Carolina Journal Weekly Report

For the week of May 04, 2012 - carolinajournal.com

Reaction of the Week

RALEIGH — People concerned about declining North Carolina fish stocks should take a closer look at so-called “catch shares,” a system that uses property rights to help protect a valuable resource. That’s the conclusion the John Locke Foundation’s top regulatory expert reaches in a new Spotlight report.

“Injecting property rights via catch shares could bring North Carolina’s fishermen the security of a guaranteed portion of the allowable fish catch, the freedom of more days at sea, the benefit of an increased harvest stock size, and the discretion to harvest in opportune times,” said report author Jon Sanders, JLF Director of Regulatory Studies. “Depending on the system’s design, fishermen would have opportunities to trade shares and to work together voluntarily to ensure the sustainability of their calling.”

Sanders examined catch shares in response to growing concerns about North Carolina’s offshore fishing stocks. “What you have is a classic case of the economic problem labeled the ‘tragedy of the commons,’” he said. “When a scarce resource belongs to everyone, it will tend toward depletion. The economic incentives are essentially first come, first served. That prompts a rush to consume, with no countervailing incentive to conserve.”

A 2011 report from the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries listed 12 groups of fish as viable or recovering, while stocks of another 13 fish groups raised concerns, seven groups were depleted, and the status was unknown for another seven stocks.

“Several stocks are either highly limited or prohibited to fishermen or, in the case of black sea bass, essentially prohibited to all but a handful,” Sanders said. “The situation highlights the need for new management ideas.”

CJ: Former Perdue allies fear guilt by association
RALEIGH — Citing Gov. Bev Perdue’s widespread unpopularity, attorneys for Julia Leigh Sitton and Trawick “Buzzy” Stubbs — who played significant roles in Perdue’s 2008 campaign for governor — have filed motions asking for special treatment during the jury selection process in their upcoming trials.

CJ: Solar complex raises corporate welfare concerns
RALEIGH — A jumbo solar geothermal complex installed at a Robeson County turkey processing plant is being hailed as the largest of its kind in the nation and a distinction for North Carolina’s expanding solar industry.

CJ: Three Republicans face off in bid to take 7th District From McIntyre
RALEIGH — Three Republicans are competing for the opportunity to knock off eight-term Democratic U.S. Rep. Mike McIntyre in what is a considerably more favorable 7th Congressional District for GOP candidates. The three are Ilario Pantano, David Rouzer, and Randy Crow.

CJ: Eight Republicans hope to succeed Heath Shuler
RALEIGH – There’s no shortage of Republican candidates seeking their party’s nomination for the 11th Congressional District seat. The General Assembly made the district a bit friendlier for Republicans when it redrew maps last year.

CJ: GOP House District 13 candidates clamor over conservative credentials
RALEIGH — All three candidates in the 13th U.S. Congressional District Republican primary hold the late U.S. Sen. Jesse Helms in high esteem, but each questions his opponents’ ability to maintain a conservative track record if given a chance to go to Washington.

Monday, May 07, 2012 at 12:00 PM, Noon
A meeting of the Shaftesbury Society
with our special guest Warren Bingham
George Washington's Southern Tour of 1791

Capital Quotes

“If you only know one candidate’s name because you heard it in a TV ad, that’s the one you are going to prefer.”
— Steven Greene, a political scientist at N.C. State University, explaining to the Raleigh News & Observer why Lt. Gov. Walter Dalton has taken a big lead in the race for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination in recent weeks.

“In a tough economy when families are hurting and we’re trying to create jobs, we’re not increasing taxes.”
— Rep. Harold Brubaker, R-Randolph, senior co-chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, as quoted by the Associated Press, talking about the state budget for upcoming fiscal year.

“They are back to square one.”
— David Farren, an attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center in Chapel Hill, commenting to the Charlotte Observer on a federal appeals court’s decision to put the proposed Monroe Connector-Bypass on hold for process violations in the issuing of a flawed environmental impact study for the  highway.

“My suspicion is Charlotte’s boomtown narrative, which had been very loud, is just slow to fade away. People coming here are not paying close attention to what the unemployment rate is.”
— Bill Graves, associate professor of geography at UNC Charlotte, talking to the Charlotte Observer about new Census Bureau figures showing that the Charlotte area gained population during the Great Recession despite consistently experiencing unemployment rates well above the national average.

This week on C J Radio…
JLF’s John Hood discusses the Democratic Party scandal’s impact on the political season; Reps. Mitch Gillespie, Mike Stone, and Pricey Harrison discuss fracking and the DENR report; Sen. Bob Rucho offers Senate ideas about energy options; attorney Dan Hardway talks about gun rights for nonviolent ex-felons; CJ’s Rick Henderson explains why a blogger is being threatened with jail by a licensing board.

This week on NC Spin…
Join moderator Tom Campbell for for another week of political discussion and debate on the most intelligent television talk show in the state. Topics this week: Tuesday’s vote; the Senate education reforms; and Speaker’s Tillis top aide resigns. This week’s panelists: John Hood and Becki Gray from the John Locke Foundation; Chris Fitzsimon of NC Policy Watch; and former House Speaker Joe Mavretic.