NC Senator Brent Jackson (R-Johnston/Sampson) says he is disappointed Gov. Pat McCrory vetoed the Property Protect Act, better known as the “ag gag” bill.
“I am extremely disappointed in Gov. McCrory’s decision to veto a bill that defends private property rights and puts teeth into our trespass laws – and one that received broad, bipartisan support in both the House and Senate,” said Jackson, who is the co-chairman of the Senate Appropriations/Base Budget Committee, and who guided the bill through the Senate. “I plan to do all I can to encourage my legislative colleagues to override the veto and ensure this important bill is enacted into law.”
The Property Protection Act gives property owners a defense against perpetrators who gain access to the nonpublic areas of their property and then engage in unscrupulous activity like corporate espionage or organized retail theft. While it codifies and strengthens North Carolina trespass case law to better protect property owners’ rights, it does not create a criminal penalty.
The bill does not change existing state laws that protect whistle blowers, and it makes clear that they, along with law enforcement officers engaged in lawful investigations, would not be held liable.
