Election sends mixed messages on education

The passage of the state income tax limit and the property tax amendment in North Carolina on Tuesday dealt a serious blow to not only education across the state but also to a slate of public services. 

So enjoy that pothole on your street. It is liable to be there much longer. Don’t be surprised if it takes emergency services longer to respond because they don’t have the funds to pay for enough employees to meet needs.

Let’s all hope that another Helene doesn’t hit North Carolina. Or that we don’t suffer an economic downturn as a state or country. Because voters have just taken away our state government’s ability to raise funds as needed to deal with these issues.

But first there were some upsets on election night.

Historic midterm losses

Voters did oust at least half of the Republicans from North Carolina’s U.S. House delegation in what were thought to be safe Republican seats. This includes losses for former N.C. House Speaker Republican Tim Moore in the 14th Congressional District and Republican incumbent Virginia Foxx in the 5th District.

Foxx has served in Congress since 2004, and she may call for a recount. Her loss could have a significant impact on federal education policy and congressional oversight of higher education because she has had longstanding involvement in that area.

Democrats now have control in the North Carolina House of Representatives Tuesday, for the first time since 2010. The Republican Party’s 30-seat supermajority in the state Senate was also broken, but it is unlikely Democrats will take the majority there.

And former Governor Roy Cooper won his bid for the U.S. Senate, the first time NC has elected a Democratic senator since 2008. 

What the income tax amendment does

The income tax cap for the state was already constitutionally set at a maximum of 7%. However, it is currently set at 3.99%. Next year, it was already slated to fall to 3.49%. Almost 62% of voters cast a yes ballot.

Supporters of the amendment argued that higher income taxes in NC makes the state less competitive in attracting business and jobs.

Meanwhile, opponents explained that costs are still going to be passed on to North Carolinians through fees and sales taxes.

“You’re still getting taxed,” House Democratic leader Robert Reives of Chatham County said in May, adding that if the cap on the personal income tax rates passed, “It’s just not coming through personal income tax.”

What the property tax amendment does

State legislators already had the power to lower property taxes, without requiring an amendment to the NC constitution.

Despite this, about 60% of voters decided to pass the amendment, which requires the General Assembly to enact a law limiting how much local governments can raise property taxes per year. 

And North Carolina was already ranked as lower than those in most of the country’s other states.

Unfortunately, the amendment did not specify how much the limit would be. Legislators will work out the details and set the levy limit later, likely in 2027, meaning voters are trusting their officials with a blank check.

But the new legislature must write it in an ordinary law that the governor can veto. And now there is a possibility that Governor Stein’s veto will hold. 

What does this mean for NC residents?

The Daily Tar Heel reported how Orange County Board of County Commissioners expressed concern about the state income tax amendment, particularly how the amendment would limit future ability to fund services — from education and public safety, to healthcare and infrastructure.

A WRAL analysis of property tax data found the largest increases in property tax spending went toward public safety and public schools. Spending on social services has also drastically risen in some counties, including Wake.

Many counties have supplemented teacher incomes in an effort to recruit and retain enough people as state and local funds have dropped teacher salaries in our state to some of the lowest in the nation.

The passage of these amendments will not only continue to erode our teacher pipeline, they will also drive many more veteran teachers out of the classroom in search of more lucrative positions in other states or even other careers.

Signs of hope

Perhaps state legislatures will head the urging of the bipartisan Blue Ribbon Commission. With the control of the NC House flipping from Republicans to Democrats that possibility has increased. But even if they do, the question remains where will the money come from to support education in  North Carolina? 

It is also possible that with the shift in control of the NC House and the loss of the Republican super majority in the state Senate that education-based issues could receive not only more focus but potentially see actual action. This could include:

• Teacher compensation: More emphasis on raises for both beginning and veteran teachers, potentially including restoration of salary incentives for advanced degrees.
• Public school operating budgets: More attention to classroom staffing, instructional materials, exceptional children services and school support personnel.
• Private school vouchers: Increased scrutiny of Opportunity Scholarship appropriations, eligibility rules, academic accountability and financial transparency.
• School construction: Renewed consideration of state assistance for capital needs, particularly in counties with limited local tax bases.
• Community colleges and universities: Different House priorities for faculty compensation, enrollment funding and institutional support.

In fact, next year, Reives said House Democrats will likely revisit “everything we’ve already filed” over the past couple years. At the top of the priority list is education funding. 

Republican underfunding of public education in the state has been short-sighted, Reives said.

He plans to pitch public education’s benefit to the state from an economic standpoint.

Reives said improving public education can have a trickle-down effect, especially in rural areas. Job creators come to areas that have an educated workforce, he said, and then healthcare providers follow.

“So to me, you’ve almost got to start with public education,” Reives said. 

Education bonds

What’s more, education bonds to support public schools and community college passed in Wake County, as well as Brunswick and New Hanover counties. 

A 0.25% sales tax increase (as permitted under state law) that was approved in Guilford County will partially go to fund Guilford Technical Community College.

Sampson County also approved a sales tax increase with an explicit plan to send the proceeds to schools.

Voter disconnect

It would seem that there is a disconnect for voters between the need for improving the education system in the state and how exactly to fund that. 

Voters shifted who has the political power to act, but the amendments could cap how much money they have to act with. The question then is: Can a divided General Assembly reach an agreement on sustained education investment while operating under tighter constitutional tax limits?

Once upon a time, North Carolina under the leadership of Governor Jim Hunt transformed the state’s education system. 

Known as the Education Governor, Hunt spearheaded the passage of two omnibus education reform packages as a part of a larger progression of education reforms that had been evolving since Hunt’s term as Lieutenant Governor in the 1970s. 

But that fairy tale has ended. North Carolina’s education system is broken. Repairing our schools just became much more complicated due to the passage of the amendments.