Our May 23 newsletter focused on the NCGA’s veto override of HB 87 (federal vouchers), several constitutional amendment bills, and other bad bills pushed through at lightning speed.
This post shares a few (of many) good bills designed to help North Carolinians and public education. Unfortunately, most are stalled in various committees; we urge you to contact the committee members and ask them to bring these bills up for discussion and a vote.
Still no budget! North Carolina is the only state in the nation that didn’t pass a new budget last year (The continuation budget that funded this year at 2024-25 budget levels doesn’t count.). To encourage lawmakers to fulfill their primary duty moving forward, two bills were introduced in April.
SB 806 No Budget, No Pay Act would hold back (in escrow) salaries for NC lawmakers starting July 1, 2026 if they fail to pass a budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year by June 30, 2026. Funds will be released only if lawmakers pass a budget or if the current legislative session is adjourned without setting a date to reconvene. This bill has been referred to the Senate Committee on Appropriations/Base Budget, but it hasn’t been put on their agenda for discussion.
A similar, but much more stringent bill was introduced in the House.
HB 1039 Constitutional Amendment: No Budget, No Pay amends the North Carolina Constitution to forfeit salaries of all state lawmakers if the General Assembly doesn’t pass a budget by the end of the fiscal year (June 30). Salaries would be forfeited from July 1 until a budget is passed or a new legislative session begins. The bill was referred to the Committee on Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House and hasn’t moved since April 23.
HB 1017 Sound Basic Education for Every Child. A version of this bill has been introduced each session since the Leandro Comprehensive Remedial Plan was introduced by the state in 2021. The bill includes legislation to fund public education and related programs according to the Comprehensive Remedial Plan. If lawmakers were serious about improving public education in the state, they would include provisions from this bill in the state budget.
HB 1031 Universal Free Breakfast and Lunch School Meals requires funding for all public schools (including charter schools) to provide school nutrition services, including two meals a day, to all students. The bill was also referred to the Committee on Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House and hasn’t moved since April 22. With economic uncertainty growing and gas prices rising, this bill is more important than ever.
HB 1053 Additional Funding for School Supplies increases funding for classroom materials, instructional supplies, and equipment starting with the 2026-27 school year. The bill also sets out additional funding for the next two years. Currently, NC teachers rank #2 in the nation for the amount they spend out of pocket on school supplies, so more state funding for supplies is long overdue. The bill was also referred to the Committee on Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House and hasn’t moved since April 28.
HB 1130 Re-Professionalizing the Teaching Profession makes various changes including raising teacher salaries, reinstating advanced degree pay, and allowing school districts to set their own annual calendar. The bill was also referred to the Committee on Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House and hasn’t moved since April 30.
HB 1178 The NC Teacher Pay Competitiveness Act also raises teacher pay substantially, and it sets up a forward-funding mechanism for teacher pay appropriations similar to the mechanism used for voucher funding. In addition, the bill scales back eligibility requirements for vouchers and reduces voucher funding, which frees up hundreds of millions in public funds for teacher salary increases. HB 1178 is also stalled at the Committee on Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House. However, because teacher salaries are a key element of ongoing budget discussions, we hope budget negotiators adopt some of their content including more robust salary increases, forward funding, and rollback of the voucher program.
SB 943 Kids Over Corporations Act reverses the downward slide of corporate income tax and reinstates a set rate of 5% starting with the 2026 tax year. The current corporate income tax rate is 2.5%, one of the lowest in the country, and is scheduled to drop to 0% within a few years.. All of our surrounding states have higher rates, ranging from 5% in South Carolina to 6.5% in Tennessee. The bill has stalled in the Committee on Rules and Operations of the Senate.
Contact your state lawmakers and committee members to voice your opinion of these bills. You can use one of our email templates on our Contact Elected Officials page and edit an existing email or write your own from scratch. When you enter your address, the email will go directly to the lawmakers who represent you.