Last week the State Senate unveiled a new sales tax redistribution/economic development plan. It’s a slight modification of what was being floated around a few months ago, a revision of the sales tax formula that would distribute more revenue to rural areas.
Despite the modifications making it more amenable to urban municipalities, McCrory is having none of it. He says the state shouldn’t be messing with revenues that belong to local governments and implied that he would veto the legislation if he came to his desk, saying that he couldn’t imagine the bill would get enough support to get through the legislature or withstand a veto.
Then there’s the Senate proposal to cut income and corporate taxes. McCrory isn’t a fan of that either, apparently believing the plan would put the state’s fiscal house in danger and would lead North Carolina down the road paved by Kansas. The Kansas comment is interesting; that’s usually something you would hear from a progressive Democrat. It’s yet another indication that McCrory is trying to position himself as a moderate ahead of the 2016 elections.
So far, the governor has little to be happy about with what’s coming out of the Senate. The recently released budget doesn’t include historic preservation tax credits, which the governor has been promoting for months. In addition, Senate leader Phil Berger says he doesn’t feel there’s a need for a transportation bond.
Seeing as how the governor and the Senate have such different priorities, it looks like the most he can do is try to stop legislation he opposes and get North Carolinians to rally around him in the process. But to do so, he’s going to have to make sure some of his vetoes get sustained. At least in McCrory’s view, the Senate tax plan would be a good place to start.
John Wynne is the “conservative voice” at PoliticsNC, where he also provides polling analysis and commentary on legislative campaigns. When not writing about politics, he enjoys gardening and listening to opera. Contact: johncwynne@gmail.com.
Have any of his vetoes since taking office been sustained?
H1069, Unemployment Insurance Law Changes, 2014 Short session.
Man, he is really, REALLY trying to fashion a “more moderate” image for himself and his campaign. His internal info sources and polling numbers must be getting him nervous.
Let’s see now. He vetoed two bills (magistrates and ag gag), but they were overriden by his own party, painting him as nothing but a speed-bump on the GOP Highway to Shame. Just the same, that might have helped him garner credit from non-GOP’ers as a more moderate voice. But then he goes and signs the abortion bill, which only put him back to square one in trying to come across as a mod.
He’ll need to go as far as vetoing a final budget bill (should it include the sales tax redistribution plan, the cuts in corporate income taxes, and nothing big done on transportation or preservation tax credits) to really earn his wings as a governor and candidate who is in the more moderate middle.