North Carolina is in a Storm with Lots of Cuts Raining Down
Carol Burke interviews State Representative Allen Buansi (House District 56) and Orange County Commissioner Marilyn Carter.
Burke: Thank you both for agreeing to speak with me about the many budget challenges our state and county governments face, considering all the federal cut backs, some of which are already here, others promised for the future.
Rep. Buansi, I don’t think people understand why we are the one state in the union without a budget. Can you give us a little background?
Buansi: Absolutely. We haven’t passed the budget since 2023. Let me offer a little context. Usually, in the even years, we have a short session in which we make budget adjustments to the previous years. In 2024, neither Senate Leader Phil Berger, who’s Republican, nor Tim Moore, also a Republican, could come to an agreement on a budget adjustments bill. A lot of that had to do with irreconcilable differences.
Then we come to 2025. In NC, we have a long session, and while there’s not a deadline on state budgets, it’s generally understood that it’s good to pass budgets before June 30th because that’s the end of the fiscal year. Counties, towns, ad school boards depend on the predictability of a state budget to inform their own budget allocations and priorities.
Senate Leader Phil Berger and our new Speaker of the House, Destin Hall, haven’t been able to come to an agreement.
North Carolina’s budget process is not very transparent. At the beginning of every session, legislators, Democrats and Republicans, file bills with some that include appropriations. We also hear from the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Adult Corrections, all the different departments. These departments give us a good background to understand what they have been doing and what funding they need going forward.
We know well what different departments need. We even know what we need to continue Medicaid to keep it operating at its current level. We know how much we need to pay teachers so their pay could be number one in the southeast, rather than number 43rd in the nation.
The lack of a budget comes down to disagreements between the Speaker of the House and the Senate leader. I don’t know what’s necessarily going on between them, but what I do know is that North Carolinas are being held hostage because of those differences.
Every two years the drafting of the budget begins with a different legislative body in the General Assembly. Last year, it was the Senate’s turn to propose the budget. They passed their own version of the budget, and it came to the House. The Senate plan phased in additional tax cuts that would severely diminish our state’s revenue and do little to increase teacher pay. The budget increased starting teacher pay but gave no increase to teachers already in the system. Instead, the budget drastically expanded funding for K-12 private school tuition, a program that began as a program for low-income families but now gives vouchers to the children of millionaires. Spending on this program will total $9 billion by 2034-35.
Many House Republicans, along with their Democratic colleagues, fear that such drastic cuts will send the state heading for a cliff. We need to delay those tax cuts, but from what I’ve heard, Senator Berger seems to be of the mind that it’s his way or the highway.
Burke: How seriously are Republicans in both the House and the Senate lining up behind the Senate budget?
Buansi: There’s a lot of disagreement and maybe even animus between House Republicans and Senate Republicans. NC Republican leaders are not as uniform as they are at the federal level, but they are not speaking out publicly either. State Senate Republicans and State House Republicans either praised the one big ugly bill or remained silent.
The Department of Health and Human Services and other departments have been informing us with briefings about the impacts that federal cuts will have on the people of North Carolina, particularly when it comes to Medicaid and SNAP benefits. We know where we’re heading as a state. We know that if we don’t pass a comprehensive state budget to address the shortfalls that are coming from the Fed, North Carolinians will suffer.
Burke: What does that impact look like?
Buansi: I’ll first talk about SNAP, the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, previously known as the Food Stamp program. The legislation, signed by Lyndon B. Johnson back in the sixties, was a vital part of his War on Poverty. The One Big Ugly Bill, proposed by President Trump and passed by Republicans in Congress, will transfer part of the costs of the SNAP program from the federal government to states.
We’ve got a lot of North Carolinians who need food assistance, especially in rural North Carolina. About 1.44 million North Carolinians received SNAP benefits in 2025, according to USA Facts. That includes about 46,000 veterans, 600,000 children, and 159,000 seniors. In addition to the cuts, work requirements will necessitate a costly administrative structure to ensure that recipients follow a new set of rules. The NC Health Alliance estimates that the additional administrative costs, together with the state’s share of the program, could total $436 million from the state’s budget each year to continue the program.
Burke: You have spoken about the vast sums of public money going to pay for private schools in the NC voucher program. Do you see any other problems with the program?
Buansi: The private schools receiving these tax dollars are not accountable in the way public schools are. They don’t have to report what they do with that money. They don’t have to administer state tests that measure their success.
Burke: I have read that 73% of the schools receiving these public funds are religious schools, and that some, known as “segregation academies,” were formed at a time when North Carolina was racially integrating public schools. Do we want that? Is that public education? Does it maintain a separation of church and state?
Buansi: Nope. And these private schools can discriminate on admissions, denying enrollment to students with disabilities. Public schools are here for a reason—to educate all. We need schools that accept everyone, not a select few.
Burke: Can you tell me a little bit more about any fissures within the Republican Party in North Carolina?
Buansi: I think a lot of folks have come to understand political parties in a simplified way that assumes that everyone in a particular party thinks the same way.
Democrats understand their party as a big tent, a large and diverse party, one that values a diversity of opinion and a diversity of people. Just as Republicans tend to label us as hopeless liberals, we tend to stigmatize Republicans for their uniformity of background and values. Too often we don’t appreciate the diversity of opinion and people who call themselves Republicans. For example, there’s diversity based on geography and diversity based on class.
Republicans have been in control of the general assembly since 2010. We’re going on 16 years now. That’s a long time, and some legislators may have changed. I’m sure that in 2010, Republicans came to the General Assembly with an agenda. The longer a party is in control, however, the more they may move off the agenda, change their priorities and see issues in other ways. Over time, some may even see wisdom in a position advanced by the other side.
Divergence of opinion within a party is also influenced by the size of the body. Senator Berger runs a very disciplined caucus on the Senate side. The House has 120 members, whereas the State Senate has 50.
Burke: Commissioner Carter, could you give us a county perspective on some of the comments made by Representative Buansi?
Carter: Federal cuts are already starting to be felt. The emphasis on private education is having a very tangible effect on our public schools. The health of our public schools is always a concern of county commissioners. Roughly half of the county budget goes to support the schools. Enrollment in our schools is declining, and with enrollment decline will come a drop in state funding for our public schools. Vouchers for students going to private schools is a contributing factor.
In choosing where to send their children to school, parents consider facilities as well as curriculum. Many of our schools need major repair or even replacement. Although Orange County residents voted for a $300 million bond to be spent over ten years to improve facilities, this investment doesn’t address the bigger problems of declining enrollment, teacher compensation, redistricting, and possible school closures.
As a county, we are getting older, not younger, and we must respond to demographic changes. There are connections to housing and affordability.
Burke: How does timing affect how you address the financial needs of your county?
Carter: As Allen pointed out, the state doesn’t have a budget right now, and it isn’t required constitutionally to have a budget by a certain point in time.
The counties, however, can’t live under that paradigm. By statute, we must close our budget every year by June 30th. For the last couple of months, departments in our county have been defining their needs for the next fiscal year. The spring is budget season for every county in North Carolina. And by June 30th, we will have a budget.
We’re not sure when the state will pass a budget telling us how much per pupil spending our schools can plan for. Consequently, we may close budget season with a great deal of uncertainty. This will likely drive the need for budget amendments to address school funding changes. The lack of a state budget creates challenges not just for commissioners but also for our hardworking staff who are trying to do that planning.
Burke: What about the other 50% of the budget that isn’t for education?
Carter: Yeah. Let’s talk about those federal impacts. They are just starting to be felt. Changes in what Republicans call “The Big Beautiful Bill” don’t all come in at once; they are phased. One of the changes that we’re seeing right now is the federal administrative match to SNAP. The federal contribution is going from 50% down to 25%. In North Carolina, SNAP is administered at the county level, and so every county will face the increased burden. We currently have 8,300 people in Orange County who receive nutrition benefits. While the federal government is pulling back funds, it is asking that we do more. Instead of requiring that the needy recipients of SNAP qualify once every twelve months, the feds are now requiring that they qualify every six months.
In February, staff estimated a $900,000 impact to our budget on an annual basis. This is while health insurance costs are rising. Our county manager also informed the Commissioners that once federal cuts and other cost increases are considered, our county will have a $20 million shortfall in the county’s FY 2026-27 budget.
The cuts from the White House and the budget bill passed by our Republican Congress hurt the most vulnerable and leave states and county governments scrambling. Beyond SNAP and Medicaid changes, the Department of Homeland Security implemented massive cuts to FEMA in 2025. Our federal elected officials like Senators Budd and Tillis know that a state like North Carolina, which has faced severe flooding in the last several years, cannot alone manage rescue, relief, and rebuilding without the help of federal agencies.
Until we can change the political system, we need to keep bringing our voices.
Burke: Can we talk about Medicaid?
Carter: The cuts to Medicaid will be a little bit later, but they are coming. In Orange County, we had 5,000 people sign up for Medicaid expansion after it was signed into law in North Carolina by then-Governor Cooper, making the current number covered by Medicaid about 21,000. The administration of this program, like SNAP, will necessitate more staff to implement the new work requirements
Burke: Aren’t 80% of the adults on these programs already working?
Buansi: Exactly. Administration officials have defended the strict work requirements that they claim will get people to work. The experience of Arkansas in 2018 proved that assumption to be wrong. In the Arkansas program, 18,000 lost coverage with no increase in employment, and the state paid over $20 million to administer the unsuccessful experiment, one that our federal government is set to implement again.
Burke: Is the intention to serve fewer rather than to increase employment?
Buansi: Yes, it’s completely by design. The idea that people on Medicaid are lazy and don’t want to work is a myth. That’s all false. 80+ percent of adults who are on Medicaid work, and many work multiple jobs.
At the end of the day, the folks who are driving these policies do not care about poor people. They do not care about working people. They’d rather see those who suffer get cut off, so that they can enrich themselves and their friends.
Carter: I totally agree about the potential impacts. Many of us know folks who receive Medicaid benefits. I have a disabled family member among them who struggles with benefits paperwork. Many people on Medicaid will also struggle with the process and need assistance. It is no exaggeration to say that access to these benefits can mean the difference between life and death.
To bring a stronger voice to efforts to advocate for our residents, one of Orange County’s commissioners, Phyllis Portie-Ascott, is now a district director, working with seven counties in our region. I serve as our representative for the National Association of Counties. Other commissioners serve on statewide committees. In doing so, we see that many of our concerns are neither Republican nor Democrat but are common concerns, certainly in the areas of health and human services.
Burke: Rep Buansi, I’m sure that all Republicans in North Carolina are not delighted by the upcoming cuts to Medicaid. Even Senator Tillis has spoken out about the harm these cuts will bring. Are there any bipartisan opportunities?
Buansi: In the last budget we passed, which was back in ‘23, over $835 million were included in investments in mental health. That investment had broad, bipartisan support. That was a big, big deal. There used to be a denial of mental health issues.
A couple of weeks ago, Governor Stein issued an executive order on public safety and mental health. I know that there are Republicans in the legislature who agree with him, that we’ve got a crisis when it comes to dealing with behavioral health in our justice system, whether it’s in our juvenile facilities or our adult facilities.
I’d say, too, that there’s some alignment when it comes to addressing the vacancies which we’re seeing, not only with teachers but also with the driver’s license examiners at the DMV.
Republicans and Democrats can see a problem similarly while differing on the method to address it. Do you, for example, eliminate all the vacant positions and pull those savings into salary increases risking too few people capable of completing the tasks?
We are fortunate to have several state lawmakers on the Republican side who are former county commissioners, mayors, and town council members. They appreciate the practical challenges the residents of their districts face. But we must do more to help people, especially with housing.
Burke: Can you state simply what you and your Democratic colleges in the General Assembly want to accomplish in the future?
Buansi: We are looking to this year and in ’28 when we hope to be back in the majority so that we can institute policy for North Carolina that doesn’t hurt people, policy that helps average working people.
I would just add that we have specific needs as well. Some require federal support. Every North Carolina member of Congress knows how vulnerable our eastern coastline is, how much destruction Hurricane Helene (2024) did to the western part of our state, and how the full recovery from flooding brought on by Tropical Storm Chantel (2025) is still not complete. If every NC representative and senator were voting for the shared interest of their constituents, they would vote for a stronger, more nimble and fully funded FEMA. In their zest for smaller government and their unwillingness to challenge climate change deniers, Republicans endanger those they represent.
North Carolina’s planning for the next natural disaster, and there will certainly be others, needs the coordination of our federal, state, and local representatives.
Carter: This is an important concern among the county commissioners nationwide who are working very hard to influence the administration of FEMA. I toured the damage wrought by Tropical Depression Chanel with Congresswoman Foushee and other elected officials in Hillsborough. On our tour, emergency responders shared that conditions during the storm were so devastating in parts of Chapel Hill, Carrboro and beyond into the county that numerous Swift Boat rescues were needed.
Disasters like these require layers of response and help for months and even years after the actual event. For Chantal, Orange County and our municipalities organized a disaster center at Drakeford Library where relief services were offered. The Small Business Administration was there to help businesses with filing claims. Unfortunately, 6 months after the storm, some businesses were still waiting for documentation from the IRS to process their loans, which has taken forever because of federal cuts to the IRS itself. So, the impact is just so wide reaching.
Burke: I’d like to turn back to our budget discussion. Do you think that the Republican controlled General Assembly will come to the rescue of Medicaid Expansion, approved in 2023. Or will they simply let the expansion go away, thus turning away thousands?
Buansi: There’s probably a bit of a split among Republicans in the House, because I know when we passed Medicaid expansion in ‘23, all the Democrats voted for it, but there was a split among Republicans. I think it was a narrow majority of Republicans who joined Democrats in voting for it.
Burke: What happens if the legislature doesn’t appropriate the funds? Will Medicaid Expansion die?
Buansi: A couple of weeks ago, Deputy Secretary of NC Medicaid Jay Ludlam gave a briefing to state legislatures. Someone asked, “Hey, when does it actually go away?” He couldn’t give a definitive date. There’s a date coming up in April, I think by end of April. If we don’t fund Medicaid rebate, then we’re going to start seeing people kicked off. People in North Carolina might become aware of the effects as early as May.
Rates for service are going up. If we don’t fund that increase and reimburse providers at the increased rates, I fear that some of the providers we have now will simply decline to take Medicaid patients.
Burke: How do we let people receiving Medicaid and SNAP know about the possible changes to their eligibility?
Carter: The Orange County Department of Social Services (DSS) is reaching out to people across the county and working with the Department of Aging.
For folks who are on both Medicaid and SNAP, DSS is ensuring that they are aware of the changes. There’s an education campaign that’s happening right now.
Buansi: Let me add. State employee retirees are facing the crunch as well. They haven’t had a cost of living adjustment, a true substantial one, in many years. I know the State House proposed budget included 1% increase over this past fiscal year, and then 2% in the next fiscal year. But in terms of the skyrocketing cost of groceries and housing, that’s not nearly enough even for retirees.
I remember there was a constituent who’d reached out to me, a retiree and former state employee himself. He said that he’d seen a quote in a publication by a Republican state lawmaker who apparently said, “I’m not fond of giving free money to those people because they’re not working.”
Carter: I went to an event late last year for seniors at Orange County’s Seymour Center late last year where Congresswoman Foushee and Congresswoman emeritus Eva Clayton spoke with residents. Audience members spoke about the impact of SNAP on elder nutrition services. One lady said, “I still work even though I’m post-retirement age. I’m a professional, and I could not afford to pay my rent if I did not receive SNAP. Also, coming here to this center for the free lunches that are offered for seniors helps me continue to pay my other bills.”
Continuing to support our community is top concern of the commissioners. Budgets are never easy, and this year is particularly challenging, in light of all the federal cuts, both those in effect and those yet to come.
Burke: Tell me what you think the average North Carolinian can do in these fraught times.
Carter: We can’t abandon the needy in our communities, even when Washington does. We must do everything we possibly can, through every channel we have available to us.
I think that one of the superpowers of our community is that we’ve got people who really care and who volunteer and help others.
We also must bring our voices to bear to the folks in our General Assembly and in Washington, so call your senators. Call your representative in Congress. Call your state legislators.
Remember, too, that the cost-shifting resulting from federal cuts is impacting ALL counties. County issues are shared issues whether a county is blue or red. Sit down with your commissioners and encourage your friends in other counties to do the same. And give them an earful!
