NC Workforce Stability & Economic Protection.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2025
H 1
HOUSE BILL 1112

Short Title: NC Workforce Stability & Economic Protection. (Public)
Sponsors: Representatives Butler, Harrison, Morey, and Cook (Primary Sponsors).
For a complete list of sponsors, refer to the North Carolina General Assembly web site.
Referred to: Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House
April 30, 2026
*H1112-v-1*
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
AN ACT TO PROTECT NO RTH CAROLINA'S ECONO MY AND WORKFORCE BY 2
REQUIRING AN ANNUAL ECONOMIC IMPACT STUD Y OF FEDERAL 3
IMMIGRATION ENFORCEM ENT OPERATIONS, MAND ATING EMPLOYER 4
NOTIFICATION TO WORK ERS REGARDING FEDERA L AUDITS, AND 5
AUTHORIZING THE ATTORNEY GENERAL TO MONITOR AND REP ORT ON THE 6
IMPACTS OF ENFORCEMENT ACTIONS ON STATE COMMERCE. 7
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 8
SECTION 1. Chapter 64 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new Article 9
to read: 10
"Article 4. 11
"NC Workforce Stability & Economic Protection Act. 12
"§ 64-70. Short title; findings. 13
(a) This act shall be known as the "NC Workforce Stability & Economic Protection Act." 14
(b) The General Assembly finds that: 15
(1) North Carolina's economy is powered by a diverse workforce that contributes 16
over fifteen billion dollars ( $15,000,000,000) annually in investments and 17
critical labor to sectors , including agriculture, advanced manufacturing, and 18
life sciences. 19
(2) Uncoordinated federal i mmigration enforcement operations under the One 20
Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025 have caused significant disruptions to North 21
Carolina businesses, leading to sudden labor shortages, broken supply chains, 22
and decreased consumer spending in local communities. 23
(3) To maintain North Carolina's status as a top state for business, the State must 24
have accurate data on how federal actions impact state tax revenues, business 25
continuity, and the overall stability of the workforce. 26
"§ 64-71. Annual study of economic impact of federal immigration enforcement. 27
(a) The Office of State Budget and Management, in consultation with the Department of 28
Commerce and the Department of Revenue, shall conduct an annual study to quantify the 29
economic impact of federal immigration enforcement operations within the State. 30
(b) The study shall evaluate the impact of federal immigration enforcement operations 31
on this State and include, but is not limited to, all of the following topics: 32
(1) Estimated losses in State and local tax revenue. 33
(2) Estimated decreases in gross State product attributable to workforce 34
reductions. 35
General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
Page 2 House Bill 1112-First Edition
(3) The fiscal impact on State -funded services and infrastructure resulting from 1
business closures or contractions. 2
(c) The Office of State Budget and Management shall report study findings to the Joint 3
Legislative Economic Development and Global Engagement Oversight Committee no later than 4
March 1 of each year. 5
"§ 64-72. Employer notification of federal audits. 6
(a) Notice to Employees. – Except as otherwise required by federal law, any employer 7
who receives a Notice of Inspection (NOI) by a federal immigration agency to conduct an audit 8
of Employment Eligibility Verification forms (Form I-9) or other employee records shall provide 9
a written notice to each current employee in the employee's primary language within 72 hours of 10
receiving the notice. 11
(b) Content of Notice. – The notice shall include the name of the federal agency, the date 12
the employer received the notice, and a general description of the records sought. 13
(c) Prohibition on Retaliation. – No employer shall discharge, discipline, or otherwise 14
retaliate against an employee for exercising their rights under this section or for requesting 15
information regarding an inspection. 16
(d) Enforcement and Penalties. – A violation of this section shall result in a civil penalty 17
of not less than five hundred dollars ($500.00) for a first violation and up to one thousand dollars 18
($1,000) for each subsequent violation, to be collected by the Commissioner of Labor. 19
"§ 64-73. Monitoring federal enforcement impacts on civil rights and commerce. 20
(a) The Attorney General is authorized to monitor federal immigration enforcement 21
operations to ensure they do not infringe upon the constitutional rights of North Carolina 22
residents or cause unlawful interference with State commerce. 23
(b) The Attorney General shall establish a public portal for North Carolina business 24
owners and workers to report economic disruptions or civil rights grievances resulting from 25
federal operations. 26
(c) The Att orney General shall issue an annual "Workforce and Community Safety 27
Report" summarizing these findings to the Governor and the General Assembly." 28
SECTION 2. If any provision of this act or its application is held invalid, the 29
invalidity does not affect ot her provisions or applications of this act that can be given effect 30
without the invalid provisions or application and, to this end, the provisions of this act are 31
severable. 32
SECTION 3. There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Office of State 33
Budget and Management the sum of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) in nonrecurring 34
funds for the 2026 -2027 fiscal year to be used to assist in conducting the study required by 35
Section 1 of this act. 36
SECTION 4. This act is effective when it becomes law. 37