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The Republican-led General Assembly successfully overrode the governor’s veto of its mini budget on Wednesday, pushing forward $95 million in enrollment growth funds for public schools and an additional $463.5 million toward private school vouchers for this fiscal year.
The mini budget does not include any new raises for teachers and school employees.
The new money for vouchers — the largest share of the mini budget’s funding — will effectively clear the waitlist the Opportunity Scholarship Grant Program, retroactive to the beginning of the school year. The bill also includes $24.7 million in recurring funds to clear the Education Student Accounts (ESA+) waitlist for students with disabilities.
“Thousands of North Carolina families who applied and qualified for school choice programs have been in limbo because Gov. Cooper thinks school choice should be limited to a select few,” Senate Education Committee Chairs Sens. Amy Galey, R-Alamance, and Michael Lee, R-New Hanover, said in a Wednesday press release. “…Republicans are proud to provide the funding so those students can attend the school that best fits their needs. School choice will always be an option in North Carolina and no obstruction from Democrats will change that.”
After the General Assembly removed income eligibility requirements for the program in 2023, there were 70,000 new applications for the 2024-25 school year. After 15,805 new students were offered vouchers, nearly 55,000 students remained on the waitlist at the beginning of the school year.
However, recent data from the North Carolina State Education Assistance Authority (NCSEAA) — the state agency designated by law to administer K-12 scholarship programs — shows that the number of scholarships disbursed since the expansion has increased to date by just 4,594.
The House overrode the veto 72-44 on Tuesday, and the Senate by 30-19 on Wednesday — both largely on party lines. Following the veto override, the bill is now law.
The mini budget also includes funding to expand access to high-speed internet in rural communities and language that requires “sheriffs to cooperate with ICE.” You can read more about items included here.
On Tuesday, the House also passed a wide-ranging omnibus bill that includes regulatory changes, child care grants, and some Helene aid. The Senate voted to pass that bill on Wednesday.
Ahead of the votes this week, many Democratic elected officials asked lawmakers to prioritize Hurricane Helene recovery over the expanded voucher funding.
“When legislators return to session, they must prioritize helping our neighbors in western North Carolina instead of sending hundreds of millions more in taxpayer dollars to private school vouchers,” Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper said in a Monday press release.
Cooper’s press release also included several quotes from educators in western North Carolina.
“Our state legislature must prioritize public education by rejecting the harmful voucher expansion and instead invest in the schools that form the backbone of our mountain communities and communities across the state,” said Dr. Maggie Fehrman, Asheville City Schools superintendent. “Our 28 counties need the support of our legislators on both sides of the aisle more than ever as we work to rebuild our communities and educate our students.”
On Tuesday, Every Child NC hosted a rally outside the legislature asking lawmaker’s to sustain the governor’s veto. Speakers said lawmakers should prioritize funding public schools before funding private school vouchers, and spoke out against the ICE provisions in the bill.
“By 2033, North Carolina will be spending $1 billion a year on school vouchers. Can you imagine what those funds would do inside of our public school system?”
Yevonne Brannon, Public Schools First NC
“It’s time we show our children that we love all of our neighbors by funding the public schools that are required to serve all children.”
Rev. Suzanne Parker Miller, director of Pastors for North Carolina Children
“To be clear, I’m here to say no to HB10, and I’m also here to say yes to a stronger, safer, and fairer North Carolina. A North Carolina where every family feels safe, every student has the resources to thrive, and every community has the opportunity to grow.”
Jimmy Patel-Nguyen, communications director for North Carolina Asian Americans Together
On Wednesday, Sen. Natasha Marcus, D-Mecklenburg, cited a recent ProPublica article that found 39 likely “segregation academies” in North Carolina are still operating and have received voucher money.
According to that article, 20 of those schools reported student bodies that were at least 85% white in a 2021-22 federal survey of private schools, the most recent data available. Those 20 academies brought in more than $20 million from state vouchers in the past three years alone, per the report.
Marcus also said that private schools are not required to serve all students, including students with learning differences, LGBTQ+ students, and students from different religions.
“So all those kind of kids, they can’t use these vouchers, but they are welcome at public school,” Marcus said. “And those public schools are underfunded and consistently degraded and scorned by this body, which is supposed to represent all the families of North Carolina and care that all kids get their sound basic education, as guaranteed by the North Carolina State Constitution.”
In addition to the $463.5 million added to the Opportunity Scholarship program this fiscal year, the bill also increases the amount of future funding for the program. By the 2032-33 fiscal year, the General Assembly will be allocating $825 million yearly to the program.
On Wednesday, Mike Long, president of Parents for Educational Freedom in North Carolina, sent a press release celebrating the override and future expansion.
“A historic expansion of parental school choice is now a reality in North Carolina,” he said. “By overriding Governor Cooper’s veto of HB10, the legislature sends a clear message that our state will continue to invest in students over systems.”
Public school enrollment funds
In addition to the funds expanding vouchers, the mini budget also included $95 million in recurring enrollment growth funds for public schools.
In 2023, lawmakers also enacted a new funding in arrears model for K-12 public schools. This means funding is now based on the previous year’s enrollment, rather than projections. Lawmakers and officials from the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) have said this model gives more budget certainty to schools.
However, the new enrollment growth account balance only has $2.5 million it it, Moore said in a September press release, “less than 5% of expected funding necessary to meet the needs of K-12 enrollment growth for this year.”
“Therefore, the mini budget allocates $95 million to meet this critical need for our growing public schools,” Moore said in September.
This funding is especially critical for charter schools, according to a press release from the North Carolina Coalition for Charter Schools.
In North Carolina, last year’s enrollment growth among public schools came from charter schools, which are public schools with more flexibility than traditional public schools.
For small, new, or fast-growing charter schools, the lack of enrollment growth funding could lead to such schools being unable to meet payroll, the press release said. Some schools may have had to take out loans to meet payroll without the funds.
“Thank you to state lawmakers for solving the enrollment growth funding challenge facing public charter schools this year,” said Lindalyn Kakadelis, executive director of the Coalition. “Our member schools have been anxiously awaiting resolution to this issue, and lawmakers delivered.”
Ben Humphries and Liz Bell contributed to this report.
