RALEIGH, N.C. — Talking through webcams - or at least trying to - North Carolina's General Assembly has started screening ways to spend about $3.5 billion that the federal government sent our state for coronavirus relief.
Pages and pages and pages of lawmaker proposals have been submitted so far. The proposal in the Senate is 50-pages, and there are several bills being considered in the House.
Some of the notable suggestions for using the money:
- $300 million for the Department of Transportation since gas tax collections are down now
- $125 million to help small businesses
- $56 million to feed kids
- $20 million to Wake Forest for its COVID-19 research
"This is process number one. This is our first bill in terms of COVID relief, there will be others," said Representative Jason Saine, a senior chair of the House Appropriations Committee.
It's the first step to cutting through the chaos and getting our state back on track.
Right now, lawmakers say they want your ideas on how to spend the money. You can find their contact information on the NCGA website.