NCHBA legislative team is delighted to report that Governor Pat McCrory announced late Thursday that he had signed House Bill 201 Zoning Changes/Citizen Input into law. Repeal of municipal protest petition authority has been one of NCHBA’s top legislative priorities for the past three years and has long been an NCHBA objective. “NCHBA thanks the Governor and our legislative sponsors for restoring rights to property owners and bringing majority rule to zoning decisions,” said Mike Carpenter, NCHBA’s Executive Vice President & General Counsel.
House Speaker Pro Tempore Skip Stam (R-Wake) deserves accolades for leading this repeal effort over several years. Senator Andy Wells (R-Catawba), who handled the bill in the Senate, also did an outstanding job. The other principal House sponsors were Rep. Ken Goodman (D-Richmond), Rep. Darren Jackson (D-Wake), and Rep. John Fraley (R-Iredell). Sen. Michael Lee (R-New Hanover) and Sen. Jane Smith (D-Robeson) joined Sen. Wells as principal sponsors of the Senate version. [For more details on the provisions of this new law see our 07/17/15 NCHBA Legislative Report]. The law applies to rezoning requests filed on or after August 1, the effective date of the new act.