News
NC lawmakers unveil long-awaited state budget
Lawmakers unveiled a $34B state budget with raises, tax cuts, Helene recovery, Medicaid oversight, and final votes expected this week.
Opinion
Amending NC’s constitution is a serious matter
Constitutionalizing existing laws that face no imminent repeal is not principled constitutional design; it is entrenchment for its own sake, aimed at making it harder for a future legislature to govern.
News
Uncertainty lingers as NC awaits budget release
A June 15 release date of a new state budget from the North Carolina General Assembly has been circulating in Raleigh over the past several days. While he remains hopeful that it is true, Democratic Gov. Josh Stein said he isn’t so sure based on past experience.
Opinion
Countering confusion about NC flat tax’s impact
Carolina Forward deserves credit for including the words “same rate.” But the commentary still suggests that taxpayers with $40,000 incomes and those with $4 million incomes pay the same tax.
News
Stein warns against lowering NC income tax cap
Gov. Josh Stein is calling a proposed constitutional amendment to lower the state’s constitutional income tax cap from 7% to 3.5% "a con, a cynical shell game and a millionaire protection cap" that will only hurt the average North Carolinian and benefit the wealthy.
News
NAACP slams court rulings upholding NC voter ID, tax cap amendments
The North Carolina State Conference of the NAACP is urging the state’s second-highest court to overturn trial court decisions upholding two state constitutional amendments from 2018.
Opinion
Budget deal sets up a busy week
As lawmakers finalize the details of that budget, I hope they take one more factor into consideration: NC is not adequately prepared for another natural or economic disaster.
News
Senate GOP proposes ballot measure to lower income tax cap to 3.5%
North Carolina voters could decide in 2026 whether to lower the state income tax cap from 7% to 3.5%.
News
Federal, state tax changes to hit NC taxpayers in 2026
North Carolina taxpayers will face a significant shift in the tax landscape for 2026, including a reduced state income tax rate and new deductions in the federal "One Big Beautiful Bill." The IRS recently updated its withholding tool to reflect the federal changes.
Opinion
What I saw in a state with no income tax
In Washington, their lack of income tax aligns with a broader cultural ethos of cultivating innovation and entrepreneurship, which resonates across party lines.
Opinion
NC deserves its own DOGE to reduce inflated state budgets
NC can take a page from the ambitious cost-cutting playbook of the incoming Trump administration and its unofficial Department of Government Efficiency, or "DOGE."
Opinion
A proposal to partially save Social Security
A few decades ago, there were 16 workers paying taxes into Social Security for every retiree; now it's 2.5 per retiree. The next generation can not bear this burden.
