North Carolina’s longstanding elevator inspection backlog may soon see relief after the General Assembly passed House Bill 559 — known as the “Make Elevators Great Again” (MEGA) Act — this week. Labor Commissioner Luke Farley praised lawmakers for advancing what he called a “common-sense” measure aimed at strengthening public safety and modernizing outdated systems.
The bill, introduced as an agency request by the North Carolina Department of Labor (NCDOL), now awaits Governor Josh Stein’s signature. If enacted, the law will allow the state’s Elevator and Amusement Device Bureau to increase certain inspection and certificate issuance fees for the first time in years. The revenue boost will be used to raise inspector salaries to competitive market rates and reduce delays that have left thousands of elevators past due for required safety checks.
“As staffing levels rise, North Carolinians will see faster inspections and a stronger, more responsive safety system,” said North Carolina Labor Commissioner Luke Farley in a press release. “With MEGA, we’re not just making elevators great again — we’re making government work again, efficiently and responsibly.”
The MEGA Act proposes removing statutory fee caps on inspections across several areas:
- Elevator inspections, previously capped at $200
- Amusement devices, capped at $250
- Passenger trams, capped at $137
New ceilings would include $500 per roller coaster, $300 per water slide, and $50 per go-kart. Any future changes to fees must be published 60 days in advance in the North Carolina Register.
Importantly, the bill also gives the Commissioner of Labor discretion to waive or amend certain American National Safety Standards. Under the proposed law, alternative safety requirements may be issued, provided they are “reasonably equivalent” to national standards.
Commissioner Farley said nearly a quarter of inspection positions were unfilled when he took office in January 2025. The labor shortage created a bottleneck in elevator and amusement ride inspections, damaging public trust and slowing operations at commercial properties, residential buildings, and entertainment venues statewide.
By operating under a receipt-supported model — where services are funded through user fees, not tax revenue — the Department of Labor expects the MEGA Act to solve staffing shortages and improve service delivery without additional taxpayer spending.
If signed into law by the governor, implementation will begin immediately with the goal of clearing inspection backlogs and boosting public confidence in elevator and amusement ride safety.
