From Carolina Journal Radio Program No. 736: It’s rare for a legislative body to take an overwhelming public vote against a bill. But the N.C. Senate recently took that step to block a proposed Megaproject Fund for transportation. Senators explained during their debate that they fear the Megaproject concept…
As N.C. state government continues to consider policies that benefit the solar energy industry, residents of one Beaufort County community are fighting a proposed 600-acre solar facility planned near a local school. Rick Henderson, Carolina Journal editor-in-chief, explains why people in Terra Ceia are raising concerns about the project. North…
Senate leader Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, and House Speaker Tim Moore, R-Cleveland, used Gov. Roy Cooper’s own words to urge him to sign a $23 billion General Fund budget, reminding him the N.C. Constitution gives more power to the General Assembly than the executive branch. Flanked by large posters — one with…
Gov. Roy Cooper and Republican legislative leaders seemed to be discussing two different documents when they spoke to reporters this week about the General Assembly’s budget conference report. Cooper lashed out at legislative Republicans on Tuesday, calling their compromise $23 billion spending plan possibly “the most fiscally irresponsible budget I…
The $23 billion House and Senate budget compromise will include a 3.1 percent increase in spending in the 2017-18 budget year, which is higher than the two chambers agreed to several months ago when budget writing began. (Committee report here. Table of Contents for Senate Bill 527 here.
Former Republican Gov. Pat McCrory says Roy Cooper, his Democratic successor, is repaying his trial lawyer campaign contributors by hiring them for expensive, politically motivated lawsuits against the GOP-led General Assembly. In a wide-ranging interview with Carolina Journal, McCrory also accused Cooper of massive firings of people hired during McCrory’s…
State senators fear a new Megaproject Fund could erode a key 2013 transportation reform.
The House budget includes more than $3 billion in transportation funding each year of the biennium, in addition to the General Fund appropriations for other state operations. In 2017-18 the House budgets $2.26 billion in transportation-related taxes and fees to the Highway Fund, which pays for…
Once clear message from the 2017 budget discussion: School choice remains a priority for the General Assembly. Both the House and Senate have included funding increases for Opportunity Scholarships in their respective budgets, with a few key differences. • The House…
RALEIGH — N.C. House budget writers’ decision to mirror the Senate’s overall goal of $22.9 billion in General Fund spending next year should pave the way for relatively quick agreement between the House and Senate on budget details. Both the House and Senate would spend substantially less than Gov. Roy Cooper…
