Budget is #1, But What Else Will Lawmakers Work On?

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Legislators are back in Raleigh, working primarily on the state budget. But there are other issues that may come up over the next month or so. John Locke Foundation Vice President for Outreach Becki Gray assesses the Senate budget plan and discusses possible efforts to move ahead with climate change legislation, property rights issues, energy/offshore drilling, and public financing of election campaigns. Then, we delve further into transportation and road congestion. State senators have rejected the idea in their budget plan, but that doesn't necessarily mean the end of Gov. Beverly Perdue's proposed North Carolina Mobility Fund. It's a $300 million proposal billed as a new program targeting relief of road congestion. Jim Trogdon, chief operating officer of the N.C. Department of Transportation, explained the proposal during a recent legislative meeting. You'll hear his comments, along with a critique from Joseph Coletti, John Locke Foundation Director of Health and Fiscal Policy Studies. Next we turn to the state's push to ferret out overdue taxes. The N.C. Revenue Department pleased state lawmakers by raising more than $400 million through a special program targeting delinquent corporate taxpayers. Revenue Secretary Kenneth Lay says his staff could find another $110 million in the next year, if legislators agree to spend another $10 million on new staff and other expenses. You'll hear highlights from a recent legislative debate on the issue. That's followed by a look at the role of government and free markets in recent economic woes. Do free markets and capitalism deserve the blame for the slump? Some say yes, but Robert Murphy says no. An adjunct scholar at the Ludwig von Mises Institute, Murphy is author of The Politically Incorrect Guide to Capitalism. He explains how government interference played a greater role than the capitalist system in contributing to our economic woes. And finally, we hear a lot of talk about the need for more teachers and better teachers. Jay Schalin of the Pope Center for Higher Education Policy analyzes a recent report on how UNC System schools fare in preparing teachers. Schalin explains why the Teach for America program came out on top with reviewers and what the results mean to improving North Carolina's approach to preparing teachers.