Tuesday was one of the grimmest days we've seen at the N.C. General Assembly in a while, as lawmakers overturned veto after veto by Gov. Josh Stein, including two of our highest-priority bills.
Four House Democrats broke party ranks to help the GOP majority overturn eight vetoes, including those for Senate Bill 266, the "Ratepayer Risks Act," and House Bill 402, which upends the state's rulemaking processes.
Several of your Sierra Club staff were watching, having joined a "pack the galleries" crowd to make up for cancellation of an anti-S266 rally we were organizing for Monday evening across the street from the Legislative Building.
In a vivid illustration of why we fought to make Duke Energy keep its promise to reduce carbon emissions by 2030, dangerously extreme heat in Raleigh forced us to call off the rally with ratepayers, faith and social justice groups, and environmental allies who hoped to pressure lawmakers to uphold the S266 veto.
We've outlined the issues with S266 in this report before, in particular the financial burden the legislation will impose on residential ratepayers. Apparently, those arguments – backed by multiple studies released after the bill was rushed through the legislature – weren't enough to sway a pair of Charlotte-area Democrats whose campaigns benefited from Duke Energy donations.
We've also explained – here, and directly to state lawmakers via action alert emails and other lobbying – the flaws with H402, including its potential constitutional violation by setting up heavy legislative branch interference into administrative branch functions.
Read our press releases:
- Chapter statement on S266 veto override
- News release on canceled S266 rally with participant remarks
- Chapter statement on H402 veto override
We want to say a huge THANK YOU to thank all of you who participated in action alerts, phone banking, in-person lobbying, and other events we organized to fight these bills (nearly 5,000 calls and emails on S266 alone!). You helped persuade Stein to veto these bills and several House members to change their minds between passage and override votes. It's this kind of passionate, thoughtful teamwork that helps us move the needle on legislation that affects our environment and our communities.
What's next? Starting next week, we'll regroup with our colleagues in the Sierra Club's Beyond Coal campaign and state lobbying team to consider strategy and options to protect ratepayers, clean energy development, and our environment. We may have opportunities as Duke Energy files its revised long-term resource plan. We'll also consider ways to bolster the General Assembly's cadre of environmental advocates in the mid-term elections.
Lawmakers, meanwhile, passed an adjournment resolution that will bring them back into session every 30 days until the "short session" convenes on April 21, 2026. We'll post a Letter from Jones Street if these monthly meetings produce any news or require a response from our Sierra Club activists.