The General Assembly returned to work on May
14 to make a few adjustments to the current state budget, but with
vastly different priorities, the House and Senate are still at an impasse.
The two major
differences between the chambers and the governor’s office are how to
address Medicaid funding and what percentage pay raise should
be given to teachers.
The Senate is calling for an 11%
raise for teachers funded by eliminating 7,000 teacher’s assistants in the 2nd
and 3rd grades. The House, meanwhile, is proposing a 5% increase funded by cuts
to Medicaid. Gov. Pat McCrory is siding with the House.
Meanwhile, a big issue affecting small business is the four health-insurance mandates that are pending in the Legislature. North Carolina already has 56 mandates–more than California–and if these four pass and are signed into law, we would have more than any other state.
NFIB believes such mandates help few while raising costs for everyone and is working with other business groups to stop these new mandates from passing.
