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North Carolinians pay higher prices when tax cuts for corporations and the wealthy are made permanent
When tax cuts for millionaires and corporations are made permanent, everyday North Carolinians pay higher prices: Higher college tuition and fees This year, the UNC System increased undergrads’ in-state tuition for the first time in nine years. The average increase is $125 per student. They also increased mandatory fees. Higher monthly healthcare premiums People covered…
State teacher raises fall short; Local governments left to fill the gaps
State leaders have been touting the average 8 percent pay raise they delivered for North Carolina public school teachers, but that headline obscures how the state budget fell short: teachers are still not paid what they deserve and local governments are left to cover millions of dollars in raises. What did the state budget actually…
2026-27 North Carolina Budget Report: Tax cuts for corporations and millionaires, and higher costs for counties and families
Note: Here are links where you can access the budget bill and the committee report. You also can see how members of the NC Senate and NC House of Representatives voted on the approved budget. Unless otherwise noted, the analysis in this report reflects SB 257 (2026 Appropriations Act) and not the subsequently passed technical…
Fact Sheet: Tax ballot measures are bad for local business
North Carolina voters will see two tax measures on their ballots in November that will limit state and local government revenue options and lock in outsized tax breaks for big business. These measures would lower the maximum allowable personal and corporate income tax rates to 3.5 percent and impose a limit on property tax revenue…
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…
North Carolina’s tax cuts will cost $900 million. Here is what families lose.
After leaving North Carolina without a comprehensive operating budget for a year, state lawmakers finally approved a spending plan for FY 2026-27. Yet, despite having ample time – and broad public support across party lines – to address affordability concerns, lawmakers made only modest changes to the scheduled personal income tax while preserving the continued…
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…
Final Budget Preserves Tax Cuts While Shifting Costs to Counties and Families
On Tuesday morning, North Carolina lawmakers released their final budget for FY 2026-27 after leaving the state operating without a budget since July 2025. As previously reported, the budget makes only slight changes to scheduled personal income tax cuts and leaves untouched the continued reduction – and eventual elimination – of the corporate income tax….
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…
North Carolina should focus on feeding families, not flawed SNAP error rates
Note: This resource was updated on June 10, 2026 so that it reflects the $58 threshold for inclusion in SNAP error rate calculations. Overview of H.R. 1 Error Rate-Based Cost Shift The harmful federal megabill passed in 2025, H.R. 1, made deep funding cuts to the SNAP program, risking access to food assistance for the nearly 1.3 million North Carolinians who need…