Voters in North Carolina will decide the fate of six constitutional amendments on their November ballots. Among them is one requiring photo ID to vote, one that takes the power of commission appointments from the governor and gives it to the legislature, and one that caps the income tax rate. Colin Campbell is editor of NC Insider. In his latest column , he says voters will be asked to approve the amendments before knowing fully how they'll be implemented. He spoke with BPR's Jeremy Loeb.

Swain County saw the U.S. government come through on a 75-year-old promise to pay for the so-called “Road To Nowhere” this month. However, officials say they see the additional funding until next year. Locals celebrated “promises kept” by the federal government with a giant check for $35.2 million dollars. It represents the final payment for an unfinished road along the north shore of Fontana Lake. The road would have been a connection to homesteads and gravesites that were covered by the lake

Duke Energy is in the process of completing the installtion of more than 1-million so-called 'smart meters' in Buncombe County. The meters will allow Duke to record power usage directly without having to send someone to read the meter. A handful of customers in Buncombe County have tried to opt out of using the meters - an action that has consequences. Jason Sandford of AshVegas spoke with those customers to see what happened to them. He sat down with BPR's Matt Bush to discuss what he found out

Waynesville’s Folkmoot Festival is again underway. In its 35 th year, organizers say the folkdance festival has never been more relevant - or more necessary. Folkmoot is North Carolina’s official international folk festival. As it has grown, the gathering has become much more than just a series of cultural dance performances, according to Folkmoot Executive Director Angie Schwab. “Folkmoot started out as really a folk dance organization,” said Schwab. “The word ‘folkmoot’ means meeting of the

The Trump administration took another swipe at the Affordable Care Act recently in announcing that it's cutting funding to ACA 'navigators' 72 percent, from $36 million to $10 million. In North Carolina, the cut is even more severe: an 85 percent cut from $3.4 million to $500,000. That will hurt the efforts of navigators to help get people enrolled in health insurance. Jackie Kiger is an attorney and ACA navigator with Pisgah Legal Services serving western North Carolina. She spoke with BPR's

The future of Angel Medical Center in Franklin NC is still uncertain 1 year after the labor and delivery unit closed its doors. Franklin Mayor Bob Scott tries not to sound pessimistic. “I always had dreams that Angel would be a regional medical center. I don’t see that happening now,” says Mayor Scott. The main reason for his concern is that Angel is currently in talks for a deal with for-profit Hospital Corporation of America or HCA. The labor and delivery unit closure came as a way to keep the

The tiny Haywood County town of Maggie Valley has long been a familiar tourist destination – especially when its well-known mountaintop amusement park was operating. Opened in 1962, Maggie Valley’s Ghost Town in the Sky was a wild west-themed amusement park high atop Buck Mountain in western Haywood County. In its day, the park attracted crowds that powered an economic development engine that drove motels, restaurants and related attractions to a town that had a five-lane road, but just 200

Asheville native Jackie Grant is now president of the North Carolina Bar Association . She was inaugurated at the NBCA's annual meeting last month. The A.C. Reynolds High School and Western Carolina University graduate is the first woman attorney from Asheville to serve as president of the NCBA, and only the second African-American woman to hold the position. Grant is a partner and litigator for Roberts & Stevens. She sat down with BPR's Matt Bush to talk about the role the Bar Association

Fondly is how Western Carolina students will remember Chancellor Belcher says Claire Lemke. This is her singing, "Think of Me" from The Phantom of the Opera musical at her senior recital on the Cullowhee campus. Lemke was the first recipient of a scholarship in fine and performing arts that Chancellor Belcher established last year in honor of his wife. Lemke received $1000 for the spring semester of her senior year. It was devastating to hear that he was sick and equally devastating to hear that

Replacing the leader of a high-performing organization is never easy. But that’s what Haywood County Schools did this week after the March departure of a longtime superintendent who led the district to new heights. But as the district looks to the future, it didn’t have to look far for a replacement. With more than 7,000 students, Haywood County is home to the largest public school system west of Buncombe County. It’s also one of the best anywhere in the state. In each of the past two years,