What do you think should inform public policy decisions? Data, information, facts, history? Learn more here.
John,
What do you think should inform public policy decisions?
Data, information, facts, history?
What about fantasy?
While I may be a fan of JRR Tolkien, I don’t think The Lord of the Rings should be determining North Carolina governmental policy.
But, sadly, left-wingers let a fantasy determine their vision for our state's education.
And they use that to justify an unjust monopoly that traps children in failing schools simply because of their zip code.
If you’re wondering what their fantasy is, it’s “equity.” Equity sounds great. After all, as conservatives, we all believe in equality of opportunity, of giving every citizen the chance to pull themselves up by their bootstraps.
But when the left says equity, they don’t mean equal opportunity. They mean that everyone should achieve the exact same outcome. That is not equality. And it paints a bleak picture of the future.
Even if they get their chance to outlaw the Opportunity Scholarship Program, different families will be able to support their children with different resources: time, money, tutors, etc., because well-off families will still be able to send their children to good private schools. Meanwhile, less fortunate families find their children trapped in failing schools.
Despite the fact that both families have access to the same failing school, the educational outcomes between the kids will not be equal. So, what is next? A state that outlaws private schools? John, the pursuit of educational equity – while well-intentioned – is a sure path to tyranny. Empowering parents and educators to give children access to the education that best suits their needs is how we encourage equality, opportunity, and a freer, more prosperous future.
If you’d like to learn more about education freedom, read here, here, and here.
Esse quam videri,
Donald Bryson
CEO
John Locke Foundation
Watch this video of OSP families explaining how these scholarships have changed their children’s lives
The Opportunity Scholarship Program helps so many NC families meet the educational needs of their children.
The North Carolina House has unveiled its 2025–27 budget proposal, aligning closely with the Senate’s $32.6 billion General Fund budget for FY 2026.
Total expenditures stand at $70.4 billion, reflecting a 3.9% increase from the previous year and raising concerns about federal funding dependency.
So what’s in the House budget proposal?
Well, it makes some changes to the personal income tax...
The House proposes higher revenue triggers, reducing the likelihood of reaching a 2.49% personal income tax rate. Instead, it offers targeted measures like increasing the standard deduction and exempting $5,000 of tipped wages.
Takes more from NCinnovation for Disaster Recovery.
The House takes a stronger stance than the Senate, opting to withdraw $500 million in funding entirely, redirecting it to disaster recovery efforts.
Pays our teachers more,
An 8.7% average salary increase for teachers and reinstatement of pay raises for master’s degree holders are included, alongside mandatory cell phone–free classrooms.
And reforms Medicaid.
Medicaid work requirements are proposed, along with cutting Medicaid coverage for certain weight-loss drugs, saving an estimated $33.9 million.
What else?
Both chambers propose replenishing the Savings Reserve to pre-Hurricane Helene levels, allocating over $1.1 billion.
The House budget prioritizes hurricane recovery, economic development reserves, and fiscal restraint by trimming vacant government positions.
Unique strategies include reinstating a back-to-school tax holiday and piloting the privatization of DMV services in select counties.
An examination of North Carolina’s independent expenditures reveals significant flaws in tracking campaign finance data.
Issues include committees failing to file required digital reports, unrecorded declarations in bulk data, and duplicated information in standard and independent expenditure reports.
We see problems in over $22 million in spending obfuscated during the 2024 elections.
So what’s wrong?
In the 2024 elections, there were significant financial transparency issues due to inconsistent data reporting and tracking.
Additionally, we had further issues requiring a cumbersome process of tracking independent expenditures by manually compiling individual reports to ensure accuracy.
So what do we need to do?
We need to significantly reform the current systems because they require significant reform to capture detailed, transparent financial information in future elections.
Then it’s definitely time to implement better enforcement of campaign finance laws and a more robust NCSBE tracking system to address the gaps in the system.
A new study by the Pacific Legal Foundation highlights the restrictive Collaborative Practice Agreements (CPAs) for Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRNs) in North Carolina.
These agreements require APRNs to operate under physician supervision, often limiting their ability to practice and imposing additional costs.
States granting full practice authority to APRNs show improved healthcare access, particularly in underserved areas.
What does that mean for healthcare access?
Restrictive CPAs hinder the ability of APRNs to serve more patients, reducing healthcare access for many North Carolinians, especially in rural areas with provider shortages.
Expanding full practice authority for APRNs, as proposed by the SAVE Act, could alleviate healthcare provider shortages across the state.
What can North Carolinians do?
Both the NC House and Senate introduced the SAVE Act this year, aiming to grant APRNs full practice authority, but the bill remains stalled in committee.
North Carolinians can urge legislators to reconsider the SAVE Act to improve healthcare access and address rural provider shortages
To learn more about how freeing up North Carolina’s nurses could increase healthcare access, click here.
