A multi-week cold snap this past winter sent utility bills soaring and caused more people in Charlotte to request help paying bills. 

While the industry has suffered the loss of federal tax credits and other economic hits, leasing and batteries make the panels pencil out for many homeowners.

The 214-212 vote sent the nearly $70 billion package to President Donald Trump, who is expected to sign the measure. Republican senators approved the bill earlier this month, with Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski the only member of the GOP in opposition.

Thousands of teachers and their supporters descended on Raleigh on May 1, 2026 to deliver a message to legislators about the state’s abysmal lack of support for public schools and we’ll hear from some of those who made the trip.

NC lawmakers are pushing bills to require AEDs and cardiac emergency plans in all public schools in the state

The decision is likely to impact multiple lawsuits across the country in which federal judges have halted President Donald Trump’s efforts to strip legal protections granted to more than 1.3 million immigrants with TPS because they hail from countries the U.S. initially deemed too dangerous for return.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s nomination to permanently fill the nation’s top law enforcement role appeared in limbo Wednesday after two Republican senators — John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina — remained dissatisfied with Blanche’s handling of the administration’s “anti-weaponization” fund and a tax immunity deal.

The agency said Haitians with TPS will have valid work authorization until July 24, while nationals of Burma, Ethiopia, Somalia, South Sudan, Syria and Yemen with TPS will have it until July 17.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is not planning an aggressive campaign at voting sites during the upcoming midterm elections, the Department of Homeland Security said Thursday in response to a States Newsroom inquiry about a letter from U.S. Senate Democrats voicing concerns about armed federal agents at polling places.

For years, Jose Palma has advocated for immigrants with Temporary Protected Status who hail from countries deemed too unstable for return. But the Salvadoran national is uncertain if his own legal status will remain in place next week.