North Carolina 2025 Session Status: In Committee 7 R cosponsors

SB 985 — HALO Law.

Last action — Withdrawn From Com

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed House
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced April 30, 2026. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee vote, then a floor vote in the Senate.

Odds of enactment

Low chance

Based on the sponsor, cosponsors, and committee posture, this bill has a low chance of becoming law.

Upgrade to see the exact probability and what's driving it.

A statistical estimate from our own model of past outcomes — an insight, not a guarantee. Policymaking is volatile.

Prognosis

Stalled 26% · moderate confidence

  • In Committee

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 7 sponsors

    0 primary, 7 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Single-party support

    Sponsorship is currently within one party (7 R).

Based on stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes, and cross-state momentum — a description of the observable signals, not a prediction.

Bill Text

What changed in the latest version

11 added · 12 removed

Plain-language change summary

The changes to Senate Bill 985 clarify the language around the offense of approaching first responders after a verbal warning. Specifically, the bill no longer includes some previous wording, but the essential prohibition remains the same. This matters because it helps streamline the legal language, making it clearer for everyone to understand what actions are not acceptable around first responders and reinforces their ability to perform their duties safely.

→
Previous
Latest
FILED SENATE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA Apr 30, 2026 S.B.
GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA SESSION 2025 S 1 SENATE BILL 985 Short Title:
985 SESSION 2025 PRINCIPAL CLERK S D SENATE BILL DRS15438-MLa-175 Short Title:
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT TO ESTABLISH A SAFETY BUFFER AROUND FIRST RESPONDERS WHILE THEY ARE IN THE LAWFUL PERFORMANCE OF THEIR DUTIES.
Rules and Operations of the Senate May 4, 2026 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT TO ESTABLISH A SAFETY BUFFER AROUND FIRST RESPONDERS WHILE THEY ARE IN THE LAWFUL PERFORMANCE OF THEIR DUTIES.
– It is unlawful for a person, after receiving a verbal warning not to approach from a person he or she knows or reasonably should know is a first responder, who is engaged in the lawful performance of a legal duty, to knowingly and willfully violate the warning and approach or remain within 25 feet of the first responder with the intent to doany of the following:
– It is unlawful for a person, after receivinga verbal warningnot to approach from a person he or she knows or reasonably should know is a first responder, who is engaged in the lawful performance of a legal duty, to knowingly and willfully violate the warning and approach or remain within 25 feet of the first responder with the intent to doanyof the following:
(1) Impede or interfere with the first responder's ability to perform his or her duty.
(1) Impede or interfere with the first responder's abilityto perform his or her duty.
There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Public Safety the sum of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) in nonrecurring funds for the 2026-2027 fiscal year to be used for costs incurred by the Department from developing and *DRS15438-MLa-175* General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 implementing a marketing campaign to make the public aware of G.S.
There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Public Safety the sum of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) in nonrecurring funds for the 2026-2027 fiscal year to be used for costs incurred by the Department from developing and *S985-v-1* General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 implementing a marketing campaign to make the public aware of G.S.
Page 2 DRS15438-MLa-175
Page 2 Senate Bill 985-First Edition
⬇ Download PDF
View plain text versions (2)

Action History

  1. Withdrawn From Com

  2. Re-ref to Judiciary. If fav, re-ref to Appropriations/Base Budget

  3. Passed 1st Reading

  4. Ref To Com On Rules and Operations of the Senate

  5. Filed

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

Export CSV (upgrade) →

0 sponsors · 7 co-sponsors · 172 not signed on

Sponsors (0)

None.

Co-sponsors (7)

Not signed on (172)

172 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 172 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

public-safety healthcare
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

Who sponsors SB 985?
SB 985 is sponsored by Norman W. Sanderson (Republican), Timothy D. Moffitt (Republican), Mark Hollo (Republican), Carl Ford (Republican), Danny Earl Britt, Jr. (Republican), Chris Measmer (Republican), and Todd Johnson (Republican).
What is the current status of SB 985?
This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced April 30, 2026. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track SB 985?
Track SB 985 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

Make your voice heard on SB 985

Find the representatives who decide this bill and tell them where you stand — for yourself, or mobilize your whole list in one click with One Click Politics advocacy software.

Find my representatives → Run a campaign

Stay ahead of SB 985

Last checked for changes 3 months ago · updated continuously

One Click Politics tracks every bill in Congress and all 50 states.

Track this bill →