BRADENTON, Fla. – Triple-A rated North Carolina is moving ahead to borrow the first $200 million of the $2 billion in general obligation bonds voters approved in March.
The Council of State, a panel of eight executive leaders, authorized the bond deal Tuesday to finance the first group of projects in the Connect NC program.
The bonds will be sold competitively, according to a spokesman for State Treasurer Janet Cowell, who is a member of the council and whose agency handles the state's debt issuances.
Cowell told the council Tuesday that bond documents for the offering will disclose information about the state's passage of House Bill 2, which was signed into law by Gov. Pat McCrory earlier this year.
The "bathroom bill" is seen as discriminatory against LGBT people, and has generated a number of lawsuit and boycott threats.
"North Carolina bonds have always been very highly sought after," Cowell said. "We do have disclosures in full acknowledgement that there could be some economic impact."
The $200 million of bonds will be issued in late July, according to a release from McCrory's office.
Bond proceeds will finance projects at universities and community colleges, and fund planning for future construction projects.
"Today is a major milestone in realizing the vision we laid out through Connect NC to prepare for future growth in a financially responsible way," McCrory said in a statement after the council met.
The entire $2 billion of GOs will be issued over a seven-year period, he said.
McCrory did not address whether the state anticipates inquiries from investors about HB 2.
The law prompted some businesses to pull major expansion plans from the state. PayPal halted the construction of a call center. Big-name entertainers canceled concerts in protest.
In May, McCrory filed a lawsuit against the federal government after it threatened to withhold education funding from the state. The Department of Justice then sued North Carolina. Both cases are pending.
HB 2, known as the "bathroom law," requires transgender people to use public bathrooms that match the sex on their birth certificate. It also prohibits people from using state law to sue over workplace discrimination.
The legislation was passed in response to an ordinance adopted by the city of Charlotte that allowed transgender people to use the bathroom of their choice.
McCrory has since issued an executive order clarifying some policies in HB 2.
Bills are also pending before the Legislature that would either repeal the law or revise it.
