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While publicly lobbying for the $2 billion Connect NC bond referendum that will be on the March 15 ballot, Gov. Pat McCrory and members of his administration say the measure will be fiscally prudent, reducing state General Fund debt over the next five years.
Published: Wednesday, January 20th, 2016 @ 4:23 am
By: John Locke Foundation
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The Rev. Jeremiah Wright told attendees of a Sept. 19 event at a progressive church in Chapel Hill he is "giddily happy" with the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement, blamed U.S. foreign policy for the rise of ISIS, and took swipes at President Obama for failing to push racial reparations and...
Published: Saturday, October 3rd, 2015 @ 4:57 pm
By: John Locke Foundation
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State taxpayers will pay $400 million less over the next two years if lawmakers pass a $21.735 billion state budget deal announced Monday by legislative leaders. The 2016-17 state budget also expands the sales tax base to include more repair and service work to help offset the tax rate reductions.
Published: Thursday, September 17th, 2015 @ 3:26 am
By: John Locke Foundation
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An environmental group lauding North Carolina for ranking No. 4 nationally in solar energy capacity agrees with foes of renewable energy mandates — the state's purported boom in clean energy mostly results from the government forcing utilities to purchase the higher-cost energy, along with...
Published: Wednesday, September 16th, 2015 @ 3:25 am
By: John Locke Foundation
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State Rep. Rob Bryan plans to introduce legislation creating a pilot program transforming as many as five perpetually failing elementary schools into charter-like entities under a new Achievement School District with its own superintendent.
Published: Wednesday, August 26th, 2015 @ 5:55 pm
By: John Locke Foundation
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The Senate on Tuesday rejected a last-minute amendment that would expand Medicaid eligibility, and with 34-10 bipartisan support passed a bill making sweeping changes to the government insurance program for the poor, elderly, and disabled.
Published: Friday, August 21st, 2015 @ 3:30 am
By: John Locke Foundation
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North Carolina school districts should face few challenges administering a split tenure system for teachers following a state Court of Appeals opinion which maintained job protection for long-term teachers while eliminating it for those entering the profession, one official says.
Published: Wednesday, June 24th, 2015 @ 4:04 pm
By: John Locke Foundation
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Some Durham residents have raised alarms over what they view as a hidden, illegal tax imposed by city government in the yard waste removal program.
Published: Friday, June 12th, 2015 @ 2:50 am
By: John Locke Foundation
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North Carolina hospitals argue that dismantling regulations in the state's certificate of need laws would impair their ability to treat indigent patients. A research scholar at George Mason University's Mercatus Center says empirical studies conclude such dire warnings are little more than a...
Published: Tuesday, May 26th, 2015 @ 9:05 pm
By: John Locke Foundation
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Whether U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan's keynote address at N.C. Central University's 125th commencement ceremony illustrated what is wrong with the liberal stranglehold on higher education, or properly embraces an emerging social paradigm, likely depends on your own politics.
Published: Monday, May 25th, 2015 @ 12:27 am
By: John Locke Foundation
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A withering state audit uncovered a pattern of abuses by a division director at the Department of Health and Human Services, unearthing $1.6 million in excessive salaries and wages, rampant nepotism, failure to follow state policies, and continuing lax oversight at the agency.
Published: Sunday, May 17th, 2015 @ 12:51 am
By: John Locke Foundation
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The House on Tuesday approved a Senate bill that would extend the state's 35 percent renewable energy tax credit - set to expire at the end of 2015 - by one year to allow several major solar farms to hook up to the power grid. Over five years, the solar companies could collect as much as...
Published: Tuesday, April 28th, 2015 @ 5:49 pm
By: John Locke Foundation
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House Republicans are taking another whack at ending subsidies attached to government-mandated purchases of renewable energy. House Bill 681 would require solar and other "green" power to compete with traditional fuel sources in the government-regulated electricity industry and determine the energy
Published: Saturday, April 18th, 2015 @ 12:19 pm
By: John Locke Foundation
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Right-leaning lawyers and legal analysts agree that the courts are a vital venue for preserving constitutional rights. But they note a surprising trend of conservative support for using judicial activism to achieve that aim rather than the traditional conservative deference to state and federal...
Published: Thursday, April 16th, 2015 @ 7:45 pm
By: John Locke Foundation
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A State Board of Education task force may scrap longstanding end-of-grade tests for a system of interim assessments designed to provide more reliable and immediate data to identify students who need help in core subject areas.
Published: Thursday, April 16th, 2015 @ 4:18 pm
By: John Locke Foundation
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The Senate Finance Committee on April 2 approved a bill with bipartisan support to extend by one year eligibility for the state's 35 percent renewable energy tax credit. The legislation is intended to provide "a soft landing " to large solar projects already in the regulatory approval and...
Published: Monday, April 13th, 2015 @ 8:11 pm
By: John Locke Foundation
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Howard Mortman, C-SPAN communications director, pleasantly strolled me down Memory Lane during his recent lecture at William Peace University concerning the rise of social media. Then he slapped me back into a present and petrifying reality. More about that downpage.
Published: Thursday, April 2nd, 2015 @ 4:08 am
By: John Locke Foundation
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A U.S. Supreme Court decision that many opponents of restrictive occupational licensing rules saw as a victory for small-scale entrepreneurs may wind up being a setback, as the General Assembly's Program Evaluation Division wants to create an Occupational Licensing Commission to supervise...
Published: Tuesday, March 24th, 2015 @ 5:07 pm
By: John Locke Foundation
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A three-judge panel of the state Court of Appeals has scheduled oral arguments for April 6 in a high-profile case pitting the public's access to official records against government attempts to suppress information from public view.
Published: Monday, March 23rd, 2015 @ 11:48 pm
By: John Locke Foundation
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Senate Republicans are pushing bills to reduce the state corporate income tax rate from 5 percent this year to 3 percent in 2017, and restructure the manner in which corporate taxes are calculated. The intent behind the legislation is to make the state more business-friendly and better able to...
Published: Monday, March 23rd, 2015 @ 10:29 pm
By: John Locke Foundation
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Potentially "tragic" results could occur because the professional board that regulates the state's dentists issues sedation permits before it inspects dental facilities, and does not conduct compliance checks to ensure dentists can deliver anesthesia safely and respond to medical emergencies...
Published: Tuesday, March 10th, 2015 @ 10:28 pm
By: John Locke Foundation
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Replicating a cost-saving Illinois reform program could root out Medicaid fraud and abuse, but if not done properly, the state could be forced to repay the federal government for any misspent dollars, a key Senate Republican says.
Published: Sunday, March 8th, 2015 @ 1:46 pm
By: John Locke Foundation
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In a decision released Wednesday, a 6-3 majority of the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the North Carolina State Board of Dental Examiners violated federal antitrust laws by engaging in self-dealing in ordering service providers that do not have dental licenses to cease and desist from whitening...
Published: Friday, February 27th, 2015 @ 6:10 am
By: John Locke Foundation
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North Carolina consumers could be the biggest losers after one of three insurance carriers that applied to participate in the Obamacare federal exchange announced its decision on Thursday to withdraw from the government-approved marketplace, health experts say. They cite the lack of competition...
Published: Wednesday, September 18th, 2013 @ 10:37 pm
By: John Locke Foundation
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