{"id":62,"date":"2026-05-12T23:06:53","date_gmt":"2026-05-12T23:06:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/northcarolinamovingjournal.com\/?p=62"},"modified":"2026-05-12T23:06:53","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T23:06:53","slug":"constitutional-property-tax-amendment-passes-key-nc-house-panel-despite-concerns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/northcarolinamovingjournal.com\/?p=62","title":{"rendered":"Constitutional property tax amendment passes key NC House panel despite concerns"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

As a constitutional amendment to limit the amount by which local governments can increase property taxes passed the North Carolina House Finance Committee on Tuesday, several Democratic lawmakers expressed concerns about whether it will solve the underlying problem.<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more NC House plan would bolster, expand access to rural healthcare<\/a><\/p>\n

The constitutional amendment, House Bill 1089, was recommended bythe House Select Committee on Property Tax Reduction and Reform. House Speaker Destin Hall (R-Caldwell) created the committee to examine tax reform as a result of constituent complaints about rising property taxes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Hall and other Republican leaders blame local governments for the increases.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cFamilies are getting ripped off as some, but by no means all, local governments rake in billions more than inflation and population growth warrant,\u201d Hall said in a recent press release.<\/span><\/p>\n

Critics, however, warn that limiting property tax levies could have dire consequences for local governments, which could be forced to cut services. Local property taxes help pay for vital needs like public safety, education, and public health.<\/span><\/p>\n

State Rep. Eric Ager (D-Buncombe) told colleagues that the costs the state passes down to local governments are the reason for increasing property taxes.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI think if we were really serious about fixing the property tax problem, we would begin here looking at ourselves and figuring out how we can support these communities in both their education, their law enforcement, all of those things, and stop creating unfunded mandates,\u201d Ager said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Despite those concerns, Ager said he believes the proposed amendment is a \u201cgood faith effort\u201d to solve the vexing property tax problem that has some taxpayers worried about being able to remain in their homes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll support it here in the committee as we think about it, but I do think we have a lot of hard work to do on the property tax issue, and I think we need to look at ourselves first,\u201d Ager said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Rep. Tim Longest (D-Wake) said North Carolina must keep promises it made to attract businesses to the state and pay for services needed to keep pace with growth.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIf we\u2019re gonna make good on the promises that we made to those people in getting their businesses to come here, locate their employees and themselves, we need to be prepared to provide the essential services that are currently the county\u2019s unfair responsibility to shoulder,\u201d Longest said.<\/span><\/p>\n

For example, Longest said, in Wake County, $600 million in local funding will go to fill state funding gaps for public schools, community college operations, jail operations and foster care.<\/span><\/p>\n

Rep. Brandon Lofton (D-Mecklenburg) noted that at a recent town hall meeting with Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, he learned the district has 700 teaching positions that are funded completely by the county. Teacher salaries\u00a0 are primarily a state responsibility.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThat means without the county stepping in to fill that gap, there would be 700 fewer teachers within Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools,\u201d Lofton said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Mecklenburg County will spend $429 million this year filling school funding gaps created by the state, Lofton said. Over the past seven years, the county has spent about $2.9 billion on items that are the state\u2019s responsibility, he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cFifty-eight percent of our county budget comes from property taxes, so that means the best way to relieve the pressure on property taxes is to stop shifting costs down to the county and down to local governments,\u201d Lofton said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Tamika Walker Kelly, president of the North Carolina Association of Educators, said the state has favored \u201ctax breaks over classrooms.\u201d The constitutional amendment would rob local governments of one of the few tools they have to adequately fund public schools, she said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more NC lawmakers revamp bills to bar \u2018adversarial\u2019 nations from farmland<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen local revenue is constrained, schools feel it immediately with overcrowded classrooms, aging school buildings and educators stretched too thin,\u201d Walker Kelly said. \u201cA constitutional cap does not protect struggling families, it protects the largest landowners in the state, while the families who depend on public schools are left with less.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Taking a cue from the state\u2019s GOP leadership, Rep. Keith Kidwell (R-Beaufort) argued that North Carolina\u2019s high property taxes are due to runaway spending at the local level, which he said lawmakers also need to address.<\/span>\u201c<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI agree we need to put a cap on the increases that can be assessed by the municipalities, counties and so forth, but this really just brushes the top of the problem, and to the great words of [former president] Ronald Reagan, we don\u2019t have a taxing problem, we have a spending problem,\u201d Kidwell said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Kidwell cited several examples of what he believes are local government abuses of tax dollars in his district. He said in those cases, local leaders asked for tax or fee increases but didn\u2019t use the money for stated purposes.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThis happens across the state,\u201d he said. \u201cWhen cities and counties are going to levy a tax for a specific purpose \u2026 it should be used for that purpose and not diverted to other uses.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Rep. Deb Butler (D-New Hanover) said that blaming higher taxes on \u201cfraud, waste and abuse,\u201d as she suspects some lawmakers will do this campaign season, is misleading.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe truth is, property taxes are not rising because cities and counties suddenly went on a wild, drunken binge and started spending like sailors,\u201d Butler said. \u201cIt\u2019s because of the cost shifting that we have done from this body.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Butler said reforms to current property tax relief programs could yield savings of up to $6,000 for some households, compared to $300 or so in savings from a tax levy limit.<\/span><\/p>\n

Voters would be asked to approve the constitutional amendment in the Nov. 3 General Election.<\/span><\/p>\n

Primary bill sponsors are Rep. Brian Echevarria (R-Cabarrus), Rep. Julia Howard (R-Davie), Rep. Erin<\/span> Par\u00e9<\/span> (R-Wake) and Rep. Mitchell Setzer (R-Catawba).<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe heard extensively from staff, stakeholders, and subject matter experts,\u201d Echevarria said. \u201cThe resulting debate led to the conclusion that asking the people whether they want a constitutional amendment requiring limits on property tax increases by local governments is the next step toward a modern, fairer, and more predictable property tax system.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Bill to put property taxes on hold in North Carolina gets Senate approval<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n