The nearly $20 billion state budget that survived Gov. Beverly Perdue’s veto places North Carolina in a more sustainable position than the plan Perdue and her allies had pushed.
Joe Coletti explains why in a new Spotlight report. You’ll find details here.
“Given the governor’s veto, this is likely the best possible budget that could have made it through the legislature,” said Joseph Coletti, JLF Director of Health and Fiscal Policy Studies. “Lawmakers accomplished their most important task of the year by passing a budget with no tax increases and a significant rebalancing of state government spending.”
Families will feel positive impacts from the budget’s tax provisions, Coletti said.
“By sticking with their campaign promise to eliminate a temporary sales tax, Republican legislative leaders have helped taxpayers across the state,” he said. “Households will have about $200 more to spend, save, and invest. This budget avoids the governor’s plan to swipe another $800 million from the private-sector economy. Beacon Hill Institute researchers estimate that allowing the sales tax to expire will lead to a net gain of 11,000 jobs.”
Coletti calls the new budget a “good starting point.” “There’s still work to do,” he said. “Lawmakers should look for additional savings in corporate welfare. The legislature also should use this budget as the basis for reforming the tax system and state employee pay and benefits.”
