Perdue: NC Budget Will Eliminate 'Thousands Of State Positions'

During her second State of the State address before the General Assembly Monday evening, Gov. Bev Perdue previewed her up-coming budget, which will include the consolidation of 12 state agencies into eight and the privatization of some state agencies.

In addition, Perdue made three policy announcements including a proposed reduction to the corporate income tax, fulfilling her Career and College Promise initiative and maintaining funding for all state-supported teaching assistant and teacher positions.

Perdue said, “The students of the Career and College Promise will have a new reason to stay in school because -- for what may be the first time for many of them or their families -- they will have a clear, attainable path to success.”

Republican leaders from both chambers questioned where the governor would get the money to fund her College Promise.

"Where's the money map and how do you do it with deficit we have to address?" said Republican House Speaker Thom Tillis (R-Mecklenburg).

GOP Senator Phil Berger, the leader of the North Carolina Senate, added, "I'm concerned about some of the promises made and concerned about whether the dollars exist to pay for some of the programs. That's one of the ways we got into the mess we're in now by promising to do things and not having the money to pay for it."

Perdue said her upcoming budget will cut the corporate tax rate to 4.9 percent to continue to attract private sector jobs to North Carolina. She also called on the General Assembly to support the state’s existing incentives program.

“This change will push North Carolina to the forefront in growing jobs for our people,” Perdue said. “And that … must be the number one priority for every one of us in this chamber tonight.”

Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger (R-Rockingham) liked what he heard about cutting the corporate tax rate 2 percentage points.

"I was encouraged by her acknowledgment that our corporate tax rate is too high and is a job killer," said Senator Berger. "It needs to be addressed. We look forward to partnering with her on that."

Perdue also promised that the up-coming budget will not eliminate any state-supported teacher or teaching assistant positions in the state. However, any teachers who do not meet certain “standards of excellence” will be replaced.

“We will demand that all teachers and administrators meet our standards of excellence or we will replace them,” Perdue said. “Now is not the time to let our children fall behind. We must act decisively, and we must act now to ensure all children in every single school system get the sound education they must have to compete in the work force of tomorrow and keep our state competitive.”

North Carolina Senate Democratic Leader Martin Nesbitt said senate democrats will stand behind Perdue’s efforts to curb teacher layoffs, saying the state’s economic growth “depends on it.”

“Not only is a quality education the foundation for our children’s future, but it attracts new jobs and new investment to North Carolina,” Nesbitt said. “In the tough budget debate to come, senate democrats will stand up to prevent teacher layoffs and protect our children’s education.”

To meet budgetary constraints, Perdue said she will work to consolidate 14 state agencies into eight, privatize some state services and offer an early retirement package to some employees to further reduce the size of state government.

“[W]e will not just make government smaller, we will make it more efficient, more capable of serving the 9.5 million people who call North Carolina home,” Perdue said. “We have embraced public private partnerships and new technology, not as a substitute for our own ingenuity, but as a way to enhance it.”

Perdue is expected to deliver the budget later this week.

“The budget that I deliver to you later this week is $2.2 billion less than the budget that I inherited in 2009. It spends 11 percent less per capita and sheds thousands of state positions,” Perdue said.

She added, “North Carolina must be more agile, more responsive to citizens -- less bureaucratic -- as we focus our limited resources on our core missions of jobs and education.”