Brian Turner - NC House 116

08/05/2026

Today we are holding a special session in the old Capitol to celebrate America’s 250th anniversary.

Fun fact: I sit in seat 120 in the new chamber but there are only 119 seats in the old chamber. They didn’t include a seat for the Speaker who would be at the dais. So today I am sitting in seat 109, Speaker Destin Hall’s seat. I offered to preside so he could sit in his seat but he politely declined.

Luckily there was another empty seat so my usual seat mate Rep. Sarah Crawford was able to join me.

07/27/2026

07/27/2026

There are times when you can't call 9-1-1. It isn't safe, there isn't good service, or you may be deaf or hard of hearing.

North Carolina Department of Information Technology recognizes that everyone needs to be able to get help in an emergency so they have worked to deploy "text to 9-1-1" across NC.

07/18/2026

This week I was able to join Governor Josh Stein and Mayor Esther Manheimer in celebration of another Helene recovery effort when Velma Chapman was handed the keys to a brand new home that replaced her home that was destroyed in the storm.

Renew NC's Single-Family Housing program has been working to repair and in some cases completely rebuild homes that were lost in the storm.

The latest state budget included $700 million for recovery efforts including $40+ million in temporary rental assistance which will help folks find temporary housing so their homes can be repaired. This will allow programs like Renew NC to help more people and help them faster.

Gov. Josh Stein visited an Asheville resident in her new home July 15 and advocated for more funding for the state's housing recovery program.

07/16/2026

craft-itarianism (craft-uh-TAIR-ee-uh-niz-um):
The use of craft to add joy, distribute resources, and foster a sense of community in the everyday lives of specific at-risk or marginalized people.

Example:
"Using craft as a way to help humans is craft-itarianism."

For generations craft has played a critical role for our mountain community. Holding the traditions of our mountain home while allow each generation to build on the previous creating new and refreshing art.

Earlier this week I was able to help announce four $100,000 grants given by Etsy to WNC craft organizations as part of a larger $10 million national Craft Catalyst Initiative.

These unrestricted grants will help ensure our region is able to continue to be a hub for craft.

NC Gov. Josh Stein and Anna Stein joined Etsy and Center for Craft in Asheville to announce a $10 million investment supporting makers and creative economies.

07/10/2026

What the hell is going wrong in our country and our state? The expectation of political violence is not and cannot be the “new normal”.

I read a lot of Isaac Asimov growing up (yeah I was kind of a nerd) and I remember his quote “Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent"

We must stand against all violence and the threat of it against those who would use it to undermine our democracy and free and fair elections.

If you are an elected official afraid of people voting you are afraid of accountability for your actions.

Protect voting rights, protect access to the polls, and protect our democracy.

Most North Carolinians expect political violence during the 2026 election cycle. And about one in every four or five voters say they’d be more likely to support candidates who refuse to condemn violence against the other side.

07/08/2026

My friend Keith Mason is now officially the executive director of the Buncombe Democrats. Hell yeah!

Keith was part of Team Turner that helped defeat Moffitt and flip the R+6 district 116 in 2014. Since then Keith has gone on to work for several organizations that support the ideals we hold dear, free speech, body autonomy, and free & fair elections.

I've known Keith since he was knee high to a grasshopper (which is something my grandmother never said) or 2014 whichever came first.

Congrats to Keith and please enjoy this video of Keith helping me with the "Ice Bucket Challenge"

NC House District 116 candidate Brian Turner participates in ALS ...

06/30/2026

Visiting Bell Elementary and their deaf education program was a wonderful way to spend some time visiting with students and learning more about the deaf education program, the only one of its kind in Buncombe County.

Following a tour and being able to participate in some classroom activities, we sat down with the principal and other administrative staff to talk through the challenges that they’re facing with the lack of properly trained and licensed interpreters. The interpreter shortages hinders a school’s ability to ensure the Deaf students have the learning and language access they need to be successful.

House bill 854, which is stuck in the Senate would go a long way toward improving the quality of ASL Interpreters in the classroom. If it does not get past this year, we will try again next session.

The ASL interpreter BCS brought in for our visit was Hope’s interpreter when she was at AC Reynolds so they enjoyed catching up. This also underscored that interpreters connect with students, build trusts and relationships, and in doing so help drive better class participation and learning.

06/26/2026

Just had a sad moment when some folks in their 20’s just explained to me how to differentiate between AI content. ChatGPT follows a different rhythm or sequence than Claude and once you see it you can’t unsee it. Horrible comparison but it’s like different styles of poetry. Haiku or sonnet versus couplet or free verse. I’m encouraged that their generation is developing a solid bu****it detection meter and that regardless of how “good” AI gets it will never be as smart/competent/nakedly contemptuous as the average 20-something.

Humanity will prevail.

06/24/2026

Today was a day of cowardice at the General Assembly. Two Democrats who lost their primaries “took a walk” and left the chamber and handed the Republicans the numbers they needed to overturn Gov Stein’s vetoes.

And the Republicans, afraid to openly debate their misogynistic, racist, and xenophobic policies, used a parliamentary move to shut down debate on the bills. The “champions” of free speech silenced the voices of millions of North Carolinians.

We are over 1,000 days without a state budget and nothing we did today will get us closer to having one. Nothing we did today will make the lives of North Carolinians easier, will make life more affordable, will move us all forward.

The vote count from today will be remembered and those voting against a better future for all who call NC home will be remembered for their failure of character.

www.wunc.org/politics/2026-06-24/house-republicans-override-4-gov-steins-vetoes-with-three-bills-becoming-law

The bills ban DEI throughout state government and in public schools and stiffen immigration policies.