North Carolina SB 990: Deduction Flexibility.

Bill Text

GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2025
S 2
SENATE BILL 990
Education/Higher Education Committee Substitute Adopted 5/13/26

Short Title: Students First Act. (Public)
Sponsors:
Referred to:
May 4, 2026
*S990-v-2*
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
AN ACT TO ENACT THE PROTECT CAMPUS SURVIVORS ACT AND TO 2
APPROPRIATE FUNDS TO THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA TO SUPPORT 3
PUBLIC EDUCATION. 4
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 5
6
PART I. PROTECT CAMPUS SURVIVORS ACT 7
SECTION 1.(a) Chapter 132 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new 8
section to read: 9
"§ 132-1.3B. Records of student disciplinary proceedings held by public institutions of 10
higher education. 11
(a) Definitions. – The following definitions apply in this section: 12
(1) Disciplinary proceeding. – Any complaint, investigation, adjudication, or 13
resolution of an alleged violation of or noncompliance with any disciplinary 14
or conduct rules or other policies that apply to students adopted by a public 15
institution of higher education. 16
(2) Personally identifiable information. – As defined in regulations adopted under 17
the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, 20 U.S.C. § 1232g. 18
(3) Public institution of higher education. – The University of North Carolina 19
System Office, a constituent institution of The University of North Carolina 20
that is an institution of higher education, the Community Colleges System 21
Office, and a community college. 22
(b) Confidential Information. – A public record, as defined by G.S. 132-1, does not 23
include any record of a disciplinary proceeding that reveals personally identifiable information 24
about a student enrolled in a public institution of higher education, even if releasing the record 25
would be permitted by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, 20 U.S.C. § 1232g. 26
(c) Exception for General Information. – This section does not limit the disclosure of a 27
public record that does not contain personally identifiable information from a student disciplinary 28
proceeding, including aggregated data, guidelines, instructions, or summaries." 29
SECTION 1.(b) G.S. 116-43.17 reads as rewritten: 30
"§ 116-43.17. Confidentiality of research data, records, and information of a proprietary 31
nature.certain records. 32
The following are not public records under Chapter 132 of the General Statutes: 33
(1) Research data, records, or information of a proprietary nature, produced or 34
collected by or for state institutions of higher learning in the conduct of 35
commercial, scientific, or technical research where the data, records, or 36

General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
Page 2 Senate Bill 990-Second Edition
information has not been patented, published, or copyrighted are not public 1
records as defined by G.S. 132-1.copyrighted. 2
(2) Any record of a disciplinary proceeding that reveals personally identifiable 3
information about a student, as provided in G.S. 132-1.3B." 4
SECTION 1.(c) G.S. 115D-78 reads as rewritten: 5
"§ 115D-78. Access to information and public records; small business counseling 6
information. 7
(a) In accordance with Chapter 132 of the General Statutes, all rules, regulations and 8
public records of the State Board of Community Colleges, the Community Colleges System 9
Office, and local boards of trustees shall be available for examination and reproduction on 10
payment of fees by any person. 11
(a1) Any record of a disciplinary proceeding that reveals personally identifiable 12
information about a student is not a public record, as provided in G.S. 132-1.3B. 13
...." 14
SECTION 1.(d) This section is effective when it becomes law and applies to requests 15
for records of a disciplinary proceeding that reveals personally identifiable information about a 16
student submitted on or after that date. 17
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PART II. WEIGHTED STUDENT FUNDING FORMULA WORK GROUP 19
SECTION 2.(a) The Office of Learning Research at the North Carolina 20
Collaboratory shall establish a work group (Work Group) of experts in public education finance, 21
including the Department of Public Instruction, North Carolina Business Leaders for Education, 22
doing business as BEST NC (Business for Educational Success and Transformation), and other 23
relevant stakeholders, to study and develop a strategy to transition North Carolina to a weighted 24
student funding model for kindergarten through twelfth grade public education. No later than 25
July 15, 2027, the Work Group shall report to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight 26
Committee on a three-year strategy to transition from the current allotment-based funding model 27
to a weighted student funding formula model, including policy, funding, messaging, and 28
technical assistance needed for leaders of local school administrative units and schools within 29
those units. The strategy shall include an examination of all of the following: 30
(1) Options to do at least the following under the new funding formula: 31
a.