---
type: "Bill"
title: "Allow Employers to Offer EPO Benefit Plans."
description: "Allow Employers to Offer EPO Benefit Plans."
jurisdiction: "us/states/nc"
legislature: "North Carolina General Assembly"
session: "2021"
identifier: "SB 228"
citation: "North Carolina SB 228 (2021)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["CHAPTERED", "COMMERCE", "CORPORATIONS", "EMPLOYMENT", "FOR-PROFIT", "HEALTH", "HEALTH SERVICES", "INSURANCE", "INSURANCE", "INSURANCE DEPT.", "PERSONNEL", "PRESENTED", "PUBLIC", "RATIFIED", "SALARIES & BENEFITS", "SMALL BUSINESS"]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Edwards", "Krawiec"]
version_count: 7
action_count: 37
vote_count: 2
first_action: "2021-03-10"
last_action: "2021-09-10"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/1c5760be-3ede-400d-a930-7c6ffabbe561"
source_url: "https://www.ncleg.gov/BillLookUp/2021/S228"
source_hash: "16d558db72d7c982add862229bda6aa0338d4dcb7aea08c2d0761dfd6d01fb54"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-nc"]
---

# North Carolina SB 228 (2021) — Allow Employers to Offer EPO Benefit Plans.

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **Filed** (filed) — [source](https://www.ncleg.gov/Sessions/2021/Bills/Senate/PDF/S228v0.pdf)
2. **Edition 1** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.ncleg.gov/Sessions/2021/Bills/Senate/PDF/S228v1.pdf)
3. **Edition 2** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.ncleg.gov/Sessions/2021/Bills/Senate/PDF/S228v2.pdf)
4. **Edition 3** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.ncleg.gov/Sessions/2021/Bills/Senate/PDF/S228v3.pdf)
5. **Edition 4** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.ncleg.gov/Sessions/2021/Bills/Senate/PDF/S228v4.pdf)
6. **Ratified** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.ncleg.gov/Sessions/2021/Bills/Senate/PDF/S228v5.pdf)
7. **SL 2021-151** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.ncleg.gov/Sessions/2021/Bills/Senate/PDF/S228v6.pdf)

## Votes

- Second Reading — **97–6** (pass) · lower
- Motion 9 To Concur — **42–0** (pass) · upper

## Sponsors

- Edwards — primary (person)
- Krawiec — primary (person)
- B. Jackson — cosponsor (person)
- Batch — cosponsor (person)
- Burgin — cosponsor (person)
- Clark — cosponsor (person)
- Corbin — cosponsor (person)
- Crawford — cosponsor (person)
- Galey — cosponsor (person)
- Hise — cosponsor (person)
- Jarvis — cosponsor (person)
- Lee — cosponsor (person)
- Lowe — cosponsor (person)
- McInnis — cosponsor (person)
- Newton — cosponsor (person)
- Salvador — cosponsor (person)
- Sanderson — cosponsor (person)
- Steinburg — cosponsor (person)
- deViere — cosponsor (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2021-09-10** Ch. SL 2021-151 `became-law`
- **2021-09-10** Signed by Gov. 9/10/2021 `executive-signature`
- **2021-08-31** Pres. To Gov. 8/31/2021 `executive-receipt`
- **2021-08-30** Ratified
- **2021-08-26** Ordered Enrolled
- **2021-08-26** Concurred In H Com Sub `amendment-passage`
- **2021-08-25** Placed On Cal For 08/26/2021
- **2021-08-25** Regular Message Received For Concurrence in H Com Sub
- **2021-08-25** Regular Message Sent To Senate
- **2021-08-24** Passed 3rd Reading `passage, reading-3`
- **2021-08-24** Passed 2nd Reading `reading-2`
- **2021-08-24** Added to Calendar
- **2021-08-24** Cal Pursuant Rule 36(b)
- **2021-08-24** Serial Referral To Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House Stricken
- **2021-08-24** Reptd Fav `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2021-08-18** Re-ref Com On Health `referral-committee`
- **2021-08-18** Reptd Fav Com Substitute `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2021-08-04** Re-ref to the Com on Insurance, if favorable, Health, if favorable, Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House `referral-committee`
- **2021-08-04** Withdrawn From Com
- **2021-05-10** Ref To Com On Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House `referral-committee`
- **2021-05-10** Passed 1st Reading `reading-1`
- **2021-05-06** Regular Message Received From Senate
- **2021-05-06** Regular Message Sent To House
- **2021-05-05** Passed 3rd Reading `passage, reading-3`
- **2021-05-05** Passed 2nd Reading `reading-2`
- **2021-05-04** Reptd Fav `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2021-04-29** Re-ref Com On Rules and Operations of the Senate `referral-committee`
- **2021-04-29** Com Substitute Adopted
- **2021-04-29** Reptd Fav Com Substitute `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2021-04-28** Re-ref Com On Health Care `referral-committee`
- **2021-04-28** Com Substitute Adopted
- **2021-04-28** Reptd Fav Com Substitute `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2021-03-18** Re-ref to Commerce and Insurance. If fav, re-ref to Health Care. If fav, re-ref to Rules and Operations of the Senate `referral-committee`
- **2021-03-18** Withdrawn From Com
- **2021-03-11** Ref To Com On Rules and Operations of the Senate `referral-committee`
- **2021-03-11** Passed 1st Reading `reading-1`
- **2021-03-10** Filed `introduction`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/1c5760be-3ede-400d-a930-7c6ffabbe561`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official North Carolina legislature records).