Housing recovery applications for Hurricane Helene victims close on December 31, and state officials are urging storm-impacted homeowners to get paperwork in before the deadline. State Treasurer Briner is also pushing back on activists’ “divestment” claims, arguing the state’s investment strategy remains focused on returns, not politics. Meanwhile, the State Health Plan has climbed out of a major deficit and is now back in the black. On the energy front, federal officials are opposing Duke Energy’s request for the U.S. Supreme Court to hear its anti-monopoly appeal, keeping pressure on the utility in a closely watched case.