Attorney General Stein, Leader Reives and House Democrats Highlight Budget Delay Impact on North Carolinians
Today, Attorney General Josh Stein, House Democratic Leader Robert Reives, Rep. Julie von Haefen and Rep. Wesley Harris highlighted the impact that the delayed State Budget is having on North Carolinians.
House Democratic Leader Robert Reives spoke about the breakdown in the budget negotiations and why it is important for Medicaid expansion to move separately from the budget process.
"Everybody in this state is waiting on something in this budget," House Democratic Leader Robert Reives said. "I want to echo Governor Cooper's urge to decouple Medicaid expansion from the budget, because we're looking at a prolonged standoff it seems. This month alone, 9,000 people will lose Medicaid access because of the delays. It is imperative that we come up with a budget that we can get passed."
Attorney General Josh Stein spoke about the impact that the prolonged budget delay is having on local law enforcement retention and recruitment.
"Public-spirited law enforcement officers play a huge role in protecting the people of North Carolina," Attorney General Josh Stein said. "We are incredibly grateful to law enforcement for their dedication and their bravery. But too many cities, towns, and counties are experiencing shortages of law enforcement in their departments. I am urging the budget conference committee to appropriate the resources necessary to help local law enforcement agencies hire and keep good cops. It is not enough to say that we honor and respect the work of law enforcement. We need to put our money where our mouths are."
Rep. Julie von Haefen spoke about the uncertainty that the budget process is causing for school districts across the state.
"When the fiscal year began on July 1st without a new budget, all of our state’s nonrecurring appropriations ended, which amounts to about a $124 million dollar budget cut for NC public schools around the state. While some of that money is in both our House and Senate proposed budgets, none of it is currently available despite year-round schools already beginning the 2023-24 school year, and our traditional schools set to open in about six weeks," Rep. Julie von Haefen said. "How can we possibly ask our administrators to begin operating our schools when they don’t even know what the state appropriation is going to be for their districts? With the current impasse in negotiations, our school personnel are getting the worst option: Nothing at all.”
Rep. Wesley Harris spoke about how the failure to produce a budget has put state workers in a difficult position.
"Every day that the Legislature fails to produce a budget is another day that state employees do not see a raise and that our retirees on fixed income do not see cost of living adjustments," Rep. Wesley Harris said. "And this shouldn’t be a partisan issue -- even Republican members of the Council of State have spoken out about the need to recruit and retain talent in our state agencies. So for now, the failure to produce a state budget in time for this fiscal year is leaving most North Carolinians in a very tough place.”
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