The March 15 primary marks the first election for North Carolina’s new voter ID requirement. While the State Board of Elections is urging people to bring photo IDs to the polls, critics such as the state NAACP have been sending voters mixed messages about whether they actually need their photo IDs to cast a ballot. Carolina Journal Managing Editor Rick Henderson discusses the controversy. Recent tax reforms have had a major positive impact on North Carolina’s standing compared to its neighbors and across the country. That’s the assessment of Scott Drenkard of the Tax Foundation. He shared his analysis recently with state lawmakers. Since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the N.C. Dental Board’s rule blocking nondentists from offering teeth-whitening services, state policymakers have been pondering the impact on other state licensing boards. You’ll hear highlights from a recent discussion of the topic. During a recent panel discussion on state Medicaid expansion at Wake Forest University, Katherine Restrepo served as the lone voice raising concerns about expansion. You’ll learn why Restrepo, the John Locke Foundation’s health and human services policy analyst, opposes expansion plans. Plus JLF Director of Research and Education Studies Terry Stoops analyzes recent debates about the best ways to improve teacher pay in North Carolina.