Carolina Journal News Reports
CJ Series

Tax Reform

North Carolina's tax system is more than a half-century old, and talk of updating it to reflect changes in the ways the state collects revenues is expected to intensify in the 2013 legislative session. Several proposals are under consideration, so keep up with the debate by referring to these stories.

(2.01.13) A Status Report on Tax Reform
Gov. Pat McCrory, House Speaker Thom Tillis, and Senate leader Phil Berger have all committed to the goal of adopting a pro-growth tax code.

(1.30.13) New Study Skews Data on N.C. Tax Burdens
RALEIGH -- There's no reason to believe a new report's claim that North Carolina's tax system takes a "much larger share" from middle- and low-income families than from families with higher incomes. The John Locke Foundation documents how the misuse of selected federal tax data leads left-leaning analysts to the wrong conclusions.

(1.25.13) FAQs on State Tax Reform
Tax reform is a complicated issue. It isn’t just an economic or fiscal issue. Politics will inevitably play a role.

(1.24.13) Competing Tax Plans Seek To Stimulate Investment and Growth
RALEIGH — Efforts are under way to make North Carolina the first state since Alaska in 1980 to eliminate taxes on total personal income. Competing proposals also would launch a pro-growth tax reform renaissance that would scrap corporate income taxes that discourage capital investment and savings.

(1.23.13) JLF Tax Reform Proposal Could Generate 80,500 Jobs in First Year
RALEIGH — Replacing North Carolina's existing income, corporate, sales, and estate taxes with a new consumed-income tax dubbed the USA Tax could generate 80,500 new jobs in the first year, while boosting the state's economy by $11.76 billion. Those numbers are based on an outside analysis of tax reform proposals included in the John Locke Foundation's new book, First in Freedom: Transforming Ideas Into Consequences for North Carolina. JLF is releasing the book as new North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory and a Republican-led General Assembly turn their attention to potential tax reforms.