Easley budget breaks promises
Wednesday, February 28th, 2007
By Chris Fitzsimon
Gov. Mike Easley’s budget for 2007-08 genuflects to education but fails to deliver promises made to taxpayers and pounds counties with a huge jump in Medicaid costs.
Out of a $20.1 billion budget that is 6.4 percent larger than last year’s, Easley should have been able to fulfill 2006 promises to repeal the "temporary" quarter-cent sales tax and 8 percent top bracket of the state income tax. He also should have been able to give counties some relief from the burden of Medicaid costs. North Carolina is the only state in the country that requires counties to pay a portion of Medicaid costs.
As has been stated previously in this space, this policy is particularly burdensome for poor counties, which have larger Medicaid populations and a smaller tax base. Last year, the General Assembly failed to eliminate counties’ Medicaid costs but did cap their payments at the level of the previous year. If that cap is removed, counties will face two years of cost increases. For Wilson County, that will mean $700,000 in additional costs. Statewide, the increase for counties will be $91 million. (more…)
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