Ballot initiatives-duplicate laws passed.

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Marlene Brady and 3 co-sponsors

One-time $1.5M General Fund grant to the NC Museum of Life and Science to build a biotechnology exhibit and lab, boosting public STEM interest.

H Did not Consider for Introduction

Summary — HB 196: Funds Museum of Life and Science Exhibit/Lab

Status / Timing
- Introduced in the 2025 legislative session; read first time and referred to committee (Public Education / Appropriations depending on chamber records).
- Bill text sets an effective date of July 1, 2025.
- Fiscal effect is a one-time (nonrecurring) appropriation for FY 2025–2026.

Purpose and intent
- To provide state support for a new biotechnology exhibit and laboratory at the North Carolina Museum of Life and Science (a private nonprofit museum in Durham County) that will showcase North Carolina’s biotechnology achievements and promote interest in STEM careers among the public.

Key provisions
- Appropriation: Directs $1,500,000 in nonrecurring funds from the State General Fund to the Office of State Budget and Management (OSBM) for the 2025–2026 fiscal year.
- Grant: OSBM is to provide a directed grant of that amount to The North Carolina Museum of Life and Science, Inc., for the purpose of creating a biotechnology exhibit and laboratory.
- Purpose language: The exhibit/lab is intended to highlight state biotech achievements and encourage STEM career interest; the bill text does not specify programmatic details, matching requirements, reporting obligations, or a required timeline for project completion beyond the fiscal-year funding designation.
- Effective date: The act becomes effective July 1, 2025.

Who is affected
- Primary recipient: The North Carolina Museum of Life and Science, Inc. (museum operator / nonprofit).
- Beneficiaries: Museum visitors (including K–12 students and the general public), STEM educators and outreach programs, and potentially local biotech employers and workforce pipelines through increased public engagement and educational programming.
- Fiscal impact: The appropriation increases one-time expenditures from the General Fund by $1.5 million for FY 2025–26.

Fiscal and implementation notes
- Fiscal impact is a single nonrecurring $1.5 million General Fund appropriation; any unspent funds at fiscal year end would be subject to the state’s appropriation/accounting rules.
- The bill provides no project-level oversight, procurement, or reporting requirements in the text — implementation details (how funds are to be spent, milestones, accountability, or matching/private fundraising expectations) will depend on the grant agreement administered by OSBM and the museum.
- Local impacts include potential increased museum capacity, visitorship, and STEM programming in Durham County; the long‑term economic or educational returns are not quantified in the bill.

Context / practical effect
- This is a targeted, one-time state investment to expand informal STEM education and public awareness of biotechnology in North Carolina through a public exhibit and operational lab space at a major regional museum.