The General Assembly passed a budget that leaves too many needs unmet, like the fact that schools in North Carolina would receive $190 million less next year than they received this year. It also has too many misplaced priorities, like giving $336 million in tax breaks to lawyers, lobbyists, and other wealthy individuals.
To learn more about the shortcomings in their budget, here’s a list of the top 20 flaws with the legislature’s budget: Click Here
Despite the flaws in the budget, I tried to work with leaders in the General Assembly to reach a bipartisan agreement on a budget that I could allow to become law. I didn’t ask them to meet me half way, I didn’t ask them to “split the difference.” But I did ask them to do a little more — just a little bit more — to improve our children’s future and address some other critical priorities. They rejected my repeated attempts to reach a compromise. They basically told me to “take it or leave it.”
With all the unaddressed priorities, all the misallocated resources, and legislative leaders’ refusal to make any movement towards compromise, I felt I had no choice but to veto the budget.
To teachers and state employees, I understand that many of you are interested in the small pay raises that are in the budget. As you know, I support pay raises for teachers and other state employees. In fact, my budget proposal had pay raises that were 50% larger than the pay raises in the General Assembly’s budget. I strongly hope that legislators will come back to the table and work out an agreement that does a little better for schools and allows the pay raises to become law. Here is a clip of my speech this morning where I addressed the pay raise issue to teachers and other state employees directly: http://youtu.be/EbP3enLUcLQ
To all North Carolinians, here is a video of my full speech this morning about my decision to veto the budget: http://youtu.be/g1Qaa3ATWgE
Please call your state representative and state senator, and urge them to keep working to improve this budget so that it better exemplifies our values as North Carolinians, and so that it invests more in our children.
Thanks again,
Bev Perdue