Alexandra Forter Sirota
Posts by Alexandra Forter Sirota
Latest news on what’s going on with federal funding
Subscribe for text updates Updated 3:23 pm, Oct 28, 2025 Today is a day of action in the fight to address hunger. At a time when families are facing rising food costs and difficulty putting food on the table for their children, the USDA has told states that they will not tap into federal funds…
From paychecks to rising costs: The real impact of a federal shutdown in NC
When the federal government shuts down, even partially or temporarily, there are a number of ways in which our daily lives can be impacted — from whether federal offices and national parks remain open to whether landlords get rent or families can put food on the table. Over time, those impacts tend to get worse…
Public Comment: Work First TANF State Plan
To: Allison W. Smith, Deputy Director Division of Social Services Economic and Family Services NC Department of Health and Human Services 2420 Mail Service Center Raleigh, NC 27699-2420 From: NC Budget & Tax Center PO Box 25374 Durham, North Carolina, 27702 RE: Work First TANF State Plan Public Comments Dear Deputy Director Allison…
Connecting Historically Underutilized Businesses with public contracts
Who pays for transit? Why Mecklenburg’s sales tax referendum falls hardest on everyday people
Mecklenburg County will be asking voters to approve a sales tax referendum this fall to fund transportation infrastructure. Public investment in transit is essential to connect workers to employment, students to education and training, and communities to one another. The best way to maximize our collective investment in transportation is to make sure people with…
House Bill 87: The Educational Choice for Children Act
Download a PDF of this brief Opts NC into federal program benefitting wealthy HB 87 Summary: The Educational Choice for Children Act opts North Carolina in to the federal tax credit program for contributions to scholarship granting organizations and directs the State Education Assistance Authority to produce a list of eligible entities in North Carolina…
NC legislators are putting private schools over most of North Carolina’s K-12 students
North Carolinians want strong public schools where every child gets the education that they are owed in our state Constitution. Yet state lawmakers are once again choosing to use education policy to benefit the wealthy few instead of the well-being of us all. The first action by the N.C. General Assembly related to the harmful…
Congressional leaders raise costs of post-secondary education
North Carolinians want affordable, accessible higher education and skills training. The harmful Republican megabill signed by President Trump will raise costs in the post-secondary education arena of obtaining degrees, training, and certifications. As students return to campuses across North Carolina this fall, the shifting landscape for affording post-secondary education will make it harder to achieve…
Big Cuts, Big Costs for NC Factsheet
Note: Updated on July 2, 2025 to show estimates based on the federal budget bill (HR 1) passed by the US Senate on July 1, 2025. The bill was signed into law on July 4, 2025 with no changes, and so these estimates also apply to the final bill. Congress is rushing to pass a…
It’s time for a millionaires tax in North Carolina
For more than a decade, NC legislative leaders have handed out income tax breaks for the wealthiest few while neglecting the well-being of everyone in our state. Now, the US Congress plans to extend a 2017 federal tax law that would hand even more benefits to the richest few, while hundreds of thousands of…