Students, educators and parents eyed in House budget proposal
(The Center Square) – Students, educators and parents get a boost in the budget amendment proposal of North Carolina’s House of Representatives released Monday evening.
Education, as it was when passed on Sept. 22, is at the forefront and gets increases for the coming fiscal year that begins July 1. If enacted, teachers’ starting salaries would rise to a floor of $44,000; pay for having a master’s degree would be restored; and Opportunity Scholarships – school choice for all – would be fully funded.
More than 50,000 students are on the waiting list for the scholarships. Students and their families can use them to attend traditional public schools, public charter schools or private schools. North Carolina became the 10th state, and the first without a Republican government trifecta, to free students to attend the school of their choice regardless of ZIP code.
The state operates on a two-year budget, for which $60.7 billion agreement was reached on Sept. 22. There is $17.3 billion for education in the current fiscal year ending June 30, and $17.9 billion in 2024-25. Education already claims more than half of each year’s budget.
Additionally, there’s $135 million for child care stabilization grants.
State retirees would get 2% additional cost of living adjustment bonus.
State correctional officers are in line for a 9% raise.
The Republican-controlled Senate and the House, as recently as last week, were said to be far apart on spending. Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, always distant in budget proposals from the two chambers during his previous seven years, has long championed spending more in education for public schools, with a disdain for both public charter schools and Opportunity Scholarships.
“Parents must be empowered to make the best education choices for their families regardless of income status, but school choice is not a zero-sum game,” said House Speaker Tim Moore, R-Cleveland.
Republican Reps. Jeffrey Elmore of Wilkes County, Donny Lambeth of Forsyth County and Dean Arp of Union County are co-chairmen of the Appropriations Committee moving the substitute for House Bill 263. Uncertainty created in large part by President Joe Biden’s economic policies, they say, has many Americans including North Carolinians struggling and particularly those with children.
“At a time of economic uncertainty, this House budget restrains spending growth while also dealing with the most pressing needs of our state,” Arp said. “We utilized just two reserves – the Economic Development Reserve to fulfill our commitments to bring Toyota’s manufacturing jobs to this state, and the Medicaid Stabilization Reserve, which will address an unexpected one-time increase in Medicaid costs. The savings reserve is untouched and remains at record highs.”
If a proposal is not ready on time, the previous spending plan remains intact—there is no government shutdown.
