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Jordan Re-files for NC House District 93 – Ashe/Watauga Counties, A Record of Service to the High Country

From Office of N.C. Rep. Jordan: 

Feb. 19, 2014. On Friday, Feb. 21, Republican Jonathan C. Jordan will file his application for a third term as the NC House Representative for District 93, which includes all of Ashe and Watauga Counties. A local attorney, Jordan has been a strong advocate for the citizens of the district during his time in Raleigh. During this past session he served as Co-Chair of a Judiciary Committee.

“I am reapplying for the job based on my record, and I am pleased to compare my record to any challenger,” Jordan stated. “For example, I am proud that the legislature this session voted to appropriate more funds for education than has ever been done before in North Carolina. In fact, contrary to misleading information you may hear, North Carolina ranks 8th in the nation for state support for education. Our state funding stands at 58.2% of total education funding, with the national average being only 44.1%.”

Jordan
Jordan

The North Carolina Association of County Commissioners estimates that if education were not supported so strongly at the state level, but dropped to the national average, citizens across the state would experience average property tax increases of 40%.

“I have fought to limit cuts to the small school funding program, which provides critical budget support to our stateʼs small school systems, including Ashe; to give our local school systems more flexibility with calendar start dates; and to retain the Teaching Fellows program and Masterʼs degree pay for teachers currently pursuing the credential,” Jordan stated. “Though we didnʼt prevail on every point, I will continue to use what I have learned in my time in Raleigh to advance our areaʼs unique needs and interests.”

During the past Long Session, seven bills on which Rep. Jordan was lead sponsor passed into law. These included the following:

•          H269 to expand the program that provides educational scholarships to children with disabilities, allowing their families to meet those special needs;

• H533, applicable to Ashe, Cumberland, and Wilkes Counties, allowing private police at hospitals to lawfully detain involuntary commitments transported by local law enforcement, thus freeing local law enforcement officers to patrol and protect the community; and

•          H774 to exempt certain primitive camp facilities from unnecessary and burdensome building code regulations due to the unique educational functions they serve (for example, Turtle Island Preserve in Watauga County would qualify).

Along with Rep. Jeffrey Elmore of Wilkes County, Rep. Jordan also sponsored a House Resolution honoring local bluegrass legend Doc Watson, who passed away May 29, 2012.

“I have tried to focus on issues that were important to our local area as well as to the state as a whole, and to champion many whose voices arenʼt often heard: Children with disabilities, small businesses, agriculture, camps focusing on traditional methods of living, adoptees, crime victims, and abused and neglected children,” said Rep. Jordan.

Rep. Jordan was recognized as a “2013 Legislative Champion” by the anti-drunk driving group Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD). “While we cannot prevent every death and injury on our roads and highways, those caused by driving while impaired can be prevented. Our citizens can be safer. Requiring interlocks for all offenders will do something that our current efforts cannot – keep impaired drivers from operating vehicles,” said Rep. Jordan.

Rep. Jordan was also recognized, for the third year in a row, as a “Defender of Liberty” by the American Conservative Union (ACU) for his support of limited government, promoting prosperity and individual freedom, defending traditional values, and adherence to the Constitution. Rep. Jordan has maintained this conservative standing since the ACU first began rating state legislators in 2011.

Overall, 13 bills on which Rep. Jordan was a primary sponsor passed both chambers of the legislature and were signed into law by the Governor. There were many more he successfully supported as a co- sponsor. During the upcoming May Short Session in Raleigh, there are several bills Rep. Jordan championed as a primary sponsor that are eligible to be considered and could be passed into law.

Jordan practices law in the High Country with a primary focus on real estate, wills and trusts, traffic issues, and business law. He has also served as a Guardian ad Litem Attorney Advocate, representing abused and neglected children in county Department of Social Services cases. Jordan previously served on the board of the Ashe County Home Builders Association, the Ashe County Free Medical Clinic, and the Ashe County Pregnancy Care Center. He currently serves on the board of the Ashe County Chamber of Commerce. Jordan and his wife, Tracie McMillan Jordan, reside in Jefferson and have a young son and daughter in the Ashe County Public Schools.