NC TECH Public Affairs - Year in Review

Both Governor Josh Stein (www.governor.nc.gov) and the North Carolina General Assembly (www.ncleg.gov) considered issues important to the technology community in 2025 and 2026 could be a notable year for continued work.

Some items of interest to the tech sector include:

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a Hot Topic

Governor Stein in September issued an AI Executive Order that established an AI Leadership Council chaired by Department of Information Technology (DIT) Secretary Teena Piccione and Commerce Secretary Lee Lilley, an AI Accelerator at NC DIT, and AI Oversight Teams within each state agency.  

View Press Release

Both DIT and state agencies continue their AI work, and the Council is expected to issue recommendations later this year.

Some AI bills were introduced at the General Assembly in 2025, including H 934, which focuses on deep fake images or recordings and legal liability of developers.   It is uncertain whether AI bills will be considered this year.

State Budget Bill Continues to be Discussed

Legislators in 2025 were unable to reach agreement on a two-year budget bill (S 257) and will continue this work in 2026.

They did enact two bills (H 47 and H 1012) that provide additional funding for Hurricane Helene recovery.   Over $2 billion in state funds have been appropriated for this purpose.

Much of the disagreement between the two houses focuses on personal income tax rate reductions with the Senate leadership supporting faster reductions.    Pursuant to past action, the rate went from 4.25% to 3.99% for 2026.   Some members are concerned that if additional scheduled reductions become effective, there will be insufficient funds to meet future appropriation needs, which include education and Medicaid funding.

Some IT Projects were Funded

Although a biennial budget bill was not enacted, some other bills did appropriate money for IT projects.   These include S 245, which provides $15 million to the Department of Information Technology for cybersecurity and $5 million to the Administrative Office of the Courts for staff for eCourts implementation.

IT Policy Bills were Considered

A number of IT policy bills were introduced during the 2025 legislative session with H 959 (student use of social media and devices) becoming law.  Other bills eligible for consideration in 2026 include H 301 (social media protection for minors under 16) and S 408 (no Tik Tok or WeChat on state networks and devices).

What’s Ahead in 2026?

Legislators are scheduled to reconvene on April 21 for an even-year “short” session although they are eligible to return to Raleigh before then if they are ready to act.  In addition to the state budget and bills noted above, other bills that might be considered include H 315, which would prohibit certain third-party litigation funding (NC Tech supports this bill along with the North Carolina Chamber of Commerce and the North Carolina Retail Merchants Association), H 569, which would require PFAS chemical manufacturers to compensate public water systems for costs incurred due to PFAS , and S 401 (the Farm Act). 

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