SUMMARY: A man, 62-year-old Bryant Alton, died after his car was struck by a Norfolk Southern cargo train at the Clayton railroad crossing near Central and East Maine around 10:45 a.m. Alton reportedly tried to bypass lowered crossing arms with flashing lights when the collision occurred. The crash severely damaged his Toyota Corolla, and police closed nearby streets for investigation and cleanup. This is the second fatal train incident in Clayton this month, following the death of a 21-year-old UNCW student hit by an Amtrak train. Local residents expressed shock, and officials have yet to respond about potential safety improvements.
A Clayton man died after attempting to drive around crossing gates at a railroad crossing on Monday morning.
SUMMARY: North Carolina’s proposed House Bill 958 would require voters to provide their full Social Security numbers when registering, a move experts say violates the 1974 federal Privacy Act, which prohibits denying rights for refusing to disclose full SSNs. Current law accepts less sensitive identifiers like driver’s license numbers or the last four SSN digits. Critics, including privacy advocates and voting rights groups, warn this requirement risks identity theft and creates barriers to voting without enhancing security. Legislators sponsoring the bill have yet to justify the full SSN demand, and the measure faces legal and procedural challenges as it advances through the House.
www.thecentersquare.com – By Alan Wooten | The Center Square – (The Center Square – ) 2025-08-25 09:11:00
North Carolina motorists are paying about 30 cents less per gallon for gasoline than the national average, with the state average at $2.86 for unleaded gas and $3.45 for diesel. Prices are slightly lower in the mountains and higher along the coast. Compared to last year, gas and diesel prices have decreased. The state follows EPA rules requiring summer blend fuel until September 15, adding 10-15 cents per gallon. North Carolina has over 8 million combustion engine vehicles and more than 100,000 electric vehicles, with EV charging rates below the national average. Motor fuel taxes fund state transportation projects.
(The Center Square) – As they often have throughout the summer, motorists in North Carolina are paying about 30 cents less than the nation on average for gasoline.
Summer’s unofficial closing of Labor Day weekend arrives this week, with many families already in the state’s tourism meccas. The state average for a gallon of unleaded gasoline is $2.86, with prices a little lower in the mountains and a tick higher along the 320 miles of ocean shoreline.
A year ago, the state average was $3.11, according to the American Automobile Association. The average for diesel is $3.45, down from $3.64 a year ago.
Nationally, the unleaded gas average is $3.16, down from $3.35 last year, and diesel is $3.68, down slightly from $3.70, respectively.
Per Environmental Protection Agency rules in place from June 1 to Sept. 15, the less volatile summer blend fuel must be sold. Price impact is generally considered 10 cents to 15 cents higher per gallon.
Combustion engine consumers make up more than 8 million vehicle registrations in the nation’s ninth-largest state.
North Carolina’s electric vehicle charging rate average, according to AAA, is 33.2 cents per kilowatt-hour. The national average is 36.3 cents per kWh. More than 100,000 zero-emission vehicles are registered in the state. At the start of the calendar year, the state norm was 33.5 cents per kWh and the national was 34.7 cents per kWh.
Among 14 major metro areas, the least expensive average for unleaded gas is in Fayetteville at $2.76. The most expensive area is the Durham-Chapel Hill metro area at $2.92.
Diesel is the most consumer-friendly ($3.29) in the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton market.
North Carolina’s 40.3 cents per gallon tax rate for 2025 is topped by California (59.6), Pennsylvania (57.6), Washington (49.4), Illinois (47), Maryland (46.1), and New Jersey (44.9).
Motor fuel taxes in the state fund the Department of Transportation’s highway and multi-modal projects, accounting for more than half of the state transportation resources. The revenues go into the Highway Fund and the Highway Trust Fund.
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Centrist
This article provides a straightforward report on gasoline and diesel prices in North Carolina compared to national averages, along with information about electric vehicle charging rates and state fuel taxes. The language is neutral and factual, focusing on data, statistics, and relevant state policies without endorsing or criticizing any political ideology or party. The content neither advances a particular political perspective nor uses charged language, making it a clear example of neutral, factual reporting rather than an article with discernible political bias.
East Carolina University (ECU) aims to reopen Martin General Hospital in Eastern North Carolina as a Rural Emergency Hospital (REH), which handles outpatient and emergency cases only. This plan requires $220 million and stable Medicaid funding, both uncertain amid recent federal Medicaid cuts and North Carolina’s $319 million Medicaid shortfall. Over 40% of Martin County residents rely on Medicaid, making funding critical. Despite mixed signals—ECU’s COO doubts reopening chances—local officials remain committed. The scaled-down hospital would improve emergency access but still require residents to travel 30 minutes for inpatient care. If successful, it could serve as a model for reviving rural hospitals statewide.
by Jane Winik Sartwell, Carolina Public Press August 25, 2025
East Carolina University is officially pursuing the idea of reopening Martin General Hospital, the shuttered hospital in Eastern North Carolina. But first, it needs $220 million — and for cuts to Medicaid to stop coming.
That’s starting to seem increasingly unlikely.
The uncertainty around the plan for Martin General shows just how vulnerable rural health care access is to the headwinds of policy decisions coming out of Washington and Raleigh.
ECU filed a letter of intent in July to reopen the hospital as a Rural Emergency Hospital, a new type of hospital for the state: one that sees only outpatient, emergent cases. The designation, created in 2021 by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, is a new tool to save struggling hospitals or revive closed ones.
But the cuts to Medicaid in Donald Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill, now law, are a serious curveball. More than 40% of Martin County residents are enrolled in Medicaid. The program would be a critical funding source for the hospital.
Meanwhile, at the state level, North Carolina’s recently passed minibudget falls $319 million short of fully funding Medicaid. It’s likely that the state will have to reduce what it pays hospitals for services provided to Medicaid beneficiaries.
Hospital and county officials say that as long as the legislature provides the $220 million they need, and a permanent solution to the Medicaid problem is determined, the plan is a go. Those are some big ifs.
“ECU Health and Martin County are committed to partnering together to build a sustainable model for health care in the community,” ECU Health spokesperson Brian Wudkwych told Carolina Public Press.
“While the nonbinding letter of intent represents an important milestone, there are many complex rural health care challenges that must be solved to make the proposed rural health care model a reality in Martin County. These challenges include navigating new federal health care legislation as well as securing vital public funding needed to build a long-term, sustainable regional system of care.”
In a break from the official line, ECU’s chief operating officer Brian Floyd told the New York Times that “the chances of reopening the hospital are low” due to the loss of Medicaid expansion. But Wudkwych and Dawn Carter, a health care consultant with the county, maintain that both parties fully intend to move forward with the plan.
The signals are mixed, to say the least. For Martin County, however, the confusion hasn’t crushed its dream of restoring the hospital.
“Martin County has, for the last two years, faced obstacles one after another, and worked tirelessly to get around and through all these different issues,” Martin County attorney Ben Eisner told CPP.
“Now we’ve got these Medicaid issues and federal headwinds. This little county is one of the smallest, most rural, poorest in the state. It has risen to the occasion anytime something’s been thrown its way. This is the little engine that could.”
ECU’s proposal would create a scaled-down version of the hospital. Rural Emergency Hospitals, or REHs, are not designed to provide inpatient services that would require overnight stays — think hip replacements, C-sections or appendectomies. For that kind of care, Martin County residents would still need to travel 30 minutes to the nearest full-service hospital, ECU Health Beaufort in “Little” Washington. Part of the $220 million ECU is asking for would go towards expanding capacity there.
CMS doles out $3 million to each REH each year in order to keep their doors open. They also receive higher reimbursement rates for each patient visit.
Due to the age and condition of the building, the new REH will be relegated to a corner of the old hospital. For residents of Martin County, the reopening of the hospital in any capacity would be a major boon.
“The closure has been a huge hit to the county in terms of lack of emergency care and transport times and strain on our EMS,” Eisner said.
“There’s the medical part of it, then there’s the economic part of it. ECU Health is a major economic engine in the eastern part of the state. This would have downstream effects of hiring new providers and staff. It could be really big for the region.”
If all goes well, Martin General would become North Carolina’s first Rural Emergency Hospital, clearing a path forward for other struggling hospitals across the state.
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Center-Left
The content focuses on the challenges of rural healthcare access, emphasizing the negative impact of Medicaid cuts and the importance of public funding to support vulnerable communities. It highlights concerns about policy decisions at both federal and state levels, particularly those associated with conservative-led initiatives, while advocating for sustained government support. This perspective aligns with a center-left viewpoint that prioritizes social welfare and government intervention to address healthcare disparities.
