Latest news with #RobertReives
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Democrats cross aisle to back GOP budget
A majority of North Carolina House Democrats crossed the aisle to vote for a GOP-written state budget this week, a surprisingly bipartisan show of support that also sets up a fight within the Republican Party over taxes. As the House took a break after hours of debate, Democratic Leader Robert Reives told reporters that he would support members of his caucus however they were to vote on the bill. And hours later, he voted with Republicans for the budget, as did 26 other members of his party. 'The most important point that I think you've got to understand about this budget that's going to be a tough decision for everybody sitting in that House chamber is the horrible fiscal condition that we're in right now as a state,' Reives said. The budget bill written by House Republicans keeps the upcoming reduction in North Carolina's individual income tax rate but requires a sunnier state budget picture before future tax cuts kick in, a move that the Senate opposes and could be the key rift between the House and Senate as they work next to negotiate a final budget to send to the governor. Democratic Gov. Josh Stein visited the Legislative Building and talked with lawmakers on Wednesday before announcing that the House budget has several things in it that he likes. 'The House's proposed budget isn't perfect. But I am pleased that the House raises teacher pay to make North Carolina's starting teacher salaries the second-highest in the Southeast and rewards our state employees with a raise. The House budget also makes important investments in public safety, child care, and workforce training,' Stein said in an emailed statement. Reives told reporters before the vote that the budget isn't one he would have written or wants to support. 'But I also understand that we've got a duty to govern, and at some point, the hard decision that's going to have to be made by everybody, whenever it is, is governing,' he said. Just ahead of the last round of debate before the vote, Reives and top Republicans left the chamber together, and returned to the floor talking and smiling. Republicans have control of the House but are one vote short of a veto-proof supermajority. Democratic Rep. Terry Brown Jr. praised parts of the Republicans' budget during the debate, saying that it listens to Democrats and the people of North Carolina on restoring master's degree pay for teachers and restoring the state income tax holiday. He also criticized the budget for not doing enough for state employees. Brown, who represents Mecklenburg County, called the bill 'a good start.' The House would give higher raises than both the Senate's proposal and Stein's pitch, with 2.5% across-the-board salary boosts for all state employees in the coming year. The bill also cuts thousands of state employee jobs, most of which are vacant. Of the 3,000 state employee positions to be cut, about 2,000 of them come as part of a demand that state agencies and the UNC System cut 20% of their vacant positions. Money saved from those cuts would go to the agencies to be used at their discretion for higher raises for their employees. The budget would increase starting teacher pay to $48,000 in the coming year and $50,000 the following year, which would make it the highest in the Southeast. The House budget keeps the planned individual income tax rate reduction planned for 2026, cutting it to 3.99% from 4.25%, but would set new levels for the future state tax collections that 'trigger' additional tax cuts. Future triggers are harder to meet than the Senate's plan. Carolina Partnership for Reform, a political group that generally promotes ideas in line with Republican Senate leader Phil Berger, called the House Republicans' plan a 'tax hike' in an email Tuesday. Budget documents say that the change 'increases net General Fund revenue' by keeping the projected tax rate at 3.99% in the 2027 tax year, rather than dropping the rate further as would happen under existing triggers. 'Having no budget deal is a better outcome than this one,' Carolina Partnership for Reform wrote in the email to its distribution list. But House Republicans felt differently. Every one of them voted for the budget plan. House Rules Chair John Bell told The News & Observer on Wednesday that 'just because we didn't aggressively lower taxes, as their budget did, doesn't mean we raised taxes.' He also said that 'petty shots' make negotiations between Republicans in both chambers 'that much harder.' House Republicans shut down several Democratic amendments during hours of debate on Wednesday. One of them would have given the Office of State Human Resources more authority in choosing job cuts. Rep. Donny Lambeth of Forsyth County, one of the top House Republican budget writers, said that the amendment would take away the flexibility offered to state agencies to choose which vacant jobs to cut. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Democrats cross aisle to back NC budget, setting up battle over taxes within GOP
A majority of North Carolina House Democrats crossed the aisle to vote for a GOP-written state budget Wednesday, a surprisingly bipartisan show of support that also sets up a fight within the Republican Party over taxes. The bill passed 93-20 in the first of two required votes. As the House took a break after hours of debate, Democratic Leader Robert Reives told reporters that he would support members of his caucus however they were to vote on the bill. And hours later, he voted with Republicans for the budget, as did 26 other members of his party in a split vote within the Democratic caucus. 'The most important point that I think you've got to understand about this budget that's going to be a tough decision for everybody sitting in that House chamber, is the horrible fiscal condition that we're in right now as a state,' Reives said. The budget bill written by House Republicans keeps the upcoming reduction in North Carolina's individual income tax rate, but requires a sunnier state budget picture before future tax cuts kick in, a move that the Senate opposes and could be the key rift between the House and Senate as they work next to negotiate a final budget to send to the governor. Democratic Gov. Josh Stein visited the Legislative Building and talked with lawmakers on Wednesday, ahead of announcing that the House budget has several things in it that he likes. 'The House's proposed budget isn't perfect. But I am pleased that the House raises teacher pay to make North Carolina's starting teacher salaries the second-highest in the Southeast and rewards our state employees with a raise. The House budget also makes important investments in public safety, child care, and workforce training,' Stein said in an emailed statement. Reives told reporters before the vote that the budget isn't one he would have written or wants to support. 'But I also understand that we've got a duty to govern, and at some point, the hard decision that's going to have to be made by everybody, whenever it is, is governing,' he said. Just ahead of the last round of debate before the vote, Reives and top Republicans left the chamber together, and returned to the floor talking and smiling. Republicans have control of the House, but are one vote short of a veto-proof supermajority. Democratic Rep. Terry Brown Jr. praised parts of the Republicans' budget during the debate, saying that it listens to Democrats and the people of North Carolina on restoring master's degree pay for teachers and restoring the state income tax holiday. He also criticized the budget for not doing enough for state employees. Brown, who represents Mecklenburg County, called the bill 'a good start.' Other Democrats urged their colleagues to vote against the bill because of tax cuts and cuts to so many vacant jobs. The House would give higher raises than both the Senate's proposal and Stein's pitch, with 2.5% across-the-board salary boosts for all state employees in the coming year. The House bill also cuts thousands of state employee jobs, most of which are vacant. Of the 3,000 state employee positions to be cut, about 2,000 of them come as part of a demand that state agencies and the UNC System cut 20% of their vacant positions. Money saved from those cuts would go to the agencies to be used at their discretion for higher raises for their employees. 'We are now in a revenue deficit, no ifs, ands or buts about it, because we would not cut one job if we were not in a revenue deficit,' Reives said. The budget would increase starting teacher pay to $48,000 in the coming year and $50,000 the following year, bringing the total salary for a new teacher to $56,593 in two years, with supplements, which would make it the highest in the Southeast. The House budget keeps the planned individual income tax rate reduction planned for 2026, down to 3.99% from 4.25%, but would set new levels for the future state tax collections that 'trigger' additional tax cuts. Future triggers are harder to meet than the Senate's plan. Carolina Partnership for Reform, a political group that generally promotes ideas in line with Republican Senate leader Phil Berger, called the House Republicans' plan a 'tax hike' in an email Tuesday. Budget documents say that the change 'increases net General Fund revenue' by keeping the projected tax rate at 3.99% in the 2027 tax year, rather than dropping the rate further as would happen under existing triggers. 'Having no budget deal is a better outcome than this one,' Carolina Partnership for Reform wrote in the email to its distribution list. But House Republicans felt differently. Every one of them voted for the budget plan. House Rules Chair John Bell told The News & Observer on Wednesday that 'just because we didn't aggressively lower taxes, as their budget did, doesn't mean we raised taxes.' He also said that 'petty shots' make negotiations between Republicans in both chambers 'that much harder.' Bell said you can always find things you don't like in a budget bill. 'But overall, I feel like that we've put forth a good product, a product that shows our priorities here in the House, our commitment to Carolina. I think you're gonna see a strong bipartisan vote today,' Bell said during a House recess ahead of the vote. Rep. Allen Chesser, a Nash County Republican, also told The N&O that 'the claim that it increases taxes is just inaccurate entirely. Our budget focuses on lowering the tax burden on North Carolina citizens, and we're committed to that.' During the floor debate, Republican Rep. Keith Kidwell, who is part of the ultra-conservative Freedom Caucus, said: 'This bill is a good bill when it comes to taxes.' 'We've got a better bill (than the Senate), one of the best bills from a tax perspective I've seen since I've been in this General Assembly,' Kidwell said. The House budget would also restore the back-to-school sales tax holiday in August 2026, as well as making the first $5,000 of tips tax-free. It would also increase the standard income tax deduction by $500 for individual tax filers, or $1,000 for married couples filing jointly, making more income tax-free. Stein also weighed in on the inter-chamber tax debate. 'Importantly, the House budget cuts taxes for working families while recognizing that North Carolina is a growing state and reduces personal income tax rates after this year only when the economy is growing. In contrast, the Senate's fiscally irresponsible revenue scheme will result in fewer teachers and law enforcement officers and diminished services that would harm our people,' Stein said. Reives criticized the Senate, and urged House Republicans to negotiate hard on the final budget bill. 'When I kept listening to the Senate ... it sounded like that we had decided we were going to do all kinds of crazy things and spend all kinds of crazy money. I'm just like, are you looking at the same budget? I'm looking at this budget making some hard decisions and hard cuts, because that's what governing is, and that's what being an adult is,' Reives said during debate. House Republicans shut down several Democratic amendments during hours of debate on Wednesday. One of them would have changed how vacant jobs would be eliminated. Wake County Democratic Rep. Maria Cervania's proposal would have given the Office of State Human Resources more authority in choosing job cuts. Rep. Donny Lambeth, one of the top House Republican budget writers, said that the amendment would take away the flexibility offered to state agencies to choose which vacant jobs to cut. Rep. Erin Paré, a Wake County Republican and budget writer, also urged Republicans to preserve a budget provision that would publish public schools' central office salaries. Democrats tried to remove it, but Paré said posting the salary information would provide transparency. Another Democratic amendment defeated, from Rep. Carolyn Logan of Mecklenburg County, would have provided free school lunch in public schools, funded by money allocated for private school vouchers. Some of the budget debate centered on vouchers, known as the Opportunity Scholarship Program, which sends hundreds of millions of dollars to private schools and has long been a Republican priority. Democrats tried to amend the bill to add accountability measures to the program. Republicans did take some Democratic input. On Tuesday, four Democratic amendments received support from Republicans and were rolled into the final budget, including Democratic Rep. Carla Cunningham's bid to restore and rename the Office of Health Equity in the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services. Republicans had proposed eliminating the office. Reives told reporters that Stein is never going to tell Democrats how to vote, but rather explain the advantages and disadvantages of the budget. 'The Senate budget is completely irresponsible. We've got to get a budget that recognizes the fiscal position that we're in, and we've got to get a budget that starts talking about the tough questions,' Reives said.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Hundreds of bills never stood a chance this legislative session. They had one thing in common.
Democratic leader Robert Reives notes that more than 700 Democratic-sponsored bills never received a hearing this session. (Photo: NCGA screengrab) North Carolina House and Senate Democrats held a funeral of sorts Tuesday, highlighting the hundreds of bills they introduced this session that were then directed to the Rules Committees of the two houses, the proverbial legislative graveyard. Senate Democratic Leader Sydney Batch (D-Wake) said Democrats introduced over 700 bills this session that were killed in committee. 'Common sense, community focused solutions to our state's biggest problems — and they went nowhere,' Batch said. 'Republicans didn't debate or defeat these ideas. They shoved them in drawers, locked them behind doors, and they prayed every single day that the public never finds out how little they're actually doing with their tax dollars that you will send to this state to run our government.' Batch said gerrymandering has allowed Republicans, who chair the committees, to completely control which bills advance and which never see the light of day. Sen. Woodson Bradley (D-Mecklenburg) said she came to Raleigh hoping to make communities safer, only to find her ideas silenced by the majority party. 'I may be a freshman senator, but I'm also a domestic violence survivor. I'm a responsible gun owner and concealed carry holder. I'm the daughter and wife of law enforcement. I know crime. I know cops. But more important than that, less than 5% of the people in this building know what it's like to be a victim. And that's who I came here to help,' said the Mecklenburg County Democrat. Bradley said the ideas she championed were basic protections and deserved to be fully debated. 'We hear a lot from the other side about protecting families and standing with law enforcement. But if you won't even bring a bill to the table that protects survivors of abuse or helps officers prevent gun violence, what are you standing for?' Sen. Lisa Grafstein (D-Wake) said that even ideas that had merit like allowing remote license renewals to ease the NC DMV backlog were dismissed, if the idea came from a Democrat. 'Democrats introduced real solutions for fixing what ails us in state government, hiring critical staff, investing in the infrastructure behind state services. But Republicans actually didn't want to fix it. They wanted to exploit the failings to support their talking-point that government doesn't work.' Senate Bill 611 would have taken an estimated one million North Carolinians out of lines at the DMV allowing them to complete their task online, said Grafstein. But Republicans kept the bill bottled up and allowed it to die rather than make the May 8 crossover deadline. 'The Republican majority would rather have people stand in line all day and get frustrated because it fits that narrative that we just need to slash more and privatize.' Rep. Lindsay Prather (D-Buncombe) said bills that would restore teacher longevity pay and establish a $17 an hour minimum salary for non-certified public school employees also failed to gain traction. Legislative leaders also dismissed both the Voucher School Accountability Act and the Voucher School Transparency Act. 'These are bills that would shine a light on private schools receiving public funds, giving more information to parents to make an informed decision, and more information to taxpayers on whether your money is actually going to provide a quality education to a North Carolina student.' Prather said decisions not to take up those bills shortchanged North Carolina's children and their parents. As a Captain in the US Army National Guard, Rep. Dante Pittman (D-Wilson) said he has learned not to surrender. He's still advocating this session for the Working Families Act (House Bill 786) that would raise the state's minimum wage, increase the stock of affordable housing and reenact the child tax credit. 'Not all hope is lost. And I would offer for them to take these good ideas and include them in the budget. Because what we're trying to do here in North Carolina is make sure that our children have the opportunity that they need and our families are secure.' The North Carolina House will begin the process of unveiling parts of its state spending plan on Thursday.
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Top state Republicans show no support for stricter abortion ban in North Carolina
RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — A few days after Republican state representatives in North Carolina filed a bill proposing one of the strictest abortion bans in the country, top state Republicans said the bill won't move forward. House Bill 804, filed Monday, looked to ban abortion at all stages during a pregnancy, except for when the mother's life is in danger. It did not include exceptions for rape or incest. PREVIOUS COVERAGE: North Carolina Republicans file one of the most restrictive abortion bans in the country The day after it was filed, Democratic leaders said the bill was unnecessary. 'I don't think there's anybody who wants to see more restrictions,' House Democratic Leader Robert Reives said. 'I don't even hear pro-life advocates say they're looking for more restrictions in North Carolina. At some point in time we have to stop playing doctor. Doctors aren't telling us we need this, nobody else is telling us we need this.' Wednesday, Republican House Speaker Destin Hall said the bill has virtually no support in the caucus and won't move forward. 'We're not going to hear the bill in committee,' Hall said. 'There's no real support in our caucus to hear the bill.' Abortion is currently restricted after 12 weeks in North Carolina. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Democratic leader, advocates detail how federal spending cuts will harm clean energy efforts
(Photo: Robert Zullo/ States Newsroom) North Carolina House Democratic Leader Robert Reives joined nonprofit advocates at a virtual press conference Thursday to discuss how federal spending cuts will impact the state's progress towards climate and clean energy goals. The state's clean energy projects have resulted in more than $20.44 billion in investments and more than 17,000 clean energy jobs, the fifth- and tenth-most nationally, respectively, since the Inflation Reduction Act was signed into law in 2022, according to a press release. Federal funding cuts proposed by the Trump administration would put that at risk, speakers said. 'This would set us back and do irreparable harm to North Carolina,' Reives said. 'It takes away jobs, it takes away people's ability to have choices on energy, and ultimately, it takes away North Carolina's ability and the United States ability to stay competitive in what is clearly a growing market. Alex Campbell, a policy analyst with the nonprofit North Carolina Budget and Tax Center, delved into how these cuts to congressionally approved spending could specifically affect North Carolinians. In fiscal year 2024, North Carolina received $35.4 billion in federal grants — about the same amount as the state's entire general fund budget, Campbell said. 'Federal funding plays a crucial role in supporting people in communities across the state, including providing health care funding public schools and childcare, helping families put food on the table, making sure that an emergency or hardship doesn't thrust a family into crisis, and responding to the increasingly frequent disasters like Hurricane Helene,' he said. With cuts to federal funding, state lawmakers would need to reduce services and cut support programs, resulting in higher costs for families to shoulder. When people have less income to spend, stores have less revenue, which in turn leads to layoffs in a 'vicious' cycle of economic decline. The cuts would also remove clean energy incentives like tax cuts for electric vehicles. As of June 2024, North Carolina ranked third in the country for EV and battery manufacturing investments at $20.2 billion, creating more than 16,000 billion jobs, according to speakers. 'Most of these investments deliver economic development and employment to the state's rural communities,' Stan Cross from the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy said.
