Weekly Legislative Update

North Carolina

By Betsy Bailey & Victor Barbour
February 18, 2026

Greenhouse Gases

The Trump administration’s EPA has rescinded the federal government’s authority to regulate greenhouse gases, halting the enforcement of rules meant to slow air pollution that causes climate change. In a live-streamed press conference at the White House Thursday afternoon, President Donald Trump and Lee Zeldin, head of the Environmental Protection Agency, called the Obama-era finding that carbon dioxide and five other greenhouse gases are a danger to public health and welfare “a scam.” Mica Crouse, a spokeswoman for the Environmental Defense Fund, said that group’s research shows repealing the Endangerment Finding actually will result in higher costs for families. The N.C. Department of Environmental Quality says the largest source of greenhouse gases in the state are the generation and use of electricity, followed by transportation; the burning of fossil fuels to generate heat or electricity in homes, industries or commercial operations; agriculture; waste management; and other processes.

I-77 Tolls

West Charlotte neighborhood leaders and Sustain Charlotte are launching an all-out effort to convince the Charlotte City Council to support delaying or stopping the controversial $3.2 billion Interstate 77 toll lane project. Their efforts come as the N.C. Department of Transportation last week said it was going to build elevated toll lanes through uptown — a design that impacts fewer homes and creates a smaller footprint than building the lanes at ground level. But many residents still hate the project. They say putting the express lanes on top of the existing highway will be ugly and cause noise pollution — and that the project echoes highway-building pushes that smashed through neighborhoods. I-77 is one of the state’s most congested highways. It’s in gridlock for much of the day, with heavy traffic extending far past morning and afternoon rush hour. The 11-mile project will run from center city to the South Carolina line and will connect with a larger express toll lane network in north Mecklenburg and on I-485 in south Charlotte. The key player — for now — is the Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization, whose approval is required by federal law to build long-term transportation plans and projects like I-77. In the fall of 2024, CRTPO voted in support of using a public-private partnership (also known as a P3) for the toll lanes. The exact resolution stated that the CRTPO “can rescind support at any point up until the Department publicly advertises a Request for Qualifications (RFQ).” Several municipalities voted against the P3 proposal, including Mecklenburg County, Cornelius, Davidson, Huntersville and Matthews. Many cited problems with the I-77 north toll lanes, which were built and now managed by a private developer who collects all of the toll revenue.

Passenger Rail

As the U.S. Department of Transportation's Corridor I.D. program moves forward, potentially bringing passenger rail back to Asheville for the first time in 50 years, a newly finalized economic impact study has energized state rail advocates. “The Western NC rail corridor presents a unique opportunity to strengthen regional connectivity, support local economies, and create a more resilient and dynamic transportation system for North Carolina,” NCDOT Rail Division director Jason Orthner said in a Feb. 4 news release on the study. “The interest this route is receiving underscores the opportunity to better connect Western North Carolina to the state’s existing intercity passenger rail network.”

While economic opportunities may be large, the history of passenger rail in WNC is complex. The new line, if funded, could be roughly a decade from completion. Passenger rail has not run to Asheville from central North Carolina for over 50 years. While freight rail has run from Salisbury through Asheville and north along the French Broad River through Marshall to Newport, Tennessee, efforts to restore passenger rail in the region have been underway in various forms since the 90s.

The proposal through the DOT's Corridor I.D. program would fully restore passenger service east of Asheville to Salisbury, meaning the line would follow 140 miles of existing rail owned by Norfolk Southern.

In recent years, the North Carolina Department of Transportation has called the rail route to Asheville the "most requested location" not on the NC by Train Amtrak service, the Citizen Times reported in 2023. The 2023 WNC Passenger Rail Feasibility Study set estimated ridership along the line between 328,000-550,000 people a year by 2045. The line cuts east through Black Mountain, winds down the Old Fort Loops and on to Marion, Morganton, Hickory, Statesville and Salisbury.

NCDOT's "NC By Train" program broke records in 2025 as nearly 740,000 passengers utilized the program, the most in the program's 35-year history, according to the NCDOT.

Road Repairs

North Carolina only has enough money to repair around 300 of the thousands of private roads and bridges damaged by Hurricane Helene, state officials said at a Monday meeting for the Governor's Recovery Office of Western North Carolina. The state launched the $175 million program last year as a way to reconnect the homes that have remained cut off from public roadways since Hurricane Helene. An initial estimate the governor's office conducted in late 2024 set the damage to private roadways at $460 million. That number has now ballooned to over $500 million. One reason for that is because the projects are more expensive now than when the infrastructure was first built. “A bridge that used to be a 10-foot bridge now requires a 75-foot bridge because of the span of the creek. And so, those figures and the cost of those bridges goes up exponentially,” said Don Campbell, Chief of Staff for North Carolina Emergency Management. While applications remain open through Feb. 28, most of the funding is already committed, Campbell said. There have been 51 repairs completed, with 236 additional projects in progress. Gov. Josh Stein asked for $1.6 billion specifically for the repair of private and municipal roads and bridges as part of the $13.5 billion request he made last year. This month, Stein and other GROW NC committee members returned to Washington, D.C. to advocate for the funding.

South Carolina

Leslie Clark
By Leslie B. Clark & Whitney Williams
February 18, 2026

Donate to CAGC Industry PACs

Open Seat on the Building Codes Council

Governor Henry McMaster is soliciting a list of qualified candidates to fill the AGC seat on the Building Codes Council. The candidate will serve a four-year term, beginning 1/1/2026 and ending 1/1/2030. If you are interested in serving on the Building Codes Council, please contact Whitney Williams at 803-609-6868 or wwilliams@carolinasagc.org.

State Senator to Resign

Senator Wes Climer (R-York) announced his intention to resign from the State Senate in order to focus on the election to the 5^th Congressional District. Climer, a financial advisor, has served in the Senate since 2016 and currently serves as the Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee Chairman.

The Senate had the political world buzzing last week when they passed S.880, a joint resolution providing that if a member of the General Assembly submits a resignation on or before March 1, 2026, then the election to fill the vacancy shall be conducted concurrently with the candidacy filing and election schedule applicable to the 2026 election for members of the House of Representatives. The joint resolution ensures a special election (and the cost of a special election) would be unnecessary, but at the time of passage, no one had announced their plans to resign. Speculation swirled as to who was leaving office for several days before Climer made his plans known. While filing is officially 6 weeks away, Climer is expected to be the far and away front runner to win the congressional seat.

Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Report

The State Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office issued their latest revenue forecast last week, showing slow growth. While fiscal year-to-date revenue growth is slightly better than expected, growth over the last three months has slowed faster than anticipated in some categories. The total General Fund revenue is $90 million above expectations:

Sales tax is $8.9 million below expectations
Withholdings is $5.1 million below expectations
Corporate Income Tax is $6.6 million below expectations
Non-withholdings is $54.3 million above expectations
Earned on Investments if $17.2 million above expectations

Year-over-year growth for personal income stayed at 6% versus the expected 5.4% in Q3 of 2025 and all major categories of the personal income components grew slightly faster than anticipated. The December 2025 employment growth fell to 1.3% year-over-year and employment remains close to estimates. While the employment growth slowed, South Carolina employment growth remains higher than its neighbors except for North Carolina.

RFA indicated that economic expectations have not changed significantly since November 2025 and although growth has slowed slightly faster than anticipated, revenues are very close to expectations overall. Tax season remains a significant factor in revenues for the remaining months of the fiscal year and RFA sees no clear justification to change the revenue forecasts for FY 25/26 or FY 26/27 at this time.

Latest News from the SC Department of Environmental Services

The SCDES Community Star Award is an official recognition program designed to honor the businesses, community organizations, and local groups that demonstrate an exceptional commitment to protecting South Carolina’s natural resources.

The SCDES Community Star Award celebrates those who are building stronger, more resilient communities by protecting the natural resources we all depend on. Through science-based solutions, public service, and sustainable practices, Community Stars embody SCDES’s commitment to a healthier environment for current and future generations.

The nomination period for the new SCDES Community Star is open until February 28^th. For more information, please visit the webpage here: des.sc.gov/CommunityStar.

The EPA just announced a grant opportunity through the 2026 Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for the Wildfire Smoke Preparedness in Community Buildings grant program. This is now open for applications through April 15. All eligible entities are encouraged to apply for this funding opportunity.

This program provides grants to states, federally recognized Tribes, public pre-schools, local educational agencies, and non-profit organizations for the assessment, prevention, control, and/or abatement of wildfire smoke hazards in community buildings and related activities. The total funding available for awards is $13,580,000. The EPA anticipates awarding approximately 8-11 grants, ranging from $350,000 to $2,500,000. Grant recipients will have up to three years to complete their projects. See the EPA’s webpage for additional details about the program.

The EPA will host an information session webinar for potential applicants on February 25 from 1-2 p.m. ET. During the webinar, the EPA will provide an overview of the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) and the application process. Register here.

Questions about the application process can also be submitted to WildfireSmokeGrants@epa.gov through April 8.

Please see below for materials that may be helpful: