RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Republican leaders of the North Carolina House of Representatives and Senate said Friday they have reached agreement on a supplemental spending proposal that includes hundreds of millions of dollars to eliminate the state’s waiting list for private school vouchers.
The new proposal includes funding for Medicaid, broadband access and the implementation of a law that would force sheriffs to comply with federal immigration agents. Both chambers will reconvene next week for a vote that will likely send the bill to Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, whose expected veto could be overridden by the Legislature’s GOP supermajorities.
The proposal sets aside another $463 million to clear the waiting list for the state’s Opportunity Scholarship Program, which saw a surge in applications after the General Assembly last year eliminated income limits on eligibility. There wasn’t enough money initially set aside to cover everyone, leaving about 55,000 children on the waiting list and many parents frustrated.
Lawmakers failed to reach an agreement on a budget adjustment that included voucher funding before the end of the legislative session in June.
The new proposal would allow families on the waiting list to be reimbursed retroactively for private school expenses this fall, and would provide more spending to meet demand through the early 2030s. About $25 million in recurring funds would be used to provide private school scholarships to children with disabilities.
Senate Majority Leader Phil Berger and House Speaker Tim Moore released statements describing the Opportunity Scholarship funding as an achievement that gives parents “more say in their child’s education.”
Cooper and Democratic lawmakers are strongly opposed, arguing that the grants divert taxpayer dollars from traditional public schools and funnel those funds to private schools that lack strong academic accountability.
The GOP proposal includes about $160 million to address enrollment growth at public K-12 schools and community colleges. But Cooper pointed out Thursday that declining state revenues last fiscal year — a projected $413 million surplus that ultimately shrank to a $30 million deficit — will hurt public school funding if endowments continue to grow.
“Private school vouchers are going to create a budget crisis,” Cooper said. “I know these Republican legislators who represent rural districts — I know they’re smart enough to know this is not good for their constituents.”
The proposal also includes an additional $377 million for Medicaid and a new program to further improve broadband in rural counties.
The session ended, leaving another bill, led by House leadership, in limbo. Now, that legislation — aimed at enforcing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement compliance — has been included in the new proposal.
The law requires North Carolina sheriffs — known as detainers — to comply with ICE requests by temporarily holding inmates accused of serious crimes if they are suspected of being in the country illegally. Federal immigration agents would then come and pick up the accused. Sheriffs or other law enforcement officials are already required to check an inmate’s legal status if they are accused of serious crimes, under state law.
The provision retains most of the original content, but removes an amendment that would allow anyone to file a complaint with the Public Prosecutor’s Office if they believe a prison director is not complying with the law.
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Associated Press Editor Gary D. Robertson contributed to this report.
