N.C.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg School Board Votes 5-4 to Fire Superintendent Crystal Hill; Chair Stephanie Sneed Steps Down From Leadership Post
The board terminated Hill "for convenience" on Sept. 22, six weeks after reinstating her, days after she sent a 224-page memo alleging financial misconduct and after the district attorney asked the SBI to investigate.
North Carolina Joins 40-State, $694 Million Settlement With Auto Lender Credit Acceptance
State attorneys general say the subprime lender made loans borrowers could not repay; the company settled without admitting wrongdoing, and North Carolina's share is about $9.5 million.
Stein Calls for Change to NC Film Grant Funding Structure at Wilmington Studio Roundtable
At a Sept. 15 roundtable at Cinespace Film Studios in Wilmington, Gov. Josh Stein asked lawmakers to let the state's film grant program run on a multi-year cash-flow basis, after the program stopped making new awards; a Republican state senator blames program mismanagement for the shortfall.
National Weather Service Issues Coastal Flood Warning Through Sept. 25 for North Carolina's Outer Banks
Forecasters warn of 2 to 4 feet of ocean overwash from Oregon Inlet to Ocracoke, and the state transportation department says stretches of N.C. Highway 12 may close.
Carolina Journal Poll Puts Cooper at 49% and Whatley at 34% in NC Senate Race; Vance Rallies for Whatley in Greensboro
A poll released Sept. 17 by the conservative-funded Carolina Journal showed the widest Cooper lead in its own series, while other September surveys showed a gap closer to six or seven points; Vice President JD Vance campaigned for Whatley on Sept. 21.
National Weather Service Issued Flash Flood Warnings for Parts of Edgecombe, Halifax and Nash Counties on Sept. 21
The Raleigh forecast office reported 2 to 4 inches of radar-estimated rain near Tillery; the warning expired at 11:15 p.m., and by Sept. 22 the flood threat had shifted to the western Carolinas and the coast.
Lee County Approves Up to $46 Million in Tax Rebates for Unnamed $1 Billion Sanford Manufacturing Project
Commissioners backed a 12-year property tax rebate for a company identified only as "Project Paragon," a week after Sanford's city council approved about $39.5 million of its own.
Wake County Commissioners Vote 5-2 to Let WakeMed Merge Into Atrium Health
The Sept. 21 vote changes WakeMed's founding documents and shifts control to a 14-member joint board; the deal still faces federal antitrust review and a state attorney general review.
Daimler Truck's 573 Mount Holly Layoffs Were Filed in July 2025; Columbus McKinnon Closed Its Charlotte Duff-Norton Plant in September 2024
Both Charlotte-area manufacturing job cuts described as current are on the public record with earlier dates — Daimler's temporary layoffs ran through September 9, 2025, and Columbus McKinnon's plant shut on September 29, 2024.
Judge Finds Tailei Qi Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity in 2023 Killing of UNC Professor Zijie Yan, Orders Indefinite Commitment
Orange County Superior Court Judge Allen Baddour ruled on Friday, Sept. 18, 2026, that Qi could not understand the wrongfulness of his conduct, dismissed the charges, and committed him to Central Regional Hospital in Butner.
WakeMed and UnitedHealthcare Sign Three-Year Commercial Contract Effective Oct. 15; Medicare Advantage Remains Out of Network
The deal returns WakeMed hospitals and specialists to UnitedHealthcare's employer-sponsored commercial network on Oct. 15, 2026, after about 11 months out of network, but hospital and specialist care stays out of network for the insurer's Medicare Advantage members.