New reporting from The Assembly and the News & Observer reinforce the need for the General Assembly to take oversight and accountability of state dollars more seriously. The General Assembly has funneled $55 million, collectively, to the U.S. Performance Center and the North Carolina Sports Legacy Foundation in order to “lure national governing bodies to Charlotte.” 

The money was supposedly for capital needs, but reporting shows millions going to other purposes:

• USPC has charged nearly $10 million to itself for consulting services

• USPC has spent nearly $3 million on salaries and benefits

• Including $800,000 to two people, Ike Belk and David Koerner

• More than $4 million on “services rendered to Olympic teams”

• $1.6 million on “USPC Olympic Services” 

• And more than $4.5 million to outside consultants

“Using taxpayer money for the purpose of enriching for-profit ventures, I don’t think we should be doing that, period,” Former Rep. Charles Graham told The Assembly.

House Democratic Leader Robert Reives has called for increased oversight of no-bid contracts and wasteful government spending in recent budgets. 

“Leadership in the General Assembly continues to prioritize enriching their friends and donors at the expense of everyday North Carolinians,” House Democratic Leader Robert Reives said. “I am glad that OSBM and the State Auditor are aware of the potential issues with how this funding is being spent. We should not have to wait for outside parties and reporters to do this work.”

“The General Assembly has an ideal venue for investigating this type of potentially wasteful spending: The Joint Legislative Commission on Governmental Operations. GovOps ‘ensures that tax dollars are utilized in an efficient and effective manner.’ This would be a good opportunity for the committee to exercise real oversight and live up to its purported mission.”