ICYMI: John Locke Foundation Calls on General Assembly to Pass a Budget

NORTH CAROLINA, November 25 - This week, the John Locke Foundation published an article outlining the consequences of the General Assembly’s failure to pass a budget, highlighting a “severe failure of governance” where “the legislature is squarely to blame.” As of this month, the General Assembly has still not sent a budget to Governor Stein to sign into law. North Carolina is the only state in the country without a state budget.  

“As we enter the holiday season, I implore the General Assembly to do the right thing and pass a comprehensive, fiscally responsible budget,” said Governor Josh Stein. “Time is of the essence, and the people of North Carolina deserve better. I’m at the table. We must come together to give our teachers and law enforcement pay raises, fully fund Medicaid, and support our state employees.”

A budget for the 2025-2027 biennium was due on July 1. In March, Governor Stein proposed a responsible and balanced budget to the General Assembly. In September and October of this year, Governor Stein submitted proposals that would fund Medicaid amid budget negotiations and provide raises for teachers, law enforcement, and state employees. Earlier this month, Governor Stein called on the General Assembly to return to Raleigh for a special session to fund Medicaid; they did not.  

Excerpts from the John Locke Foundation: The budget failure and its consequences

• “Since at least 1995, the General Assembly has always ratified a budget before Thanksgiving. Making teachers, state employees, and taxpayers wait into the holiday season for a budget borders on dereliction of duty.”
• “Now, North Carolina stands alone. It is the only state in the nation that was expected to pass a budget in 2025 and failed to do so. Even more striking: the General Assembly never even sent a budget to the governor’s desk — not for a signature, not for a veto, not at all. This breakdown represents a severe failure of governance, and the legislature is squarely to blame.”
• “North Carolinians do not care about intraparty rivalries or procedural excuses. They care about whether the government performs its most basic functions. And ratifying a budget is the one responsibility the General Assembly must fulfill to demonstrate basic competence.”