Sick of hearing about the latest attack on local control by our state legislators? So am I – but here’s another one from our out-of-control government in Raleigh.
North Carolina House Bill 661, just today rammed through its final House vote, is a dangerous giveaway to developers and industry—at the direct expense of towns, taxpayers, and transparency. If you were wondering who this bill really serves, look no further than its sponsors and their donors.
Who’s Behind it?
Three of HB 661’s primary sponsors—Zenger, Brody, and Cunningham—have all taken substantial campaign donations from the construction and real estate industries. These same three lawmakers also co-sponsored HB 765, another industry-backed bill that sought to weaken local development oversight.
What’s in HB 661?
Let’s break down the worst parts of this sprawling assault on local control and public safety:
Sections 1.2 & 1.3 – Street Design Standards Gutted
This prevents towns from enforcing stricter construction standards than NCDOT—even on private streets. Towns are forced to accept infrastructure based on the bare-minimum DOT playbook. Engineers can approve substandard roads, while municipalities (and their taxpayers) are left holding the bag when the asphalt fails.
Sections 1.4 & 1.5 – Forced Acceptance of Developer Junk
Developers can now build infrastructure outside of their own subdivisions, and towns will be forced to accept and maintain it—whether it makes sense or not. Counties fare slightly better, needing written agreements—but cities? They’re stuck.
Section 1.6 – Street Easement Abandonment Without Notice
Any public street easement created before 1978? This bill automatically deems it abandoned if unused—without notice, without hearings, without recourse. Residents who thought their community’s connectivity or future plans were protected? Out of luck.
Section 2.1 – Model Home Fire Safety Loophole
It weakens fire protection standards for model homes in new subdivisions. Why? So builders can cut costs at the front end—while homeowners and first responders inherit the risk.
Section 3.5 – Permitting Oversight Removed
This section eliminates licensing and permitting requirements for certain trades like painting and flooring. While that may sound minor, it strips local governments of oversight tools—and opens the door to unregulated, shoddy work.
Sections 3.2 & 3.4 – Goodbye Transparency
These sections exempt investigative records from licensing boards from public disclosure. That means less sunshine, less accountability—and more cover for bad actors.
The Real Impact
- Towns lose authority.
- Taxpayers inherit long-term liabilities.
- Public safety is undermined.
- Developers and their lobbyists get everything they want.
This is a blueprint for corporate capture of local government, and HB 661’s sponsors are complicit. It is a wholesale surrender of municipal planning to private profit—and it’s being sold under the banner of “efficiency.”
What You Can Do
HB 661 is now headed to the North Carolina Senate. That’s where the battle continues.
Here are some text files that allow you to easily copy and paste the email address of every state senator into the BCC field of your email.
Click here for a list formatted for Outlook.
Click here for a list formatted for all other email systems.
Let’s stop it in the Senate.
Example Email
Feel free to copy and paste the example below:
Example – Concerned Citizen
Subject: Please Vote NO on HB 661
Dear State Senators,
I’m writing as a concerned resident to urge you to oppose HB 661. This bill undermines local control, strips zoning protections, and opens elected officials to lawsuits simply for representing their constituents.
This bill shifts power to developers—many of whom fund the bill’s sponsors—and leaves taxpayers footing the bill for infrastructure expansion. Neighboring states like South Carolina use impact fees to address this. Why don’t we?
Please stand up for our communities. Vote no on HB 661.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
[Your Town, NC]
