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NCGA Update: Budget Deal (Seems) Close; 3 Constitutional Amendments Proposed

NC General Assembly

Morning Edition Host Marshall Terry and WFAE reporter Tom Bullock talk about where the NCGA stands with the budget and three constitutional amendments proposed by the North Carolina Senate

NC General Assembly

This week is a big week for the North Carolina General Assembly. The state’s fiscal year ends on Friday. But the budget still needs to be passed and lawmakers aren’t just working on that. The Senate today is expected to vote on atrio of amendmentsto the North Carolina constitution.  

WFAE’s Tom Bullock talks with Morning Edition Host Marshall Terry.

MT: Let’s start with the $22.2 billion question, where do we stand on the budget negotiations?

TB: As of right now, there is no compromise budget. But negotiations have been underway for weeks. And have progressed to the point that Senate Pro Temp Phil Berger and House Speaker Tim Moore are directly involved in the process, which means a deal could be announced at any time. And if they are to stay on schedule it probably needs to come out Monday.

MT: Remind us what are the sticking points.

TB: This year’s budget negotiations have taken place behind closed doors Marshall, so we don’t know specifics. But comparing the proposed budgets passed by the House and Senate and we can venture a pretty good guess.

First there’s teacher pay. The North Carolina House wants to give an average teacher raise of about 3 percent. A cost of living increase in the benefits of state retirees of 1.6 percent and a 2 percent bump in pay for all state workers.

The Senate wants to give teachers a pay boost of more than 6 percent, no cost of living increase for retirees and only targeted raises for some state workers.  

The Senate’s budget would also limit tuition at two UNC schools to $500 per semester and has a major change to environmental rules which seek to stop runoff into rivers and lakes that can lead to algae blooms and fish die offs.

The House has no such provisions in its budget.

And there is a tax cut involved. It has to do with what’s known as the standard deduction, which is the amount of personal income not taxed for those who do not itemize their returns. Both chambers want to increase that amount by $2,000 to $17,500. But the House wants that increase phased in over four years. The senate wants it in place in two years.

There are, of course, other differences between the measures, but these seem to be the big ones that need to be ironed out.

MT: And while they’re ironed out the North Carolina Senate has proposed three amendments to the state’s constitution. One deals with the use of eminent domain.

TB: That’s right Marhsall. Eminent domain is the state’s ability force the sale of private land. Currently, the statue allows eminent domain to be used in projects deemed of public use or public benefit. Other states have deemed economic development projects, think new mixed use residential and commercial projects, as a public benefit. The amendment would drop public benefit in North Carolina. And it would guarantee someone who’s forced to sell to the state could have a jury decide how much they should be compensated for the land they’re loosing.  

MT: Another proposed amendment deals with income taxes.

TB: This amendment would cap the state income tax rate at 5.5 percent. The current limit is 10 percent. It would also require lawmakers deposit 2 percent of the budget into the state’s rainy day fund every year until that fund equals 12.5 percent of the budget. That fund currently stands somewhere between 7 and 8 percent of the budget. Lawmakers could only skip making that deposit – or make a withdrawal from that fund if two-thirds of the Senate and House vote in favor of such a move. Opponents of this measure say the income tax cap and required deposit will greatly limit what the state can afford to do in future years.

The final amendment, Marshall, would proclaim that North Carolinians have a constitutional right to hunt, fish and harvest wildlife. This would not change any rules or regulations, simply codify hunting and fishing rights into the constitution.

MT: So what has to happen for these proposals to become actual amendments?

TB: First, they need to be approved by three-fifths of both the House and Senate. Then it’s up to voters in November. If passed by the General Assembly, these would each be listed as a referendum item on the general election ballot.

Copyright 2016 WFAE

Tom Bullock decided to trade the khaki clad masses and traffic of Washington DC for Charlotte in 2014. Before joining WFAE, Tom spent 15 years working for NPR. Over that time he served as everything from an intern to senior producer of NPR’s Election Unit. Tom also spent five years as the senior producer of NPR’s Foreign Desk where he produced and reported from Iraq, Afghanistan, Yemen, Haiti, Egypt, Libya, Lebanon among others. Tom is looking forward to finally convincing his young daughter, Charlotte, that her new hometown was not, in fact, named after her.
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