1. Buried in North Carolina's 600+ page budget is a little-noticed provision that creates a secret police force, controlled by Republicans, with extraordinary powers

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2. The budget grants the Gov Ops Committee the right to seize “any document or system of record” from anyone who works in or w/state & local government

This includes contractors or any entity that directly or indirectly receives state funds, including charities and colleges

3. It gets worse. Gov Ops staff will be authorized to enter “any building or facility” owned or leased by a state or non-state entity without a judicial warrant.

This includes private homes, if it includes a home office of a contractor

popular.info/p/north-caroli…

4. Alarmingly, public employees under investigation will be required to keep all communication and requests “confidential.” They cannot alert their supervisor of the investigation nor consult with legal counsel.

Those who refuse to cooperate face jail time and fines of up to 1K