Gov. Roy Cooper is again pushing for a multibillion-dollar infrastructure bond, but Republican leaders caution that North Carolina’s still-unsteady economy makes it impossible to tell whether it would be prudent. In remarks to the N.C. Association of County Commissioners on Thursday, Jan.14, Cooper said “now is the time” for the state to take on a...
A new year and new members haven’t solved tensions within the N.C. Council of State. The Council of State leapt into prominence after Gov. Roy Cooper shut down the state in March. Republicans demanded a check on Cooper’s powers, and they looked to the 10 elected members of the Council of State as a solution. ...
Time is running out for North Carolina’s State Health Plan. But a solution exists, and N.C. Treasurer Dale Folwell — up for re-election Nov. 3 — is ready to help. North Carolina’s taxpayers are on the hook for $35 billion in unfunded liabilities. Their State Health Plan is set to go broke in three years. When...
Taxes and employee benefits are at the center of the race for N.C. treasurer. Republican incumbent Dale Folwell and Democrat Ronnie Chatterji are clashing over the future of the state’s finances, including its $108 billion pension fund and health plan. The candidates met recently as part of the 2020 Hometown Debate Series with Spectrum News...
Each week, staff at Carolina Journal looks back at the week in N.C. politics and chooses several interesting, relevant stories you may have missed. COVID-19 relief: The General Assembly passed a third massive COVID-19 relief package with a $1 billion price tag. House Bill 1105, aka the Coronavirus Relief Act 3.0, passed with a large...
North Carolina will make sure Tyrrell County won’t default on its debt, but the intervention buys just one year. Tyrrell County borrowed millions to build a reverse osmosis water plant and a new water tank to support its state prison in the late 2000s. But the N.C. Department of Public Safety shuttered Tyrrell Prison Work...
As a handful of North Carolina counties order residents to stay home, and State Treasurer Dale Folwell tests positive for coronavirus, Gov. Roy Cooper says he’s prepared for anything. But he’s not issuing a statewide order to shelter in place. Yet. During a news conference Wednesday, March 25, Cooper updated residents on the coronavirus situation....
Mecklenburg County’s order to keep residents at home shouldn’t signal a statewide shutdown, one expert says. In a decision that spawned questions about public transparency and accountability, Mecklenburg County Commissioners announced a shelter in place to fight the spread of COVID-19 on Tuesday, March 24. The order means residents can’t go to work, leave their...
Each week, staff at Carolina Journal looks back at the week in N.C. politics and chooses several interesting, relevant stories you may have missed. Here’s this week’s review: Contract rules: The State Board of Education is moving forward on efforts to limit the state superintendent’s ability to issue contracts. Board members took issue with how...
North Carolina should avoid borrowing billions, even though the state’s “credit card limit,” a recent study says, is more than $11 billion over the next decade, said State Treasurer Dale Folwell. The state is on the hook for $42 billion in unfunded pension, health care, and other retirement benefit liabilities for state employees. Folwell is...
The N.C. Department of Transportation shouldn’t manage its own finances, N.C. Treasurer Dale Folwell says. The transportation department overspent by about $2 billion, and Folwell is calling for a shakeup in department management. He wants the governor to sack N.C. Transportation Secretary James Trogdon and strip financial management from the DOT. The N.C. Office of...
