NC Budget

Rep. Erin Paré, a co-chair of the House Appropriations Committee, has filed legislation to increase starting teacher pay to $50,000.

The state House voted Wednesday to move about 100 jobs away from state agencies overseen by Gov. Josh Stein's administration.

Senate leader Phil Berger said Tuesday he’s not concerned by a projected $823 million drop in state revenue in 2026.

Last year, state lawmakers spent about $2 billion to fix aging water and sewer infrastructure in small towns across North Carolina. But some towns were left out of the spending plan, and this year’s budget impasse will keep them waiting even longer.

Advocates for early childhood education have long warned of a looming funding cliff as federal COVID-19 relief to the child care industry expired in June. State lawmakers passed a stop gap measure to help keep child care centers open.

The legislature adjourned its “short session” Thursday without approving a budget plan for the state’s billion-dollar revenue surplus.

Senators voted Monday night for the measure that directs $31.4 billion in spending for the next fiscal year that starts July 1. But the House plan would spend $31.7 billion and offers additional teacher and state employee pay raises.

The North Carolina House has approved a budget bill for the next 12 months that covers a massive increase in school-voucher demand and raises worker and teacher pay beyond what's already scheduled. Four House Democrats joined all Republicans present to vote for the bill late Wednesday.

State House leaders want to create a new College of Applied Science and Technology at UNC-Chapel Hill. The engineering program is included in the new budget bill heading to a floor vote Wednesday.

Republican leaders in the House and Senate have been negotiating for weeks over how to spend a projected surplus of roughly $1 billion. But the two chambers haven't reached an agreement, so the House plans to vote on its own spending plan this week.