Friday Wrap: TGIF

Gov. Roy Cooper now has plenty of reading to keep him occupied over Fathers Day.

After four late nights of legislating, lawmakers left town by 5:30 p.m. Friday after moving a few dozen more bills. Among the measures sent to the governor since late Thursday:

• The controversial Farm Act, including a provision to insulate large hog farms from nuisance lawsuits filed by their neighbors.
• Changes to the early voting schedule, including the elimination of voting on the Saturday before Election Day and the requirement that every early voting site in each county be open at the same time, which on a weekday would be 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
• Numerous changes to judicial districts in various counties, although the legislation has been scaled back from an earlier statewide proposal.
• Changes to funeral regulations, including allowing stillborn twins to be cremated together.

Some of the proposals that failed by the end of the week include being able to buy beer and wine on passenger ferries, an earmark to help the state buy its way out of a contract to build toll lanes on Interstate 77 near Charlotte, "non-insurance" health plans being offered by statewide associations and exempting rent-to-own businesses from some loan regulations.