Legislation

2021-22 Legislative Session

Senator Batch sponsored 64 bills during the 2021-22 legislative session. She is the primary sponsor for 29 bills and co-sponsor for 35 bills. Please see below for more detailed summaries. All of Senator Batch’s sponsored bills are located on the General Assembly’s website located here.

Child Welfare

Senator Batch sponsored eight bills on child welfare, ranging from making changes to the juvenile justice system, and fully funding school social workers. She was instrumental in the passage of Senate Bill 693, to expedite child safety and permanency. This bill was signed into law this fall. 

Bill #	Bill Title	Bill Summary
Senate Bill 35	Amend Lawful Age to Marry/18 Years of Age.	The original version of this bill would raise the age to marry in NC to 18 years. The bill was later changed and Senator Batch removed herself as a co-sponsor.
Senate Bill 80	September as Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.	Designates September as Childhood Cancer Awareness Month in NC in order to build awareness.
Senate Bill 154	Fully Fund School Social Wkrs & Psychologists.	Fully funds school social workers and psychologists over ten years.
Senate Bill 199	Freedom from Abuse.	Requires public schools to provide students with information and resources related to child abuse and neglect.
Senate Bill 207	Various Raise the Age Changes/JJAC Recs.	Implements various changes to the juvenile code and provides for mental health services for youths in the juvenile system.
Senate Bill 518	Protecting and Supporting NC’s Children.	Amends various abuse, neglect, and dependency laws to ensure children’s safety in out-of-home placements and speed up planning hearings for children removed from their homes.
Senate Bill 595	Task Force on Adverse Childhood Experiences.	Establishes a task force to study adverse childhood experiences.
Senate Bill 703	Strengthen Child Fatality Prevention System.	Establishes a State Office of Child Fatality Prevention with the Department of Health and Human Services.

Law Enforcement and Public Safety

Senator Batch sponsored six bills on law enforcement and public safety. She is a strong advocate for keeping our communities safe and giving law enforcement the tools they need to protect us. 

Bill #	Bill Title	Bill Summary
Senate Bill 565	Supporting Law Enforcement.	Strengthens policies and standards surrounding law enforcement officers.
Senate Bill 566	Investing in Law Enforcement.	Provides funding for additional training programs for law enforcement.
Senate Bill 132	Adopt Wounded Heroes Day.	Designates April 24th as Wounded Heroes Day in honor of Sgt. Michael Verardo.
Senate Bill 231	Military Family Sports Act.	Expands eligibility for children in military families to participate in school sports.
Senate Bill 381	The Sergeant Mickey Hutchens Act.	Allows law enforcement officers with certain credentials to purchase additional retirement benefits.
Senate Bill 472	Expand Occup. Cancer Benefits/Firefighters.	Expands occupational cancer benefits for firefighters and allocates additional funds to cover treatment costs.

Supporting Families and Small Businesses

Senator Batch sponsored eleven bills this legislative session to support families and small businesses. She is most proud of her bill to provide paid leave insurance to every North Carolinian.

	Bill #	Bill Title	Bill Summary
	Senate Bill 564	NC Paid Family Leave Insurance Act.	Enacts the NC Paid Family Leave Insurance Act.
	Senate Bill 648	State Employees/Paid Parental Leave.	Provides eight weeks of paid parental leave to all state employees.
	Senate Bill 589	Small Business Capital Improvement Account.	Provides additional funding to support small businesses in making capital improvements.
	Senate Bill 603	Individuals and Families Recovery Act.	Promotes economic recovery for individuals and families in NC.
	Senate Bill 643	Invest NC Bond Act of 2021.	Issues a bond to support NC’s infrastructure.
	Senate Bill 512	Hire NC Workers.	Provides tax incentives for small businesses to hire NC workers.
	Senate Bill 524	Small Business Assistance.	Provides funds to assist small businesses with challenges posed by COVID.
	Senate Bill 178	Reenact Child Care Tax Credit	Reenacts the child care tax credit.
	Senate Bill 181	Reinstate Earned Income Tax Credit.	Reinstates the earned income tax credit.
	Senate Bill 705	Create Dept. of Housing and Comm. Development.	Establishes the NC Department of Housing and Community Development to support affordable housing.
	Senate Bill 205	Consumer Protection – Storm Chasers.	This provides consumer protections related to roofing repair contractors.

2019-20 Legislative Session

Senator Batch also sponsored the following legislation during her time in the North Carolina House:

• Primary sponsor of HB1040, a bill to expand Medicaid. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic an unprecedented number of NC families have lost their jobs, and as a result, their employer-sponsored health insurance. Medicaid expansion would provide access to hundreds of thousands of North Carolinians who fall in the coverage gap.

• Primary sponsor of HB696, The NC Families First Act. This bill would ensure paid family and medical leave to all employees and job protection while the employee is on leave.

• Primary sponsor of HB1046, a bill to expand the eligibility of certain employees for paid sick leave in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Primary sponsor of HB1075, a bill to increase access to unemployment benefits, increase maximum unemployment payments, and increase the benefit period to the national average.

• Primary sponsor of HB1206, a bill to fund additional mental health personnel in schools in response of COVID-19. 

• Primary sponsor of HB1175, a bill to protect NC citizens from harmful toxins in their drinking water by establishing maximum contaminant levels.

• Primary sponsor of HB875, the Student Borrowers’ Bill of Rights, to protect student loans borrowers and their families.

• Primary sponsor of HB764, the Women’s Cancer Research & Prevention Task Force.

• Primary sponsor of HB843 a bill to add appointments by the Governor to the UNC Board of Governors.

• Primary sponsor of HB203 a bill ensuring that certified and licensed social workers in North Carolina are in compliance with North Carolina clinical social work exams.