ICE cooperation, Opportunity Scholarship funding bill becomes law

On Wednesday, the North Carolina Senate voted 30-19 to override Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto of HB 10 following the House vote to override on Tuesday. This bill will fully fund Opportunity Scholarships, require sheriffs to cooperate with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and make other budget adjustments. 

HB 10 was passed by the General Assembly in September and then vetoed by Cooper.  

This bill requires sheriffs to cooperate with ICE by notifying them 48 hours before the release of illegal aliens who are charged with crimes before releasing them back into the community. This only applies to those charged with violent crimes or violent misdemeanors, not minor infractions such as driving without a license. 

“The days of North Carolina Democrats shielding criminal illegal immigrants from deportation are officially over,” said Senate Judiciary Committee Chairmen Sens. Danny Earl Britt, Jr., R-Robeson, Warren Daniel, R-Burke, and Buck Newton, R-Wilson, said in a press release Wednesday. “No longer will sheriffs in our most populated counties get away with ignoring federal immigration detainers issued by ICE. With House Bill 10 finally becoming law and the Trump administration taking over in Washington, we’re on the path toward a stronger border and safer United States.” 

HB 10 also allocates more than $463 million to fund Opportunity Scholarships. This includes $248 million in nonrecurring funds for the current school year. The other half is $215.15 million in recurring funds for the scholarship awards for the 2026 fiscal year. Roughly 55,000 students are waiting on Opportunity Scholarships, which are state-funded vouchers to families for a private education. These families were left hanging earlier this summer when the General Assembly failed to fund the program. In February, 72,000 applications were received for the scholarship, a record-breaking number. 

“Thousands of North Carolina families who applied and qualified for school choice programs have been in limbo because Gov. Cooper thinks school choice should be limited to a select few,” said Senate Education Committee Chairs Sens. Amy Galey (R-Alamance) and Michael Lee (R-New Hanover).”That’s not what North Carolinians think, and Republicans are proud to provide the funding so those students can attend the school that best fits their needs. School choice will always be an option in North Carolina and no obstruction from Democrats will change that.” 

Additionally, $24.7 million in recurring funds were allocated to clear the Education Savings Accounts (ESAs) waitlist. An additional 2015 students are on the waitlist for the ESA+ program, designed for students with special needs. In addition, $64 million in recurring funds was issued for community college enrollment growth and $95 million in recurring funds for K-12 enrollment growth for public schools. 

“Thank you to all legislators on both sides who have supported efforts to empower parents with real educational choice,” wrote Dr. Bob Luebke, Director of the Center for Effective Education at the John Locke Foundation. “We are grateful for your hard work and your courage to do the right thing for North Carolina families.”

Former NC legislator and current Executive Director of NorthCarolinaCAN, Marcus Brandon expressed his support for opportunity scholarships in an X post.

Thank you to the #ncga Senate for completing the process on school choice. I also want to thank my friends who opposed – who put up a vigorous debate. It is my prayer that we all come together to create a public education ecosphere that the country and the world envies. Together…

— Marcus Brandon (@KMarcusBrandon) November 20, 2024

Earlier this week, Cooper called for lawmakers to spend the Opportunity Scholarship funding on hurricane relief, setting it up as an “either/or” argument, something that school choice supporters described as a “false policy choice.” He continued that argument in an X post Tuesday evening, expressing his displeasure with the legislature’s actions. 

Gov. Cooper’s statement on legislators prioritizing power grabs over Western North Carolina recovery: pic.twitter.com/9tVx9WyURD

— Governor Roy Cooper (@NC_Governor) November 19, 2024

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