Haywood Dem delegate explains Harris pick
News of President Joe Biden’s exit from the 2024 presidential race may have shocked some observers, but North Carolina’s Democratic delegates appear fired up and ready to get behind Vice President Kamala Harris as the party’s new nominee.
Too little, too late: After deadline, child care funding meets only a fraction of the need
A stopgap measure that will partially fund expired federal grants for child care providers finally found Gov. Roy Cooper’s pen, but advocates maintain that it’s too little, too late — and just kicks the can down the road for another five months.
Democrats claim school vouchers detract from child care grants
As the July 1 budget deadline for Child Care Stabilization grants approaches, it appears the Republican-led North Carolina House and Senate are struggling to agree on how to spend the $30 billion or so taxpayer dollars slated for the upcoming fiscal year.
State suit alleges Pactiv violated grant agreement
Pactiv Evergreen’s shocking announcement that it would close its 115-year-old paper mill broke lots of hearts — and wallets — in Canton, but now, more than a year later, North Carolina’s Attorney General is looking for some payback over broken promises.
With Superior Court seat filled, steps taken to address District Court vacancy
There have been a lot of questions regarding the future of Western North Carolina’s judges over the last year or so, but the final piece may have just fallen into place.
Cooper makes appointment to fill WNC judicial vacancy
Gov. Roy Cooper has appointed a new Superior Court judge in Western North Carolina.
Miles ahead, miles to go: despite a year of progress, post-mill challenges remain in Canton
Not a lot of people remember the date the whistle last blew or the date the last workers put their well-worn tools down and took their shiny plastic helmets off for the final time, but everyone seems to remember the date of Pactiv Evergreen’s shocking announcement — the date that marked the end of one era, and the beginning of another.
Folded: chronicling the closure of Pactiv Evergreen’s Canton paper mill
History will whisper through the mountain mists that once upon a time, Pactiv Evergreen’s paper mill in Canton stood as a symbol of industry and economic prosperity for generations. But behind its towering façade, the specter of mismanagement and malfeasance eventually led to a botched closing announcement, a health care coverage crisis and more than a thousand workers helplessly watching their good-paying jobs evaporate like morning dew in the midday summer sun.
Smathers: ‘We will fight’ Pactiv’s tax break request
Officials on both the local and the state level have been adamant in demanding Pactiv Evergreen be held accountable for a number of unresolved issues since shortly after the company announced it would halt operations in Canton. But now, a week after the mill’s final whistle blew, they’re adopting a more forceful tone.
A health care coverage crisis is unfolding at Canton’s paper mill
That the American health care coverage system is broken shouldn’t come as a shock to anyone, even proponents of the 2010 Affordable Care Act who thought Obamacare would make coverage affordable for everyone. But as long as workers with employer-subsidized health care are forced to rely on the generosity of capitalists for their health and well-being, there will continue to be crises like the one currently unfolding with soon-to-be unemployed workers at Pactiv-Evergreen’s Haywood County facilities.
