By Staff

“We’re serious about getting a budget done, and it’s time to stop playing games,” – Sen. Tom Apodaca (R-NC48) “It’s obvious the speaker’s been traveling a lot and we need his leadership. Do I think the process would have moved along more smoothly had he been here more? Absolutely.” -Sen. Tommy Tucker (R-NC35)

Everyone on Jones St. has their eye on elections in November, even though they are supposed to be working out a budget for the North Carolina state government right now. On Tuesday, the start of the new fiscal year, Speaker of the House Thom Tillis (R-NC91) spent his day in Washington DC raising money for his campaign to unseat US Senator Kay Hagan (D-NC), even as the Senate hammered the ball back into his court on the budget negotiations back “home” in North Carolina. Each day they remain in session, debating their two different versions of austerity budgets, it costs the tax-payers of North Carolina $50,000. “Even under the best of circumstances, we’re looking at being here through most of July.” Sen. Phil Berger(R-NC26) President Pro Tem of the Senate told WRAL.

There are really just three people in the State of North Carolina who can get the work done on the budget: Sen. Phil Berger, Gov. Pat McCory (and Art Pope), and Rep. Thom Tillis. All of these men are Republicans, but their positions on the major points of the budget couldn’t be more different.

According to legislative insiders, the main sticking point in this intramural Republican spending battle is Medicaid funding. The budget proposal adopted by the Senate in May would cut thousands of elderly and disabled people from the Medicaid rolls, creating a major human cost ranging from systemic, crushing poverty to preventable death. The Senate plan pushes for a managed care-type system to control future financial costs without regard for the human cost.

Gov. Pat McCrory and the House have teamed up to pitch a plan that puts doctors and other health care providers in charge of getting a handle on cost control and doesn’t change eligibility requirements in order to throw more sick and elderly people out of the system. Not a perfect plan, but significantly less drastic than the Senate’s.

Senators are claiming to call the Governor’s bluff, stating they don’t believe the forecasts McCrory’s staff have assembled on Medicaid costs in the coming year. According to their numbers North Carolina needs to set aside $200- $300 million more than state Budget Director and Civitas Sugardaddy Art Pope told them would be required. (Which he did only after the State Senate threatened to subpoena him.)

McCrory and House leaders got together at the Executive Mansion last week and introduced reporters to a simplified budget that would give politically needed raises for teachers and state workers and let the rest of state government operate on the two-year budget lawmakers passed last year. This would allow North Carolina’s politicians to deliver raises to the people they are getting hit hard by, which would allow them the opportunity to mollify the frustrations of a large voting block during this election year. It would also allow Speaker of the House Thom Tillis to campaign against Sen. Hagan without having to discuss and defend a state budget that puts the screws to everyone in North Carolina who isn’t already wealthy or a corporation.

The McCrory Administration and the House leadership did not include anyone from the North Carolina Senate in their discussions about that pitch. The Senate budget would provide larger raises for teachers but would pay for them by cutting more than 7,000 teaching assistant jobs statewide. In a stunning bit of economic blackmail, teachers would have to sign away their professional status (gives them the right to an administrative hearing and limits arbitrary firing) in order to get their raises.

What has made the entire negotiation and budgeting process necessary is the more than $200 million budget deficit caused by extensive tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations that were built in to previous years’ legislation and budgets. Projections indicate that budget gaps will continue into next year as well and may be even larger than expected. According to Fiscal Research and OSBM, the initial projected revenue shortfall for next year is approximately $191 million. When combined with necessary changes to Medicaid, these initial projections mean that policymakers will need to address at least a $228 million budget gap for the year starting July 1.

Fewer dollars are available because of a tax plan that primarily benefits the wealthy and profitable corporations while making limited progress towards much needed public investments in the foundations of a strong economy. Research has shown that the strongest correlation to economic growth and productivity is the share of a state’s residents who have a Bachelor’s degree, an achievement that is facilitated through quality pre-K through 12 education and accessible and affordable higher education. Beyond investments in education, research has also shown that taxes invested in infrastructure, research and development, and other public services can contribute to greater economic opportunity and support business expansion and attraction.

With the start of a new fiscal year, nothing seeming to break one way or another on any compromise deal, and Speaker Tillis busy in Washington DC raising money instead of leading the House, Governor McCrory has instructed all state agencies to operate at reduced spending levels. This will inevitably result in some job losses and a reduction in services.

When SB 3 was introduced onto the Senate floor Monday night, it was unceremoniously sent back to the House without a vote and with very little debate or comment. The Republican Supermajority ran for office on the premise that they would not go at one another like wild beast over the budget like Democrats had traditionally done for a century. In fairness, though, the current Republican struggle looks like a school yard dust-up compared to the extinction-event level conflicts Democrats found themselves in over the years.

Sen. Tom Apadoca was unequivocal about Monday’s rejection being a message sent to the House about getting serious. It might not be easy to “get serious” however, when the Speaker of the House is in Washington DC chatting with political donors.

Last weekend Thom Tillis defended the negative impact the contentious legislative session is having on his US Senate campaign. Defending his legislative leadership, Tillis told the Charlotte Observer that “…most people don’t follow the legislature. I don’t think it’s part of the daily lives of most North Carolinians.” What Tillis doesn’t seem to realize is the decisions the legislature has been making have, perhaps more than any other time in history, a significant impact on the daily lives of most North Carolinians.

It is clear that the lengthened session isn’t helping Tillis’ bid for Hagan’s seat. It gives the appearance of a lack of leadership and with negative press coming from Tillis’ fellow Republican leader Paul Stam’s House floor talk about pedophilia and poop fetishes, the sooner the session is over the better Tillis’ chances are. His own mouth hasn’t helped his numbers with his labeling of white people as “Traditional” North Carolinians in an interview that broke in June after being dug up by Hagan’s op-research team.

A poll done by Art Pope’s Civitas Institute showed Tillis losing ground against the incumbent since their previous poll a month before. North Carolina based, national polling outfit Public Policy Polling is coming up with the same data. The North Carolina legislature is hovering at a dismal 18% approval rating and Hagan is beginning to open up a lead about two months after Tillis needed to create his own lead in order to remain viable by November. Both polls showed Hagan with a narrow but widening edge.

The real losers, of course, are the citizens of North Carolina. Students, teachers, teacher’s assistants, state employees, seniors, people with disabilities, those suffering from chronic illness, those struggling with mental health issues and addictions… and the list goes on. No matter what drama is being played out on Jones St. and in Washington DC lobbyist’s offices it is always important to remember that the lives and livelihoods of real people are at stake. Good people who just want to feed their families and don’t care what the prices DC condos are going for right now.