Gov. Perdue urges reforms clipping new GOP lawmakers

RALEIGH, NC (AP) — Democratic Gov. Bev Perdue wants legislators to adopt much-discussed changes that would limit their power now that Republicans are about to take control of the General Assembly for the first time in more than a century.

Perdue spoke Wednesday to a meeting of legislators getting an update on the state’s economy and finances as they prepare for an expected budget gap of more than $3 billion.

Perdue proposed lawmakers limit the length of their annual legislative sessions, open their correspondence and files to more public scrutiny, and create an independent panel to handle the job of rewriting the borders of legislative and congressional districts.

The districts are redrawn every decade once results of the US Census show what areas have grown and declined.

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