- “It’s imperative that the General Assembly send a strong message to our law enforcement agencies that we’ve got their backs and value their dedication to keeping us safe," said Sen. Warren Daniel.
The North Carolina Senate voted 48–0 to approve the “Back the Blue Pay Act,” an appropriations measure that boosts pay for state law-enforcement and correctional officers and creates a first-of-its-kind, state-funded $3,000 bonus over the biennium for both state and local law-enforcement officers.
“Every morning, the hardworking men and women in law enforcement wake up and put their lives on the line to keep us safe,” Senate Leader Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, said in a statement after passage. “This salary package represents the General Assembly’s commitment to supporting and honoring those who protect us day in and day out.”
What the bill funds
- Correctional officers: 6.5% raise; with step increases, 8.9% total
- Probation & Parole: 6.9% total including steps
- State law-enforcement officers (including State Capitol Police, Marine Fisheries, Forestry, Parks & Wildlife Resources): 6.5% raise
- State Highway Patrol (SHP), SBI, ALE: The bill standardizes an experience-based salary schedule and provides a 6.5% raise for sworn members. According to Berger’s floor remarks, the plan allocates $10.9 million to implement the schedule — returning SBI/ALE to a step schedule yields an average 14.4% increase including steps, and Highway Patrol averages 9.2% including steps.
- Juvenile justice: $5.1 million recurring to adjust the salary schedule and add an across-the-board increase
- SBI administrative employees: 5.75% in Year One of the biennium
- Line-of-duty death benefit: increased to $150,000 for public-safety employees
- Pensions: increases for the Firefighters’ and Rescue Squad Workers’ Pension Fund and the National Guard Pension Fund
- NC National Guard: $3 million nonrecurring over the biennium and $1.5 million recurring beginning FY 2026–27 for recruitment and retention bonuses
The bill appropriates $62.7 million recurring in FY 2025–26 and $64.2 million recurring in FY 2026–27 for salary increases, and $41.0 million in each year for the law-enforcement bonuses.
Budget backdrop
With negotiations over a comprehensive two-year budget still incomplete, lawmakers are advancing targeted appropriations to address immediate needs. The “Back the Blue Pay Act” functions as a mini-spending plan, moving pay schedules, bonuses, and benefit changes for public-safety agencies independently of the larger budget. In a press release distributed after the vote, Senate Republicans emphasized it as a recruitment-and-retention push.
“This bill keeps our state law enforcement agencies competitive to recruit and retain highly qualified officers,” said Sen. Danny Britt, R-Robeson.
The unanimous vote sends the Senate’s law-enforcement pay package on to the NC House.
“For those that make the ultimate sacrifice, we’re going to ensure that their loved ones are taken care of and their memory is never forgotten,” said Sen. Buck Newton, R-Wilson.
