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Good Evening,

North Carolina has never lacked for big fights. From the Halifax Resolves to today’s budget battles, our state has a habit of punching above its weight when it comes to defending liberty.

This past year, you helped continue that tradition.

In 2025 alone, your partnership helped us secure three landmark wins.

First, the Power Bill Reduction Act put least-cost energy back at the center of state policy.

Instead of forcing you to subsidize political fashions in energy, the law says utilities must focus on what should have mattered all along: reliability and affordability for ratepayers.

Second, the Personal Privacy Protection Act safeguarded the right of North Carolinians to support the causes they believe in without fear of harassment or political retribution.

The Founders understood that freedom of association was essential to self-government. We’re simply catching our laws up to that older wisdom.

Third, we checked government overreach by requiring legislative approval for high-cost regulations.

If an agency wants to impose rules that carry a big price tag, elected lawmakers now have to sign off.

But as you know, the work is far from finished.

In the year ahead, Locke is pressing forward on:
* Tax reform so families and small businesses can keep more of what they earn.
* Expanding school choice so every child can learn where they thrive.
* Advancing free‑market housing reforms so homes become more affordable without central planning.
* Protecting agricultural freedom so the farmers who feed and fuel North Carolina can actually stay in business.

Research, advocacy, and persistence, none of this happens without you.

Thank you for standing with us. Together, we’re making North Carolina freer, fairer, and a little more worthy of its history.
Esse quam videri,

Donald Bryson
CEO
John Locke Foundation

RSVP today for the Carolina Liberty Conference!
Use code CLCYEAREND for $25 off your tickets to the 2026 Carolina Liberty Conference!
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All the episodes are officially out! Watch/Listen to our NEW PODCAST, “Revolutionary Roads,” on YouTube or anywhere you get your podcasts.
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More from Locke

1) ([link removed]) 📩📩📩 New federal rule to affect end-of-year charitable giving ([link removed])
* A recent clarification from the U.S. Postal Service regarding postmarking procedures may affect the tax-deductibility of donations made by mail late in the year.
+ Donors who mail checks in late December run the risk of having their mail postmarked in 2026 instead of 2025, which would disqualify the gift for the 2025 tax year.
+ To ensure a 2025 postmark, consider bringing contributions inside a post office for manual processing, rather than using blue collection boxes as the December 31 deadline approaches.
* Online giving is the fastest and most secure way to ensure a donation is recorded for the current tax year.
+ Donors are also encouraged to consider giving via appreciated stock or cryptocurrency, though they should consult with financial advisors first.

You can read more here ([link removed]) .

2) ([link removed]) 📜📜📜 Rights before power: NC’s Declaration of Rights ([link removed])
* North Carolina’s founders intentionally adopted the Declaration of Rights in 1776 before ratifying the state's first constitution, signaling that individual liberties are the foundation upon which government is built, not gifts granted by it.
* Unlike a mere "wish list," the Declaration was established as binding constitutional law.
+ Article XLIV of the 1776 Constitution explicitly stated that the Declaration was part of the Constitution and should never be violated.
+ Section I established that all political power is derived from the people.
+ Section IV mandated a distinct tripartite system (Legislative, Executive, and Judicial) to prevent the consolidation of power.
+ It also included early versions of rights against unreasonable searches and self-incrimination, which later influenced the U.S. Bill of Rights.
* North Carolina’s "great refusal" to ratify the federal Constitution, until it was assured that a Bill of Rights would be added, demonstrated the state's commitment to explicit constraints on power.
* With only minor changes, the 1776 Declaration remains the first article of North Carolina's current (1971) Constitution, serving for nearly 250 years as a "firewall" against the expansion of regulatory and bureaucratic power.
+ Reflecting the Lockean view that government exists solely to protect pre-existing natural rights, specifically life, liberty, and property.

You can read the full article here ([link removed]) .

3) ([link removed]) 📈📈📈 Duke rate hikes: the lingering effects of bad policy choices ([link removed])
* The North Carolina Utilities Commission (NCUC) recently approved multi-year rate hikes for Duke Energy Progress (11.3%) and Duke Energy Carolinas (14.6%).
+ The NCUC’s Public Staff has warned that rates could potentially double after the next round of hikes beginning in 2026.
+ These increases follow a trend where rate hikes have consistently outpaced inflation, significantly increasing the financial burden on NC households.
+ State-mandated shifts to close functional coal plants and replace them are the primary cost drivers.
+ Under current law, Duke Energy is guaranteed a profit on capital investments.
o This creates a "perverse incentive" to build expensive new infrastructure.
* Forcing the closure of "working" power plants before the end of their useful life requires customers to pay for the remaining debt on those plants while simultaneously funding their replacements.
+ Additionally, state-funded "economic development" projects (e.g., Wolfspeed, VinFast, and Toyota) require massive amounts of electricity.
+ Because Duke must expand the grid to accommodate these power-intensive manufacturing projects, average residential ratepayers end up subsidizing the infrastructure needed for these projects.
* NCUC has also failed to provide effective pushback against Duke’s proposals, leading to a system that favors shareholder returns over consumer costs.
+ State law requires "least-cost" and reliable service, but current political goals are overriding this principle in favor of more expensive green energy goals.
* The General Assembly should reform the incentive structure so that Duke is rewarded for providing the most affordable and reliable power (like nuclear and natural gas), rather than just building new capital projects.

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