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September 20, 2025

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Veto Overrides on the Horizon, but Where Is the Budget?

The North Carolina General Assembly returns to Raleigh on Monday with much
anticipation for movement on the two-year (2025-27) budget. After missing
their June 30 deadline to have a budget in place before the start of the
new fiscal year, lawmakers have left North Carolinians to operate under
last year’s spending levels.

The House and Senate have proposed their own versions of the budget but
haven’t yet been able to come to consensus on a plan that will pass both
chambers. Previous reporting identified sticking points such as
[7]healthcare funding and Medicaid, raises for [8]teacher and state worker
salaries, and [9]tax cuts.

But the focus of next week's meetings isn’t the budget. The only items on
the [10]House agenda are six bills that Governor Stein vetoed earlier in
the year. All have implications for public safety and/or education. The
Senate may also take up override votes.

SAFETY ERODED

Senate Bill 50 "[11]Freedom to Carry NC" makes it a lot easier for people
to buy and carry concealed handguns. The bill lowers the purchase age to 18
and removes the requirement to have a permit to purchase. The permit
process involves getting a background check and also training on how to use
and store firearms. SB 50 removes those requirements.

SB 50 faces new scrutiny after the recent high-profile shootings in
Colorado and Utah. Upholding the veto should be an easy decision, but the
bill’s presence on the calendar suggests that there may be enough votes in
place to override Stein's veto. (Senate override passed in July; House may
vote Monday.)

Senate Bill 153 "[12]NC Border Protection Act" adds numerous bureaucratic
requirements to state agencies to assure their full cooperation with
federal ICE activities. It also adds unneeded (because they are already
prohibited by law) requirements to prevent undocumented immigrants from
accessing social/health services (e.g. Medicaid benefits). Stein’s veto
message points out that the bill removes vital resources from their current
role as state law enforcement. (Senate override passed in July; House may
vote Monday.)

VOUCHERS EXPANDED

House Bill 87 "[13]Educational Choice for Children Act" requires North
Carolina to opt in to the federal tax credit voucher program. The federal
tax credit provision must be approved by governors, so creating this law is
an end run around Governor Stein's authority to decide whether NC
participates in the program. The bill creates a federal tax credit of up to
$1,700 for donations to organizations that provide private school vouchers
([14]see our fact sheet). Federal guidance hasn’t been issued yet, so
details on voucher use are still unknown. (Override votes pending in both
chambers.)

DEI ELIMINATED

House Bill 171 "[15]Equality in State Agencies/Prohibition on DEI," Senate
Bill 227 "[16]Eliminating DEI in Public Education," and Senate Bill 558
"[17]Eliminating DEI in Public Higher Education" all add restrictions on
programs that promote diversity, equity, or inclusion in public agencies.
Senate Bill 227 and SB 558 also include prohibitions on classroom
instruction and instructional materials including a list defining
prohibited “divisive” concepts. The bills also add reporting requirements
to verify that the institution has not engaged in prohibited activities.
(Senate override of SB 227 & 558 passed in July; override votes pending on
HB 171 in both chambers and on SB 227 & 558 in the House.)

Your voice matters! Please [18]contact your legislators to urge them to
uphold Governor Stein’s veto of these bills. Ask them to prioritize
developing a budget that supports public education, public health, and
public safety!

Rural Districts Hit Hardest by Federal Education Cuts

In yet another blow to North Carolina’s rural counties, the federal
education cuts proposed by the Trump administration hit their schools the
hardest. The administration is proposing $12 billion in cuts to public
education nationwide in the 2026 fiscal year, which starts on October 1,
2025. (federal government fiscal years run from October 1- September 30.)

The U.S. House and Senate are still working through major differences in
their spending bills, so it’s not too late to contact lawmakers and urge
them to hold off on proposed cuts.

The proposed K-12 federal budget attempts to eliminate more than 40
programs that provide services for the most vulnerable K-12 students. The
proposed 27% cut to Title 1 (which provides funding to low-wealth schools)
would devastate services in communities that don’t have the resources to
make up the funding gaps.

Other cuts are to programs that pay for teacher training and development,
serve English language learners, and fund education research and data
collection.

Many cancelled programs are centered on academic excellence and
achievement; eliminating them will significantly hinder academic progress
across the United States.

In North Carolina, congressional districts representing some of the
poorest, rural areas in the state are facing cuts that are more than three
times that of urban congressional districts. For example, District 8 (Rep.
Mark Harris) could lose more than $22 million while District 2 (Rep.
Deborah Ross) stands to lose just over $6 million.

Rep. Mark Harris (District 8) and Rep. Virginia Foxx (District 5), both
members of the [19]House Committee on Education & Workforce, voted to
advance the House spending cuts.

See an[20] interactive map of how much funding your congressional district
will lose if the proposed federal cuts are passed.

Rep. Tim Moore’s district could lose more than $18 million. As the former
NC House Speaker, Mr. Moore knows well that North Carolina’s schools
already struggle with insufficient funding. These federal education cuts
may prove disastrous for some school districts.

The North Carolina House delegation could help save funding for schools by
refusing to vote for these cuts. Please check your district and then call
your U.S. House Rep. to urge them to protect their constituents by halting
the federal education cuts.
* 1st district: [21]Donald G. Davis (202) 225-3101
* 2nd district: [22]Deborah K. Ross (202) 225-3032 // (919) 334-0840
* 3rd district: [23]Greg Murphy (202) 225-3415 // (252) 931-1003, (910)
937-6929, (252) 230-3549, (252) 636-6612, and (252) 214-5787
* 4th district: [24]Valerie Foushee (202) 225-1784 // (919) 967-7924
* 5th district: [25]Virginia Foxx (202) 225-2071 // (828) 265-0240 and
(336) 778-0211
* 6th district: [26]Addison McDowell (202) 225-3065
* 7th district: [27]David Rouzer (202) 225-2731 // (910) 253-6111, (910)
500-4880, (910) 395-0202
* 8th district: [28]Mark Harris (202) 225-1976 // (704) 218-5300
* 9th district: [29]Richard Hudson (202) 225-3715 // (910) 910-1924 and
(919) 997-2072
* 10th district: [30]Pat Harrigan (202) 225-2576 // (828) 327-6100
* 11th district: [31]Chuck Edwards (202) 225-6401 // (828) 435-7310
* 12th district: [32]Alma Adams (202) 225-1510 // (704) 344-9950
* 13th district: [33]Brad Knott (202) 225-4531
* 14th district: [34]Tim Moore (202) 225-5634 // (980) 460-8110

Legislative and SBE Updates

The NCGA meets again next week. Keep an eye on the [35]legislative calendar
as changes are likely.

The [36]House Select Committee on Government Efficiency and the [37]House
Finance Committee both meet on Tuesday (9/23) at 9:00 a.m.

The joint committee on [38]Governmental Operations, Subcommittee on
Hurricane Response and Recovery meets on Wednesday (9/24) at 9:00 a.m.

For all meetings, streaming information is on the committee website.

The NCGA is scheduled to reconvene once each month until the start of the
2026 short session.

The first meeting of the Charter Schools Review Board Sub-Campus Committee
will be held on Friday, September 26. A charter school sub-campus is an
additional school campus opened to expand enrollment of an existing
charter. The sub-campus can be located on a different property than the
original school. ([39]Agenda)

The meeting will be [40]live streamed.

Did You Miss Our Discussion with Superintendent Mo Green?

Superintendent of Public Instruction Mo Green joined NC PTA and PSFNC for a
discussion of the new strategic plan for making North Carolina's schools
the best in the nation by 2030.

Superintendent Green shared key points about the plan and then answered
many questions from participants. An important point he made was that
although there are many things educators and DPI can do with current
resources, they need more financial support from the NCGA.

The strategic plan includes many ambitious timelines, and work has been
active in some of the plan's initiatives for several months. There is not a
moment to spare, but the reality is that the plan's ambitious goals require
better resources. For example, Green pointed to North Carolina's poor
teacher pay (lowest of all our neighboring states) as being a barrier to
recruiting and retaining educators.

It was an informative, engaging and insightful discussion!

[41]Watch the Webinar

Achieving Excellence

Pillar 4 of [42]Achieving Educational Excellence: 2025-30 Strategic Plan
for North Carolina Public Schools is Ensure Healthy, Safe and Secure
Learning Environments

Students and staff in our public schools are not able to achieve
educational excellence unless we ensure their safety and well-being.
Physical safety must balance effective security measures with maintaining
welcoming, nurturing spaces.

Overall, schools must be places where students develop resilience, build
relationships and prepare for their futures in safe, secure environments
that nurture their full potential.

Pillar 4 includes seven specific measures of success including these three:
* Establish a baseline and increase the number of trained school resource
officers (SROs) to support a safe school environment.
* Establish a baseline and increase the proportion of school personnel
certified in Youth Mental Health First Aid.
* Establish a baseline and decrease chronic absenteeism rates across PSUs
(Public School Units = traditional and charter schools).

To achieve these goals, the plan identities actions grouped into two focus
areas. Each focus area includes multiple actions and target completion
dates. Below are two for each focus area.

Ensure safe school environments
* Strengthen physical security measures in PSUs, such as perimeter
control, secured access points and protected internal spaces, through
school construction assistance provided by NCDPI. (September 2025)
* Support PSUs in creating safe and secure online learning environments
by providing tools, best practices and advanced training for educators on
virtual classrooms and secure online interactions. (January 2026)

Improve student and staff health and well-being
* Guide PSUs to identify and apply best practices to limit distractions
from wireless devices and promote responsible social media use to support
safe and focused learning environments . (January 2026)
* Identify and share effective practices for reducing chronic absenteeism
and strengthening student attendance. (January 2026)

Superintendent Green is traveling around the state to share the plan and
engage stakeholders. Find locations and times at the [43]NCDPI website
(scroll down the page to Regional Tour). There are two sessions next week:
* Northeast - Thursday, September 25, 2025
* Southeast - Friday, September 26, 2025

Myth Busting!

Public Schools Public Funds (a project of the Education Law Center, has a
new fact sheet and updates to important research on the impact of private
school vouchers. Their recent two-page fact sheet: [44]The Myths of Cost
Savings from Private School Vouchers,demonstrates that voucher programs are
expensive, impractical, and unsound. The fact sheet includes new research
about the harmful impacts of voucher programs, including the high cost of
universal vouchers, instances of significant fraud and abuse, examples of
how vouchers subsidize students already attending private school, and a new
section about how vouchers actually incentivize private schools to increase
tuition costs.

“We remain committed to providing advocates with useful research and
concise talking points about the numerous harms of voucher programs, said
Nicole Ciullo, Associate Director of Policy & Development at Education Law
Center, which directs the PFPS campaign. “We encourage public school
supporters to use the updated Research page, the fact sheet and all the
available resources to strengthen their efforts.”

Here are a few of their other great resources:
* [45]Advocacy page for fact sheets and policy briefs
* [46]PFPS bill tracker to monitor voucher legislation across the nation
and in Congress
* [47]Interactive Tools page to access a universal voucher cost
calculator
* [48]Research page, showing the impact of using public funds for voucher
programs

North Carolina Students Deserve Honesty and Action

By Kris Nordstrom, NC Justice Center

NC Senator Michael Lee is touting his party’s record on school funding on
social media, but it’s a drastic exaggeration. Lee has spent the majority
of his time at the NC General Assembly as one of the Senate’s key education
budget writers. One would then expect that Lee would be able to provide his
followers with an accurate picture of the state of school funding in North
Carolina. Unfortunately, he fails to do so.

In his post on how public school funding has changed in North Carolina from
2014 to 2024, Lee dramatically overstated the extent of the increase.
Lee’s bottom line is that funding increased so much over this ten-year
period, that the state is now “investing $1.7 billion more than inflation
[would account for] alone.”

In reality, per-student funding has only increased slightly during this
period due to several factors. An experienced budget writer should know
better.

[49]READ MORE

In Case You Missed It

[50]NC Struggles to Recruit and Retain Teachers

[51]Schools confront a new reality: They can't count on federal money (Ashe
County, NC is featured)

[52]Wake teachers using AI in the classroom set tone for safe, smart
learning

[53]Rising Cost of School Supplies Increases Burden on Teachers

[54]Oklahoma's 'Judeo-Christian' social studies standards blocked

NC Educators on the Ballot

Educators across the state are running for elected office to help focus
more attention on the needs of public education. This is a bipartisan
effort, with a number of Republicans running to topple incumbents who have
typically voted against education funding. With the loss of federal
pandemic relief, upcoming federal education cuts, and lackluster state
funding, these educators have decided to take action.

Check our their website and support these terrific candidates! [55]NC
Educators on the Ballot website

Read more about this fabulous effort to make positive change in our state!
* [56]"NC Educators on the Ballot" urges teachers to run for the state
legislature
* [57]Reading, Writing, and Political Arithmetic

National Arts in Education Week

National Arts in Education Week September 14-20, 2025.

In 2010, Congress designated the week beginning with the second Sunday in
September as National Arts in Education Week. During this week, the field
of arts education joins together in communities across the country to
advocate, educate, and celebrate the impact and transformative power of the
arts in education.

Every student deserves the opportunity to create, innovate, and thrive
through the arts, regardless of zip code or family income.

Arts in education drives student success across every measure:
* Academic Achievement: Higher test scores and graduation rates
* Workforce Readiness: Building the creativity and collaboration skills
that 72% of business leaders say are essential
* Student Wellness: Providing emotional outlets and supportive
communities
* Equity: Ensuring all students can access transformative learning
experiences

Words to Remember

"If our Court cannot or will not enforce state constitutional rights, those
rights do not exist, the constitution is not worth the paper it is written
on, and our oath as judicial officers to uphold the constitution is a
meaningless charade."

— NC Supreme Court Justice Anita Earls in her dissent to the March 2023
decision to rehear arguments in the Leandro case.

Help us support public schools!

Public Schools First NC is a statewide nonpartisan, 501(c)(3) nonprofit
focused solely

on pre-K to 12 public education issues. We collaborate with parents,
teachers, business and civic leaders, and communities across North Carolina
to advocate for one unified system of public education that prepares each
child for productive citizenship.

[58]DONATE HERE

[59]www.publicschoolsfirstnc.org

Questions? Contact us today at [email protected]

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