Nikolai Mather

1 week ago | whqr.org | Benjamin Schachtman |Nikolai Mather |Rachel Keith

On today’s show, I’m sitting down with my WHQR’s rural reporter Nikolai Mather to discuss House Bill 774 — legislation that would earmark $34 million to fund free meal programs for students around the state. We’ll unpack how this would work alongside federal programs, plus who’s supporting the bill, and what its chances are of making it into law.

4 weeks ago | whqr.org | Rachel Keith |Nikolai Mather |Benjamin Schachtman

Eight years after the general public found out about PFAS in the Cape Fear River, the North Carolina House has finally passed a bill that would make PFAS manufacturer Chemours cover pollution cleanup costs. Republican Rep. Ted Davis, the main author of the bill, told WHQR he's "tickled" it went through. Nikolai Mather spoke with Davis about what the bill does, and the arduous route to get it this far.

2 months ago | whqr.org | Johanna Still |Nikolai Mather

The Dive is a free weekly newsletter jointly published by WHQR and The Assembly. You can find more information and subscribe here. Lawmakers Love LeeNew Hanover County state Sen. Michael Lee was elected Senate Majority Leader on Tuesday, replacing outgoing Sen. Paul Newton, who resigned last week to become UNC-Chapel Hill’s general counsel and vice chancellor. The move makes Lee the third-highest ranking senator in the General Assembly.