Mel Umbarger
Posts by Mel Umbarger
Juneteenth, tax policy, and the ongoing work of freedom
As our nation approaches its 250th anniversary, Juneteenth offers an opportunity not only to celebrate freedom, but also to reflect on how people have shaped our country throughout its history. Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, when enslaved people in Texas finally learned they were free — more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation. It…
New Poll: North Carolinians want lawmakers to fund families’ priorities, not more tax breaks for the wealthy
Majority say the economy is moving in the wrong direction, state policies benefit the wealthy, and tax cuts have not delivered for everyday people RALEIGH — A new poll finds that North Carolinians believe the state’s economy is moving in the wrong direction for everyday people and that state economic policies are more likely to…
House Bill 1073 / Senate Bill 1016: Fair Share for Public Schools Act
Less than 1% of North Carolinians can fund $1 billion for 1.5 million public school children in NC Link to HB 1073 / SB 1016, filed April 28, 2026 Download a PDF of this brief HB 1073 / SB 1016 Summary: This bill creates a 7% personal income tax rate on income over $1 million and…
House Bill 1082: Tax Relief for Working Families Act
Helps workers and their families afford the basics Link to HB 1082 / SB 942, filed April 28, 2026 Download a PDF of this brief HB 1082 Summary: This is the refiling of a 2025 bill (same name) that proposes a fully refundable state-level Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) at a value of 20% of…
Statement on NC House passage of Constitutional Amendments in Bad Budget Deal
From Alexandra Sirota, Executive Director of the NC Budget & Tax Center: Lawmakers are advancing constitutional amendments that would lock North Carolina into an economy designed to benefit wealthy households and profitable corporations while making it harder for everyone else to afford life, build security, and get ahead. These amendments are part of a bad…
Statement on passage of Senate Bill 1080 from Alexandra Sirota, Executive Director of the NC Budget & Tax Center
Senate leaders are moving quickly to ram through a bad budget deal for North Carolina, including an income tax cap that would constrain the primary source of revenue for the state’s General Fund and limit one of the taxes most aligned with people’s ability to pay. In debate, Senate proponents play down the fiscal problems…
Senate Bill 943: Kids Over Corporations Act
Raises the state corporate income tax rate to 5% Link to SB 943, filed April 29, 2026 Download a PDF of this brief SB 943 Summary: This bill would stop the scheduled elimination of the corporate income tax and instead set the corporate income tax rate at 5 percent, beginning in Tax Year 2026. Stops…
10 reasons NC’s income tax cap amendment is a bad deal for the state’s future
As lawmakers move quickly to advance a constitutional amendment that would cap North Carolina’s income tax rate at 3.5%, North Carolinians should look beyond the political framing of “tax relief” and ask a bigger question: What would this amendment mean for North Carolina’s long-term economic future? The proposed amendment is part of a broader, bad-deal…