Mel Umbarger
Posts by Mel Umbarger
Funding local services in North Carolina
To open the dashboard full-size in another browser window, click here.(opens in new tab) If you are having issues downloading a PDF from the dashboard below, try opening this link and downloading the PDF from that page. Across North Carolina, our communities rely on strong public services to live well and get ahead – from safe public…
Hoja informativa: ¡Cuando las corporaciones y los ricos no pagan lo que deben, nosotros somo los que pagamos!
For English version, click here El sistema tributario de Carolina del Norte está AL REVÉS. Las personas cuyos ingresos se encuentran en el 20 % más bajo (menos de $25,000 al año) pagan la mayor proporción de sus ingresos en impuestos estatales y locales — más del 10 por ciento. Mientras tanto, el 1 %…
Hoja informativa: Limitar los ingresos por impuestos sobre la propiedad en la Constitución estatal es un mal acuerdo para los habitantes de Carolina del Norte
For English version with links to references, click here La Asamblea General de Carolina del Norte ha incluido una enmienda constitucional en la boleta electoral de noviembre que, de ser aprobada por los votantes, obligaría a los legisladores a limitar el crecimiento anual de los ingresos por impuestos locales sobre la propiedad. No se trata…
Hoja informativa: Reducir el límite máximo del impuesto sobre los ingresos en la Constitución estatal es un mal acuerdo para los habitantes de Carolina del Norte
For English version with links to references, click here La Asamblea General de Carolina del Norte aprobó un proyecto de ley para llevar a votación en noviembre una enmienda constitucional que, de ser aprobada por los votantes, reduciría la tasa máxima permitida del impuesto sobre los ingresos al 3.5 por ciento. La constitución estatal ya…
Lowering the income tax limit in the state constitution would lock future North Carolinians into today’s bad tax policy
Updated: Aug. 23, 2026 The NC General Assembly has passed a bill to put a constitutional amendment on the ballot in November that, if approved by voters, would lower the maximum allowable income tax rate to 3.5 percent. The state constitution already limits the maximum income tax rate, but this new, even lower income tax cap would lock in tax…
Fact Sheet: When corporations and the wealthy don’t pay what they owe, you’ll pay the price!
North Carolina’s tax code is UPSIDE-DOWN. People with incomes in the bottom 20% (<$25,000 annually) pay the greatest share of their income in state and local taxes — more than 10 percent. Meanwhile, the richest 1% (>$870,000 annually) pay the lowest share of their income in state and local taxes just $6 out of every…
New report: Data center subsidies are a bad deal for North Carolinians
As data centers rapidly expand across North Carolina, a new report from the NC Budget & Tax Center finds that taxpayers are subsidizing one of the world’s most profitable industries while receiving little in return. The report concludes that data center tax subsidies cost the state and local governments hundreds of millions — and eventually…
1 Year After H.R. 1, North Carolina Budget Leaves Families and Counties to Pay the Price
Budget approved by state lawmakers fails to fund new SNAP costs while continuing tax cuts that primarily benefit wealthy households and profitable corporations RALEIGH, N.C. — One year after H.R. 1 was signed into law, North Carolina lawmakers have approved a state budget that compounds the federal law’s harm. H.R. 1 made historic cuts to…
Statement on Legislative Budget by Alexandra Sirota, Executive Director of the NC Budget & Tax Center
A budget that continues tax cuts primarily benefiting the richest North Carolinians alongside highly profitable corporations and their out-of-state shareholders is a bad budget for North Carolina. After a full year without a state budget — and the real harm caused by delaying planning, disrupting contracts, and reducing services for families, businesses, and communities across…
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…