Name as it appears on the ballot: Mike Woodard
Campaign website: mikewoodard.com
Phone number: 919.599.5143
Email: mike@mikewoodard.com
Years lived in the district: The current 22nd District was redrawn in 2017. I have lived in the Durham County portion of the district since 1981.
1. What do you think are the three biggest issues facing our state?
- Providing a first-class system of public education, from pre-K through post-secondary
- Accessible, affordable healthcare for all North Carolinians
- A strong economy that works in every part of the state
If you are an incumbent, what have you done to address those issues, and what more would you do if given another term?
Education
- Raise teacher and principal pay to the national average
- Protect and expand use of teachers’ assistants: actively worked on this issue
- Provide more nurses and resources for healthier children: sponsored legislation for school-based clinics
- Universal Pre-K
Healthcare
- Expand Medicaid: sponsored legislation
- Enhance rural healthcare, especially medical specialties: sponsored legislation, served on study groups and committees
- Enhance behavioral health: extensive work in the district; sponsored legislation
Economy
- Rebuild and expand infrastructure
- Transprtation: sponsor of BuildNC Bond
- Water/sewer and bradband in rural parts of the district: actively worked on specific projects
- Expand opportunities for work
- Actively wrked on economic development projects
- Sponsored “Ban the Box” legislation
- Supported more training, retraining, and apprenticeship projects
2. It seems hardly a day goes by without news of another mass shooting. On the state level, what changes to gun laws, if any, do you support?
- Gun violence restraining orders
- Universal background checks
- End gun show loopholes
- Ban bump stocks, AR-15s and other military-style weapons
3. In recent years, Duke Energy’s coal ash spilled into the Dan River and Chemours’s GenX leaked into the Cape Fear River. Do you think these companies have been held sufficiently accountable?
No.
Do you believe the state has put in place sufficient regulations to prevent these problems from occurring again?
No.
If not, what more do you propose doing?
Coal Ash
I was the primary Senate sponsor of S856: Coal Ash Management Act of 2014 and continue to support the provisions of that bill. These include:
- Clean up all coal ash ponds by relocating, not just cap in place;
- Place more stringent restrictions on fly ash;
- Expand use of coal ash in industrial applications; and
- All costs of cleanup should be borne by Duke Energy shareholders.
GenX
I led the efforts for stronger legislation during all three attempts to address the GenX crisis. My suggestions have included:
- Protect—and enhance—the Governor’s ability to close polluting plants;
- Fund DEQ’s request for the necessary equipment and staff to fully research the extent of the GenX spills, the impact, and the best options for cleanup; and
- A full assessment and cleanup plan for air-borne GenX.
4. In the wake of Hurricane Florence, at least six hog-farm lagoons were damaged and more than fifty saw discharges or were inundated with floodwaters as of this writing, according to the DEQ. More than five thousand hogs have died, and right now it’s unclear what the ultimate long-term environmental impacts will be. Since Hurricane Floyd, environmentalists have warned that, in a severe flooding event, the farms’ “anachronistic” waste-disposal techniques could pose a threat to the state’s waterways and public health, while the industry has insisted that its farms utilize best practices and are already heavily regulated. Do you believe these farms, and their lagoons, pose a risk to the environment?
Yes.
If so, do you believe the state has done enough to minimize that risk?
No.
5. This year, Smithfield Foods—the world’s largest pork producer—has lost three verdicts in North Carolina totaling millions of dollars, after juries found that its farms’ methods of waste disposal infringed on the property rights of their neighbors. But in the last two years, the General Assembly has taken steps to make it more difficult for these neighbors to sue or to recover substantial damages, citing the threats these lawsuits pose to the well-being of family farmers. Do you believe the legislature’s actions with regard to these nuisance lawsuits are prudent?
No.
Why or why not?
By severely restricting the settlements foreign pork producers are forced to pay neighbors, the General Assembly has instituted a “slap on the wrist” approach to penalties that amounts to little more than the price of doing business. Real improvement in handling hog waste will only come about as long as these foreign companies face the most severe potential remedies.
6. It has been estimated that special sessions of the North Carolina legislature cost about $50,000 per day. Since 2016, the General Assembly has called seven of them to deal with everything from passing HB 2—the so-called bathroom bill—to passing restrictions on the governor’s powers after Roy Cooper defeated Pat McCrory to, most recently, clean up controversial constitutional amendment language so that it complied with a court order. Under what circumstances do you think it’s appropriate to hold a special session?
The US Constitution and some states provide for special sessions only during “extraordinary” and emergency circumstances. Most of the special sessions called by the General Assembly in recent years do not meet these criteria.
Special session should only be convened in cases of:
- Financial crises;
- Natural disasters;
- Court decisions;
- Federal government action; or
- Wars or similar international crises.
7. What are your thoughts on the six proposed constitutional amendments before voters this November?
All six are unnecessary and were placed on the ballot in order to turn out Republican voters. But you don’t have to take my word. Here’s what my Republican House colleague, Larry Yarborough, said: “There is very little on the ballot to interest voters. Hopefully, it will generate some interest in the election.”
Please explain which you support and which you don’t support and why.
I don’t support any of the six amendments.
- With all six, the language of the final amendment is not before the voters. So we will not have any details about how the amendments will actually work before we vote on them.
- The Bipartisan Board of Elections and Ethics amendment will undermine the separation of powers between the Legislative and Executive branches by stripping away gubernatorial power over an administrative function. Additionally, the proposed 4-4 partisan split will result in many tied votes, especially in appeals from local boards of elections.
- The Non-Partisan Judicial Merit Commission amendment also undermines the separation of powers by allowing a small group of Legislators the power to pick judges. If you don’t want legislators picking their districts, you sure don’t want them picking judges who will rule on their laws.
- The Voter ID amendment will make it harder for people to vote and will penalize African-American voters, older voters, younger voters, and voters who move more frequently.
- The Income Tax Cap amendment will limit the ability of future General Assemblies and Governors to act fiscally in difficult times. It will also lead to a transfer of funding and even responsibilities to local governments; this will often result in taxes and fees that are more regressive.
- The Victims’ Rights amendment can be implemented statutorily. As “Marsy’s Law,” it passed the House with a near-unanimous vote. Most of its provisions are already in law, and others provisions can easily be passed. There are also unintended consequences that will prove difficult for the judicial system to handle.
- The Right to Hunt and Fish amendment is unnecessary. North Carolina already has some of the nation’s most supportive hunting laws. Additionally, a constitutional amendment may threaten some of the current laws.
What do you think about the process behind these amendments—what critics have described as a limited public debate, for example, as well as the elimination of amendment numbers and ballot summaries, and the lack of so-called implementing legislation, which could be passed in another special session after the November vote?
The process was another example of the power grab the General Assembly’s current leadership has flaunted.
8. In May, thousands of teachers from all over the state marched on the legislature to demand better pay, more resources for students, and more respect. Do you think North Carolina’s schools are being adequately funded?
No.
If not, what taxes would you be willing to raise—or what services would you be willing to cut—to fund them better?
We don’t need to raise taxes or cut services to better fund our public schools. The Democrats’ 2018 budget showed that by eliminating, or just delaying, the tax cuts for those with incomes over $200,000 would provide the necessary funding.
9. Currently, twenty-nine states have minimum wages above the federal minimum. North Carolina is not among them. Do you believe North Carolina should raise its minimum wage?
Yes.
10. Under current law, toward the end of 2020, municipalities will gain the authority to pass nondiscrimination and living wage ordinances—unless the General Assembly intervenes. Since the winner of your race will be in office at that time, do you believe local governments in North Carolina should be allowed to make these decisions for themselves?
Yes.
11. Over the last couple of years in Wake County, county commissioners and school board members have battled over local school funding. Recently, some commissioners have made moves to petition the legislature to allow for a pilot program in which the Board of Commissioners turns over school-taxing authority to the Board of Education, as is the arrangement in most states. In general, do you believe the state’s elected school boards should have the responsibility to raise taxes for the schools they oversee?
I don’t know. I read The Indy’s coverage of this issue, but I will need to read and study a lot more before I make a decision. Undoing the state’s current school funding method based on recent disagreements between two local boards or on recent election results is not prudent. We should carefully consider the impact on all 100 counties and all 115 LEAs.
12. Since Governor Cooper’s election, the legislature has taken a number of steps to assume powers that were previously the executive’s domain, including overhauling the State Board of Elections. Do you believe these decisions were merely power grabs, as Democrats have alleged, or that they were made in the interests of public policy?
Power grabs.
13. Over the last year, the state has frequently found itself in court over its legislative and congressional districts, which courts have ruled to be unconstitutional racial and partisan gerrymanders. Given this, do you believe the state legislature of that last several years has acted as a legitimate body?
I concur with the various decisions holding that our electoral districts have been both racially and politically gerrymandered. However, proving that the General Assembly and its actions over the past six years are illegal or unconstitutional will be extremely difficult.
If not, what do you propose as a solution?
I was a primary sponsor of S209: Nonpartisan Redistricting Commission, and I recently met with three of California’s redistricting commissioners. I fully support efforts to establish such a commission.
14. Give an example of a time, during your political career, when you have changed your position as a result of a discussion with someone who held an opposing view.
Some municipalities banned the discharge of HVAC condensate into their stormwater systems, and I originally supported such bans. This caused new high efficiency units to freeze up and stop operating when separate discharge lines got cold. As a result, many homebuilders refused to install these energy-saving units. After researching the issue, and discussing it further with industry representatives and water scientists, I concluded that there are safe ways to handle this discharge in municipal systems. This led to me proposing legislation to allow this kind of discharge, and it was passed during the 2015 long session.
15. Identify and explain one principled stand you would be willing to take if elected that you suspect might cost you some points with voters.
My sponsorship of S226, Repeal 1935 Durham County Firearms Act, raised many questions and concerns from the residents of the 22nd District and beyond. And the final dispensation of the records also raised concerns.
Many people were confused about the original law and were puzzled about my sponsorship. I received dozens of emails and phone calls, and the bill was the subject of numerous email blasts by various interest groups of all political stripes.
I chose to sponsor this legislation after talking with constituents and doing a great deal of research about the issues. Despite the concerns raised, I worked hard for its passage because the original 1935 law was passed as a misguided Jim Crow-era effort to stem violence and became an ineffective tool and an unnecessary infringement of property laws and privacy during the 80 years it was in effect.
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