As the House and Senate continue their budget negotiations, reports from the General Assembly indicate that House members are proposing a plan that would entail extending the ... Keep Reading
Fiscal Policy
Energy Bill Generates Hidden Taxes and Little Else
Are you willing to pay higher electricity rates to support renewable energy? If so, you're one of only about 10,000 people in North Carolina who is. That's because the ... Keep Reading
Medicaid Swap Raises Deed Stamp Tax, Relies on Unstable Revenue Source
A variety of Medicaid “swap” plans have become major sticking points in this year’s budget negotiations between the North Carolina House and Senate. These plans ... Keep Reading
The Senate Budget Plan, COPs and UNC: A Failing Grade
As Senate and House lawmakers meet to negotiate and pass a new state budget, one area likely to receive additional scrutiny is the Senate budget plan to fund $1.1 billion in new ... Keep Reading
County Medicaid Swap Or Comprehensive Reform?
Senator Dan Clodfelter (D-Mecklenburg) has recently developed a proposal to shift all nonfederal Medicaid costs in North Carolina to the state government. Unfortunately, this plan ... Keep Reading
Mixed Messages: Spending Priorities Don’t Reflect State’s True Needs
As legislators prepare to go into conference to finalize the FY2007-09 budget, the public is getting mixed messages about what programs are really essential to the good of the ... Keep Reading
Too Much of a Bad Thing? Questions About $1.22 Billion in New Debt
As the Senate and the House begin the process of reconciling what are two vastly different approaches to spending and taxation, it is a good time to review what is, perhaps, the ... Keep Reading
FY2007-2009 Budget Roundup: A Comparison of the House, Senate and Governor’s Budgets
With the House’s refusal to concur with the Senate budget last night, now is a good time to summarize the strengths and weaknesses of the three different spending plans. The ... Keep Reading
Baby Steps Toward Universal Healthcare . . . NC Health Choice and NC Kids’ Care
The good news in both the Senate and House budgets is that the expansion of NC Health Choice is again limited to 6 percent a year. The bad news is that legislators want to create a ... Keep Reading
Senate Budget Introduces Continuation Review
The Senate has taken a new approach to funding for select line items, nonprofits, and other non-state entities. All told, 32 organizations and state divisions have been put on ... Keep Reading
