A new analysis from the John Locke Foundation says the Public School Forum is right that North Carolina should overhaul school funding. But it faults the Forum's demand that no district lose money, arguing the guarantee would protect shrinking, wealthier districts.
A new Public School Forum report finds that moving North Carolina to weighted student funding without new money would cut state funding for 73 of 115 school districts and more than half of the state's charter schools.
A new EdChoice survey finds 72% of school parents support the federal school-choice tax credit North Carolina opted into this spring over Gov. Josh Stein's veto, but only about a quarter have heard much about it.
State Board of Education members used their July 9 meeting to question whether the new state budget's "reinvestment" of $35.7 million in Opportunity Scholarship savings delivers new money to public schools.
A stalled slate of North Carolina education bills — from teacher licensure changes to a K-8 math screener and a school attendance pilot — didn't die in committee but were folded into the roughly $34 billion state budget lawmakers sent to Gov. Josh Stein on July 2.
North Carolina's roughly $12.5 billion K-12 budget raises school spending by about $553 million, even as public-school enrollment falls by nearly 19,000 students.
NC senators advanced a bill limiting AI in health care billing and insurance denials, citing concerns over upcoding and patient impacts.
A North Carolina Senate committee advanced Sen. Michael Lee's sweeping K-12 bill after amending it to study open enrollment. The same amendment also mandates weekly "released time" for off-campus religious instruction.
The NC Senate voted 30-19 on June 3 to override Gov. Josh Stein's veto of House Bill 87, completing the override and opting the state into a new federal school-choice tax-credit program. Beginning in 2027, the program lets individuals claim a federal tax credit of up to $1,700 for donations to organizations that fund K-12 scholarships.
An NC Senate committee on May 13 unanimously advanced Senate Bill 990, which would study a shift to weighted K-12 funding, create a $395 educational wallet pilot, and shield campus disciplinary records from open-records requests.
An NC Senate committee on May 13 unanimously advanced Senate Bill 991, which would expand workforce training for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities from 15 to 25 community colleges, commission a study of accelerated teacher pathways, and fund a $4.9 million digital credential system.
