Gov. Josh Stein signs $34.4 billion North Carolina budget into law

RALEIGH, NC (WWAY) — Gov. Josh Stein signed North Carolina’s $34.4 billion state budget into law Tuesday, approving a spending plan that includes tax cuts, raises for state employees and teachers, funding for hurricane recovery, and investments in PFAS research.

The budget lowers the state’s personal income tax rate by one-half percentage point and provides a 3% pay raise for state employees.

Education accounts for more than $19 billion of the budget. Teachers will receive an average pay increase of about 8%, along with bonuses based on years of service. The budget also raises the starting salary for new teachers.

However, some educators say the increases do not go far enough.

New Hanover County teacher Lisa Espy criticized lawmakers who approved the budget, saying the raises fail to address broader concerns about public education.

“A clear message has to be sent in November,” Espy said. “There are some people that need to be sent home. We need fresh new blood in, because if we don’t, I’m really scared about the direction of public education. We do not have a governing legislative body that is supporting public education.”

Beyond education, the budget includes pay raises for law enforcement officers, with some positions receiving increases of up to 17%.

The spending plan also allocates more than $700 million for continued recovery efforts following Hurricane Helene. It provides $15 million to the North Carolina Collaboratory, a state-funded research agency, for research and remediation of PFAS contamination near North Carolina fire stations.

While signing the budget, Stein also expressed concerns over provisions that eliminate more than 1,000 state government positions. He said the staffing reductions could limit access to critical health and public safety services across the state.