[Update (12/14/2020): On December 10, 2020, the North Carolina Department of Justice issued an informal opinion letter that differs from the opinion that I reach in this blog post. In the post, I conclude that cities and counties probably lack … Read more

Last year the General Assembly enacted Session Law 2018-69 (An Act to Assist the Criminal Law Recodification Working Group).  The Act directed the State’s counties, municipalities, and metropolitan sewerage districts to submit lists of their criminally enforceable ordinances to two … Read more

In June the General Assembly enacted Session Law 2018-69, which directs municipalities, counties, and metropolitan sewerage districts to submit ordinance-related information to two legislative committees by December 1, 2018.  This blog post examines the law and considers how local government … Read more

Article IX, section 7 of the State Constitution directs that the clear proceeds of all fines and penalties collected for “any breach of the penal laws of the State” be given to the public schools.  Cities have been avoiding this … Read more