HB 42 North Carolina House · 2025-2026 Session

Back the Blue Pay Act.

This bill revises North Carolina's burglary and breaking-and-entering laws to increase penalties when a firearm or deadly weapon is used. It raises the felony classification by one level for offenses like burglary (first/second degree), breaking out of a dwelling at night, or entering a building with intent to commit a felony or terrorize occupants, if a weapon was present during the crime. The law directly affects individuals convicted of these specific offenses when a firearm was involved, not the general public. It does not change sentencing for weapon-free offenses or address police pay, despite the title "Back the Blue Pay Act" suggesting otherwise. The changes take effect December 1, 2025.

Issues: ✗ Criminal Justice

Bill status passed both 4 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2025

Committee Review

Sep 2025

House Passage

Mar 2025

Senate Passage

Sep 2025

Governor

Introduced Feb 3, 2025 Last action Sep 22, 2025

Maddy AI version diff · 3 comparisons

What changed between versions

Edition 2 → Edition 3 · 5 edits

MODERATE

The bill was completely rewritten from a criminal justice reform measure about burglary sentencing enhancements into a budget appropriations bill that provides salary increases and bonuses for state law enforcement and correctional officers. This represents a fundamental change in purpose, moving from criminal law amendments to personnel compensation funding.

Scope change

The bill's scope changed entirely from criminal law (burglary offenses and sentencing) to state budget appropriations for employee compensation and benefits.

SCOPE

Removed all provisions related to burglary and breaking and entering offenses, including definitions of first and second degree burglary, sentencing enhancements for firearm possession during burglary, and breaking out of dwelling house provisions.

Added provisions for recruitment and retention bonuses for National Guard members, enhanced benefits for firefighters and rescue squad workers' pension fund, and increased death benefits for public safety employees.

FISCAL

Added comprehensive funding provisions allocating over $100 million in recurring and nonrecurring funds for salary increases and bonuses to state law enforcement, correctional officers, and administrative employees across multiple departments including DPS, Highway Patrol, SBI, and Adult Correction.

ELIGIBILITY

Added new eligibility criteria establishing experience-based salary schedules for State Highway Patrol, State Bureau of Investigation, and Alcohol Law Enforcement officers, with specific annual salary amounts based on years of experience.

TECHNICAL

Changed the short title from 'Burglary & B&E/Sentence Enhancement' to 'Back the Blue Pay Act' and updated the bill number from Edition 2 to Edition 3 with Senate Appropriations/Base Budget Committee adoption.

Floor votes · Senate Sep 22, 2025 · House Mar 4, 2025

How they voted

48–0

Passed · 3 other

Total votes 51

Sep 22, 2025

D Democratic20

20 Yea

100% Yea

R Republican31

28 Yea 3

90% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Sep 22, 2025

Committee

Re-ref Com On Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House

lower

Sep 22, 2025

Upper · Passed

Passed 3rd Reading

upper

Sep 22, 2025

Upper · Passed

Com Substitute Adopted

upper

Sep 22, 2025

Upper · Passed

Reptd Fav Com Substitute

upper

Sep 22, 2025

Committee

Re-ref Com On Appropriations/Base Budget

upper

Mar 5, 2025

Committee

Ref To Com On Rules and Operations of the Senate

upper

Mar 4, 2025

Lower · Passed

Passed 3rd Reading

lower

Mar 3, 2025

Lower · Passed

Reptd Fav

lower

Feb 25, 2025

Committee

Re-ref Com On Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House

lower

Feb 25, 2025

Lower · Passed

Reptd Fav Com Substitute

lower

Feb 5, 2025

Committee

Ref to the Com on Judiciary 2, if favorable, Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House

lower

Feb 3, 2025

Introduced

Filed

lower

3 primary · 26 co-sponsors