With spending talks idling, North Carolina House to advance its own budget proposal

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — While spending talks idle between Republicans in the North Carolina General Assembly, the House is rolling out its own proposed budget adjustments for the coming year, and plans to vote on them next week, Speaker Tim Moore said Tuesday.

House and Senate GOP leaders have been negotiating privately for weeks on a path forward to create one budget measure they can agree on together without going through the conventional process of advancing competing spending plans. Any such measure would adjust the second year of a two-year state government budget enacted last fall.

But both Moore and Senate leader Phil Berger have expressed frustration with the negotiations. Berger has said House Republicans want to spend more in the next 12 months than the Senate — potentially $1 billion more — and spend a lot on what he calls “pork,” meaning local or unnecessary projects.

While Moore downplayed monetary differences on Tuesday, he told reporters that the House wanted to “make a statement” and propose higher pay for teachers and state employees beyond what the two-year budget is currently offering in the coming year. The Senate is not on board with that, the speaker said.

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