By Cassie Gavin
Senior Director of Government Relations
This week, the N.C. General Assembly released and voted on the budget (HB 103). Unfortunately, there was essentially no public process for reviewing the budget, so members of the minority party and the public were denied the opportunity to put forward budget proposals or to debate the bill in committees as the legislative process would normally entail.
How did this happen? The majority party used a procedural avenue to avoid the normal process by releasing the budget as a conference report. This meant that legislators had to simply vote yes or no on the bill without the opportunity to propose amendments.
The budget did not include Medicaid expansion, a priority of Governor Cooper’s that the N.C. Sierra Club supports. It also didn’t include many of the other funding priorities proposed by Governor Cooper in his budget, despite the fact that the state has a surplus of over $6 billion. See Cooper’s energy and environment budget priorities here. The House voted 84-28 and the Senate voted 38-9 yesterday to tentatively approve the budget, and today both passed it. The budget was sent for review to Governor Cooper, who may sign it into law, veto it or let it become law without his signature.
There are positive and negative environmental provisions in the budget, as we normally see. There is no reason for environmental policy to be in a budget at all; important policies affecting our air and water should be allowed proper review and opportunity for public involvement. On the bright side, there’s substantial funding for things we support, such as living shorelines, land conservation, and weatherization. But there’s also $1.5 million in grant funding for biogas at hog factory farms, even though many of these operations continue to pose an environmental justice problem for nearby communities.
Note that much of the new environment-related funding that we see this year is coming from federal funds that the legislature is responsible for allocating according to the restrictions in federal law. There’s too much in the budget to cover everything in this update, but below is a sampling of some environmental funding highlights. “Recurring” means the funding will continue into future years, otherwise, it’s a one-time investment.
- $3.2 million recurring and $89.8 million for weatherization programs that can help make buildings safer and more energy-efficient.
- $21.1 million for electric grid resiliency grants. This can help communities become more resilient to climate change and natural disasters.
- $5.7 million for low-income household energy bill assistance.
- $6.5 million to our friends at N.C. Coastal Federation for living shoreline projects at Hammocks Beach State Park, Black Duck Island on the Oregon Inlet, Fort Macon State Park, and Pine Knoll Shores Aquarium
- $841,000 recurring and $483,000 for DEQ staff and lab testing to address emerging compounds such as GenX and PFAS, and $1.7 million to the Clean Water State Revolving Fund for projects to address emerging compounds. The budget also includes $23.2 million for the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund for projects to address emerging compounds and $23.7 million for grants to disadvantaged communities with priority for projects to address emerging compounds.
- $86.8 million to the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund for lead pipe service line replacements to improve drinking water safety.
- $326 million for water and sewer infrastructure grants. This will help communities repair and upgrade aging pipes to help prevent spills and leaks, thereby improving water quality.
- Increased funding for the Parks and Recreation Trust Fund and Land and Water Fund (formerly Clean Water Management Trust Fund) for our state parks and land conservation.
The adjournment resolution will allow the legislature to reconvene monthly for the rest of the year to consider certain kinds of bills. So while the 2021-2022 session will be paused, it’s not necessarily over. Stay tuned!