change. Moms for Liberty announced Monday it had submitted to the court a list of more than 2,000 schools in 45 states. The list includes 205 North Carolina schools, including 54 in Wake County."

Read more: https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/education/article290536099.html

4. CAROLINA JOURNAL: John Hood Op-Ed: Don’t overlook down-ballot races

"To accept uncertainty does not require apathy or cynicism. The 2024 presidential election is compelling and consequential. By all means follow and participate in it. Just don’t fixate on it. There are many other races on the North Carolina ballot this year. They deserve your attention, too. Either Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson or Attorney General Josh Stein will be our state’s next governor. Both are vacating their current positions, producing competitive races for lieutenant governor (longtime Republican staffer Hal Weatherman vs. Democratic NC Sen. Rachel Hunt) and attorney general (Republican US Rep. Dan Bishop vs. Democratic US Rep. Jeff Jackson)."

Read more: https://www.carolinajournal.com/opinion/dont-overlook-down-ballot-races/