N.C. state senator called by grand jury in Ballance case
State Sen. Robert Holloman, D-Hertford, testified Thursday before a grand jury examining a foundation started by U.S. Rep. Frank Ballance, D-N.C.
Holloman, who succeeded Ballance in the Legislature, arrived Thursday morning at the Raleigh federal building with attorney Dan Boyce.
Holloman is pastor of a church that received $31,000 over the past three years from the John A. Hyman Foundation, which was the subject of a stinging state audit last month. The FBI has also been examining the foundation, state officials said.
State regulators may relax pollution rules
The state Environmental Management Commission, which is charged with reducing emissions of hydrogen sulfide, has been asked to exempt paper mills that may be a large source of the toxic gas.
The gas can trigger asthma attacks and irritate eyes and throats miles from its source. Its odor can cause nausea and industrial workers exposed to high concentrations sometimes die.
Replacing the lagoons with enclosed systems that capture the gas could cost the mills millions. The lobbying group said some of the plants, which pay high wages in economically depressed rural counties, may instead close.
The commission is not expected to vote on hydrogen sulfide before February.
NCC votes to join Taco Bell, Mt. Olive pickle boycotts
For the first time since it took a stand against apartheid 15 years ago, the National Council of Churches has voted to join two consumer boycotts. The decision to boycott the Taco Bell and Mt. Olive Pickle companies because of poor farm worker conditions came Thursday during the organization's national meeting in Jackson.
Bob Edgar, the NCC general secretary, said after the vote that the time had come for the council "to stand up and speak out for issues of justice."
Edgar said church members should say: "We're not going to accept your discounts at the local grocery store."
The Mt. Olive resolution claims the company has shown "insufficient progress" in improving conditions for farm workers who work for the companies that supply its cucumbers.
Regulators fine Durham adult care home
The state has fined an adult care home more than $13,000 for failing to properly care for its residents.
Meadows of Oak Grove has been cited for at least 13 violations since it was licensed in December 2000. The most serious involved a diabetic man in April 2002 who subsequently had to have his only remaining leg amputated.
Meadows of Oak Grove is a 142-bed home owned by Careamerica Inc., which has 20 centers in North Carolina and one in South Carolina.
Inspectors have identified problems at the home with accounting for residents' money, questionable staff qualifications, residents' personal care, housekeeping and handling of residents' medications.
N.C. military construction fund totals $261 million
A congressional conference committee has approved $11.4 million to continue renovating an old Army hospital into a processing center as part of the military construction appropriation for North Carolina.
The committee agreed Tuesday to spend the money to continue converting the nine-story former Womack Army Medical Center into a one-stop center for soldiers and their families.
The building has been under development for three years as a one-stop center for personnel and legal services for military families arriving at or departing from Fort Bragg.
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