She will accomplish one thing. Democratic candidates for office will be able to stand in front of every progressive advocacy group and criticize whatever the majority does as, “Not doing enough for you” or “Balancing the budget on your back.” What they really mean is, “Help us regain power.”

The Republican majority in the N.C. House has a mission statement:

“To develop a budget for North Carolina which brings spending into line with available revenues by identifying the proper and necessary functions of state government and then prioritizing them.”

This mission statement makes it clear there will be no tax increase. There is a good faith belief that a regressive sales tax increase will hit working families the hardest and will cause the tepid recovery to stall. This is no time to make things worse for those who are working or looking for work.

There are real problems in North Carolina. These problems have built over a long time, and will not be solved with glib promises of increased spending. For the governor to pretend that everything wrong with our state is caused by nine months of a GOP budget is absurd. Having had power in North Carolina for over a century, there are few problems in this state that have not festered for years under Democratic governance. Many popular programs have very spotty records of success, and spending more taxpayer dollars on such programs is not the answer for our future. Reform of many programs must begin now. We need serious solutions and serious people to implement them.

There are tough choices to be made about the priorities of spending in the coming fiscal year. In the interest of the citizens of North Carolina, Gov. Perdue should accept her responsibility to help solve a budget crisis of long duration. She should join in setting priorities and help craft a budget which passes with bipartisan support and bears her signature. I am disappointed that the governor chooses to champion only the interests of the Democratic candidates for office. This budget, the last one to be submitted by Gov. Perdue, is another sad example of failed leadership.

We can and will do better.

“Today’s decision by Judge Weeks validates that the Racial Justice Act, enacted by a Democrat-controlled General Assembly, is effectively a moratorium on the death penalty in North Carolina. The Racial Justice Act allowed a convicted murderer to evade justice and punished a suffering family. The leadership of the General Assembly will continue to work to repeal the Racial Justice Act and provide fair and just laws to ensure that only the guilty are punished. Families of victims should not have to endure the pain that we have seen today.”

“We’re asking North Carolinians to reach out to the Task Force with their experiences, observations, or suggestions for preventing unemployment fraud,” Rep. Pridgen said. “In my district, I’ve discovered several startling cases of unemployment fraud and my concern is that there are similar stories out there that have not been brought to our attention.”
Pridgen added, “The task force is seeking ways to improve the integrity of taxpayer investments in North Carolina’s unemployment insurance system. Fraudulent overpayments undermine the solvency of this important program, which serves thousands of temporarily out-of-work North Carolinians.”

According to Rep. Avila, it is important to have input from North Carolina businesses and workers as the task force looks at ways to address an estimated $160 million in annual fraudulent overpayments.
“We have a duty to North Carolinians to ensure the responsible use of taxpayer money, and I am proud to lead this effort to clean up abuse in the unemployment system,” Rep. Avila said. “We will take this opportunity to invite North Carolinians to share with us their experiences with fraud in the unemployment system.”

Individuals, particularly those impacted by fraudulent overpayments, are encouraged to submit their ideas and comments through the committee’s website (full link below). The public comment period will be open from 9:00AM April 11th until 5:00PM May 2nd, 2012.

http://ncleg.net/gascripts/Committees/Committees.asp?sAction=ViewCommittee&sActionDetails=House+Select_151

In an email to all members of the North Carolina House this morning, House Speaker Thom Tillis (R-Mecklenburg) announced that no votes will be taken during the session scheduled for next Thursday, February 16.

After conferring with Rep. Joe Hackney, the House Minority Leader, Tillis informed the members that the only matters that will be taken up will be unrecorded votes to adopt the House Journal and adjournment. He noted that members who have no need to be in Raleigh should not feel obligated to attend this session, and if they do, they should defer compensation.

The full text of the email is below.

###

Members,

Next week’s session on Thursday, February 16th will be a “Skeleton/ NO VOTE” session. I have conferred with Representative Hackney and have informed him that no matters will be taken up on the floor except for the unrecorded votes to adopt the Journal and to adjourn.

Unless you already have plans to travel to Raleigh for committee meetings or other legislative activities, there will be no need for you to attend the session. Those not attending are encouraged to defer session compensation for the 1-day session, which can be accomplished by contacting the Legislative Personnel Office.

Regards, Thom T

Representative Thom Tillis

Speaker of the House

North Carolina House of Representatives

House Speaker Thom Tillis (R-Mecklenburg) released the following statement today regarding Governor Bev Perdue’s decision to not seek re-election:

“Governor Perdue has had a long and dedicated career in public service in North Carolina. All too often, the sacrifices of public officials go unnoted, so I acknowledge her hard work and her years of service to the state. Whether we agree with her politics or not, we all should respect her for her commitment to North Carolina over these many years.

Republicans in the General Assembly have disagreed deeply with the Governor over many issues, but I am hopeful we can find opportunities in her remaining time in office to work on legislative matters that will become a part of her legacy, and do so for the good of all North Carolinians. I wish Governor Perdue and her family the very best.”

House Speaker Thom Tillis (R-Mecklenburg) released the following statement today regarding a potential debate with Governor Bev Perdue & Senate President Pro-Tem Phil Berger:

“I would be more than happy to join Sen. Berger in a public debate with Governor Perdue over her proposal to raise the sales tax, which would take more than $800 million out of the pockets of North Carolinians.  Governor Perdue believes that government should demand that our citizens pay more for basic necessities instead of demanding more efficiency out of government.  Sen. Berger and I believe that there is room to improve the core functions of government without punishing every North Carolinian, and we passed a budget that reflected that belief.  The Governor has a very different vision of the role of government than do Sen. Berger and I, and the citizens of this state deserve an opportunity to clearly see the difference.  I look forward to the opportunity to put those differences on display.”

Rep. David Lewis (R-Harnett), Co-Chairman of the Joint Redistricting Committee, released the following statement today regarding a court decision not to delay North Carolina’s primary elections.  A unanimous three-judge court today denied a motion to delay elections under the legislature’s new redistricting plans, clearly stating that “the court declines to delay the forthcoming elections.”

“Today’s decision means that North Carolina voters and candidates have certainty over the 2012 elections.  While litigation regarding redistricting will continue to be handled by the legal system, today’s decision ensures that no practical impact will be had upon the timing of candidate filing, primary elections, or the general election in November.  From the beginning of this process, we have endeavored to create maps that are fair and legal.  Today’s decision protects the certainty our citizens deserve to have in our electoral process.” – David Lewis

House Speaker Thom Tillis (R-Mecklenburg) issued the following statement today regarding Gov. Bev Perdue’s proposal to raise $750 million in new taxes:

“Governor Perdue continues to show that she is out of touch with North Carolinians and lacks a basic understanding of our economy.  Her proposal, which would raise the state portion of the sales tax by an estimated 15%, would make it harder for working families to purchase prepared food, clothing, medical supplies and other basic necessities to support an extreme agenda for larger government.  That is completely unacceptable.  This regressive tax would make it more expensive for single moms to buy carryout food for their children, force seniors to pay more for medical supplies, and would negatively impact every level of society.  Now is not the time to raise taxes, especially in light of the fact that the General Assembly’s education budget was only 0.5% different than the Governor’s – and we did not raise taxes.”

House Speaker Thom Tillis (R-Mecklenburg) released the following statement today concerning Governor Perdue’s appointment of Rep. David Guice as Director of Community Corrections for the new Department of Public Safety:

“It has been an honor to serve with Rep. David Guice. He has established a record as one of most productive and hardest-working members of the General Assembly. He is a man of integrity, and his leadership will be missed in the House. Given his expertise and his background, it is not surprising that he has been selected to perform these very important duties. I am confident he will continue to serve our state and our citizens as remarkably as he has in the past.