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HB 74

Criminal Offenses - As introduced, establishes mandatory minimum penalties of 48 hours in jail and a $500 fine for a person convicted of knowingly selling or distributing a product containing a hemp-derived cannabinoid to a person who is under 21 years of age. - Amends TCA Title 39, Chapter 17; Title 43, Chapter 27 and Title 49, Chapter 6.

114th Regular Session (2025-2026) Introduced by Dan Howell

The bill mainly makes technical corrections to ensure existing appropriations and programs operate as intended, including timing extensions, updated deadlines, and limited fund rea

P2C held on desk, pending appointment of Standing Committees
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Bill Summary · HB 74

Summary — HB 74: House Budget Technical Corrections (Session Law 2025‑4)

Status: Enacted (Ch. SL 2025‑4)
Primary purpose: Make technical, clarifying, timing, and limited substantive corrections to the Current Operations Appropriations Act of 2023 and to other statutes that implement or affect state programs and appropriations.

Main intent

HB 74 is principally a “technical corrections” bill that adjusts deadlines, clarifies statutory language, corrects references, and makes limited reallocations of previously authorized funds to ensure existing appropriations and programs operate as intended. Several provisions also extend timelines or change administrative responsibilities to address implementation issues from prior acts.

Key provisions and changes (selected highlights)

  • Extend reversion timeline for certain directed grants:

    • Directed nonrecurring grants made in S.L. 2022‑74 that remained unexpended and were set to revert Dec. 31, 2024, are not to revert on that date. Instead, unexpended funds will remain available until expended or until the end of fiscal year 2025‑2026 (reversion at end of 2025‑26 FY). Section effective retroactively to Dec. 31, 2024.

  • Disaster relief / agricultural program corrections:

    • Changes to the Agricultural Disaster Crop Loss Program deadlines — for example, deadlines tied to filing Form 578 are extended (45 → 60 days) and similar extensions for nursery/fruit/specialty crop reporting and claim gathering.

  • Local government FEMA loan relief:

    • Units of local government that previously took state loans to bridge FEMA reimbursement may apply to the Office of Recovery and Resiliency for partial or full forgiveness of outstanding principal and interest if certain conditions (e.g., FEMA denial, closed project worksheet) are met.

  • Reallocations of water infrastructure funds:

    • $3,000,000 of funds originally allocated to the City of Oxford for the Kerr Lake Regional Water project are reallocated to the South Granville Water and Sewer Authority.
    • An additional $7,000,000 from Oxford’s allocation is transferred to the Office of State Budget and Management to provide grants to Franklin County ($3M), Catawba County ($1M), and Hertford County ($3M) for local water/sewer projects.

  • Megasites Readiness Program clarifications:

    • Revisions to program purpose, eligibility and allocation language to clarify how EDPNC may identify, support, and fund megasite development and related infrastructure.

  • UNC reporting and personnel authority changes:

    • Annual Board of Governors report deadline changed from February 1 → March 1.
    • Clarifies temporary employment/position authority for UNC (some changes effective Jan. 1, 2026).

  • Office of State Fire Marshal (OSFM):

    • Requirements to maintain an online reporting portal related to storage/deployment of aqueous film‑forming foams (AFFF) and assist the NC Collaboratory (technical and administrative duties clarified).

Who is affected

  • State agencies: OSFM, Dept. of Public Safety (Office of Recovery and Resiliency), Dept. of Agriculture, EDPNC, UNC Board of Governors, Office of State Budget and Management.
  • Local governments and non‑state entities holding directed grants (gain more time to expend funds; some may seek loan forgiveness).
  • Local water/sewer authorities and counties receiving reallocated funds.
  • Applicants to state disaster‑assistance programs (deadlines and documentation requirements adjusted).

Procedural / timing notes

  • Enacted as Session Law 2025‑4. Unless otherwise specified, provisions are effective when the act becomes law.
  • Specific retroactive and delayed effective dates:
    • Retroactive effect to Dec. 31, 2024 for the directed‑grants timeline provision.
    • Certain UNC employment authority provisions become effective Jan. 1, 2026.
  • The bill largely implements non‑controversial fixes; fiscal impact is primarily timing and administrative (revisions generally reallocate existing appropriations or change administrative deadlines rather than create major new spending).

If you’d like, I can extract and annotate every statutory change by section number or produce a one‑page checklist showing which state agencies need to take which actions and by what deadlines.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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