You can do all the studies and climate change research you want, you're just not allowed to use those non-prohibited studies to formulate policy. The law state

You can do all the studies and climate change research you want, you're just not allowed to use those non-prohibited studies to formulate policy. The law states that any predictions of sea level rises must be based on historical trends, and must not include any assumptions of accelerated sea level rises due to e.g.: melting ice. Further, any policies that take sea level into account must only use the officially sanctioned predictions. So the headline is accurate: NC banned policies based on sea level rise forecasts (where the forecasts aren't the officially accepted ones based on historical trends). The main concern is real estate values, with the industry lobbying the government to hide any dire predictions that would reduce the value of beachfront real estate. One of the analogies used at the time was "…[you can say] to your doctor, 'don't do any tests on me, and if you do tests and find something wrong you're not allowed to tell me for four years." https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-northcarolina/north-carolina-lawmakers-reject-sea-level-rise-predictions-idUSBRE86217I20120703 https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-northcarolina/north-c...