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H 2367, which would create a year-long moratorium on forced municipal annexations, passed the House finance committee this morning on a 25-4 vote, if I counted right.

The bill next goes to the House Judiciary II committee, and then on to the floor. There seems to be a fair amount of momentum for this thing on the House side, although conventional wisdom says its prospects in the Senate are far less certain.

(Click here and here for background.)

The topic of cities bringing land into their corporate boundaries has been a hot one down here at the legislature, at least on the House side. There have been several cases throughout the state where people feel quite aggrieved at the process. The basic argument against particular annexations seems to be this: they help the city by increasing the tax base but hurt homeowners because they have to pay extra taxes without getting a lot in extra services. At times, they complain, cities are involved in land and money grabs rather than logical growth.

Under the bill, homeowners could voluntarily request they be brought into a city. But a city could not target land adjacent to its corporate borders and bring it in. The idea is to give the General Assembly a year to work out changes to the law that would protect homeowners.

Groups pushing for the moratorium and a rewrite of the state's annexation laws have organized under the Fair Annexation Coalition.

Cities, represented by the North Carolina League of Municipalities, have said that they shouldn't be punished for a few bad actors or cases outside the norm. Stifling annexation, they say, will hurt economic development. They argue that solutions can be crafted while annexations continue.

Click here to listen to a short clip from Doug Aiken, with the coalition, and Andy Romanet with the league speaking to the finance committee this morning.

Rep. Pryor Gibson attempted to amend the bill so it would be a six month moratorium, ending on Jan. 1.

"We lack political courage," Gibson said.

Click here to listen Gibson make his pitch and then lose the vote.

Of local note, Rep. Earl Jones, D-Greensboro, and Rep. John Blust, R-Greensboro, voted in favor of the bill. Rep. Hugh Holliman, D-Lexington, did not vote on the measure. His house is in a territory that's due to be annexed, so he has a conflict.

The votes against the bill were Gibson, Rep. Jean Farmer-Butterfield of Wilson, Rep. Bill Owens of Elizabeth City and Rep. Kelly Alexander of Charlotte, all Democrats.

Alexander is the newly minted legislator appointed on May 30 and during his comments on the bill said that he did not want to "throw the baby out with the bathwater," a line that Romanet used in his presentation.