Morning News Briefs: Wednesday, December 21, 2016

North Carolina Lawmakers Meeting To Consider HB2 Repeal

North Carolina's legislature is reconvening to see if enough lawmakers are willing to repeal a 9-month-old law that limited LGBT rights, including which bathrooms transgender people can use in public schools and government buildings.

House and Senate members plan to meet in the capital Wednesday for a special session called by outgoing GOP Gov. Pat McCrory.

McCrory Gives Budget Ideas To Cooper Before Leaving Office

Outgoing Republican Gov. Pat McCrory has sent his successor some ideas for the next North Carolina state budget on topics like education, transportation, and mental health.

McCrory's recommendations include getting average teacher pay to $55,000 by 2018 and seeking a $1 billion transportation bond package. He also suggests $40 million over two years for initiatives from his mental health task force and nearly another $700 million for the state's reserves.

Cooper will have his own two-year proposal for the legislature in early 2017 that's likely to be very different from McCrory's ideas. The next budget year begins in July.

NC School Board Confers With Lawyers Over Law Removing Power

North Carolina's state school board is talking with attorneys about whether a law signed by Gov. Pat McCrory that shuffles who oversees the public schools should be challenged as unconstitutional.

The State Board of Education met behind closed doors with attorneys for about two hours on Tuesday. Board chairman and former Republican congressman Bill Cobey issued a statement saying a decision on how to proceed is expected before the end of the year.

NC Appeals Court Dumps Immunity Claim In Public Records Case

A North Carolina appeals court says Gov. Pat McCrory can't swat away a lawsuit by media organizations and advocacy groups contending the Republican's administration has a pattern of delaying public records requests.

A three-judge panel of the state Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that McCrory couldn't claim his "sovereign immunity" blocked the lawsuit.

State government agencies are required by law to provide documents, emails and other records because they are owned by the public. The plaintiffs want judges to order the McCrory administration to speed up its responses to public records requests.

Residents Want Winston-Salem To Be A “Sanctuary City”

A group of residents is requesting “sanctuary city” status for Winston-Salem.

Several speakers told the Winston-Salem City Council Monday night they're worried about President-elect Donald Trump's vow to get tough on undocumented immigrants.

The Winston-Salem Journal reports council members didn't publicly respond to the request. Attendees said they plan to gather signatures on a petition to present to the council in January.

The North Carolina General Assembly passed legislation in 2015 forbidding the adoption of local sanctuary ordinances.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Receive the morning news briefs delivered to your email inbox every morning, click here to sign-up.