2019/2020 Divine Nine Legislative Advocacy Agenda
May 15, NC General Assembly Building

Economic Empowerment and Housing Justice
(Including Job Creation and COLA Adjustments for Retirees)
• Increase in Cost of Living Adjustment for retirees.
• Adequately fund the North Carolina Housing Finance Agency to meet the housing needs of all residents in North Carolina.
• Utilize surplus funds to address job training and housing needs.
• Provide opportunities for economic rehabilitation for former offenders.
• Increase funding for the Housing Authority.
• Support Federal Policy and legislation needed to (1) enforce Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and (2) promote foreclosure prevention and fairness in lending
• Expansion and funding of broad band internet stronger access to mobile signals.
• Decrease Barriers to entry into entrepreneurship

Access to Education
(Including Recruitment of Quality Educators and Administrator and support of HBCUs)
• Targeted recruitment of educators based on diversity, geography & communities they serve.
• Elimination of the long-term suspension policy.
• Full funding of social workers, guidance counselor and nurses for all schools.
• End the use of law enforcement in schools and the over-policing of minority students.
• NCGA Funded, Community-based committee committed to examining school safety composed Parents, Schools Officials, Students, lawmakers and law enforcement.
• Funding of broadband internet access to all public schools without this
• access.
• Understand NCGA’s position on Every Student Succeeds Act with respected to equity of funding across all school districts.
• Reauthorize the Higher Education act of 1965 (HEA) with specific focus on support of HBCU’s and loan reductions/forgiveness policies.

Affordable & Accessible Healthcare
• Medicaid expansion coverage for poor residents and children in North Carolina.
• Rehabilitation Funding for all- drug related substance abuse issue.
• Maintain, support, and align with the Affordable Care Act (ACA)
• Fair and Ample access to coverage for per-existing Conditions.
• Focus on Behavior and Mental Health

Criminal Justice, Police Reform, & Gun Reform
• Creation of a diversion program as an alternative to prison sentences for minor drug offenses.
• Strengthen gun laws to prevent weapon accessibility by dangerous or unstable individuals.
• Public access to body camera footage upon request in cases of police misconduct.
• Reduce mass incarceration of nonviolent offenders and marijuana conventions/ Reduce the use of mandatory minimum sentencing.
• Enhance community policing efforts through cultural competency/anti-bias training, and open data
• Appropriately fund the Violence Against Women Act and/or similar legislative measures.
• Enhanced focus on reducing Human Trafficking, while introducing legislation that prevents abused victims from prosecution due to being forced into illegal acts (i.e, prostitution, drug use/abuse, and etc..)

Voting Reform
• Count incarcerated individuals at their pre-incarceration address for redistricting purposes.
• Automatic Voter Registration for young people turning 18 years of age.
• Develop a non-partisan and/or bi-partisan redistricting commission.
• Restore and strengthen the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

US Census 2020
• Provide funded programs and resources to ensure accurate and unbiased counting of citizens in advance of the census polling and response outreach
• Ensure visibility of the Census Non-Response residents/housing in all areas so that communities and reach out and encourage census submittal/response.