Bill > H459

This bill establishes the North Carolina Historically Black Colleges and Universities Innovation Endowment Fund (HBCU Innovation Fund) to support programs aimed at increasing enrollment, retention, and graduation rates at historically black colleges and universities within The University of North Carolina. The fund will be financed through the sale of special "HBCU Innovation" license plates, which will feature logos of these institutions, with a portion of the fee from these plates going to the fund, as well as through gifts, grants, contributions, and legislative appropriations. Additionally, taxpayers will have the option to donate all or part of their income tax refunds or make direct contributions to the fund through their tax returns, with these donations becoming irrevocable upon filing. The bill also outlines the process for issuing the special license plates, requiring a minimum number of applications before development, and specifies how the fees collected from these plates will be distributed.