After decades of paying for hurricane recovery operations along the North Carolina coast, Western North Carolina taxpayers finally had a reason to ask the rest of the state to return the favor in the wake of Hurricane Helene. On Dec. 11, the rest of the state answered with a resounding “no.”

Last week the North Carolina General Assembly passed a conference report, also referred to as a mini budget that includes $463 million to clear the waitlist of families that have applied for the Opportunity Scholarship Grant Program and provide voucher money for those attending private schools. 

Finding enough bus drivers to operate all necessary routes has become a common issue for school systems across North Carolina and districts in the westernmost part of the state are not immune.

After the UNC Board of Governors approved a new policy on diversity and inclusion within the University of North Carolina, Western Carolina University will have until Sept. 1 to make a plan for compliance with a policy that could spell the end of some diversity- and inclusion-focused positions. 

The final two candidates for North Carolina’s Council of State have been chosen by voters after a May 14 runoff election that saw very light turnout — even by runoff standards. 

The North Carolina General Assembly passed the Parent Bill of Rights in August of last year, and now school systems in the state have found a potentially life-threatening oversight in its language.