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In this must-hear unedited interview legendary author economist and conservative commentator Thomas Sowell joins Brian to discuss his new book Social Justice Fallacies Learn more about your ad choices Visit megaphone fm adchoices [... more]

Gov Roy Cooper emerged from a recent meeting with business executives and proclaimed that none of them had asked for a tax cut Cooper used that fact to bolster his opposition to reducing business taxation The problem for Cooper is that every company cited in his comments about the meeting has taken advantage of targeted state tax breaks Those targeted incentives top million Jon Sanders John Locke Foundation director of regulatory studies analyzes the governor's skewed view of business tax policy The N C Coalition for Charter Schools has named Lindalyn Kakadelis as its new executive director Kakadelis explains how [... more]

Mecklenburg County voters recently rejected a sales-tax increase It was advertised as raising money for arts and parks Joseph Coletti John Locke Foundation senior fellow has examined the impact of the timing of local sales-tax votes on the likelihood of their approval He's found that voters are less likely to endorse these tax hikes during high-turnout elections Public schools have struggled for years with a racial achievement gap But recent research is pointing toward ways to help improve minority student performance Seth Gershenson professor of public policy at American University explains how a teacher's race can make an impact on [... more]

This week on Family Policy Matters NC Family Communications Director Traci DeVette Griggs sits down with Rhonda Dillingham a veteran educator and Executive Director of the North Carolina Association for Public Charter Schools Dillingham discusses the history of public charter schools and dispels the most common negative stereotypes about these schools [... more]

This week on Family Policy Matters NC Family President John L Rustin speaks with Darrell Allison president of Parents for Education Freedom in North Carolina PEFNC a statewide organization that seeks and supports greater educational opportunities for parents and students through school choice They discuss the recent expansion of school choice in North Carolina [... more]

A -acre waterfront property in Southport set aside for a state-run megaport remains vacant and the N C State Ports Authority has no plans to develop or sell it The property's most recent tax appraisal also shows the land is worth half its original purchase price Rick Henderson Carolina Journal editor-in-chief details the latest news surrounding this government project that has gone nowhere since the Ports Authority purchase the property in News media outlets have enjoyed longstanding exemptions from federal and state campaign finance restrictions It makes sense to extend those exemptions to nonprofit social and civic groups that also [... more]

Gov Roy Cooper recently announced a statewide drive to collect classroom supplies for public schools Terry Stoops the John Locke Foundation's vice president for research examines Cooper's proposal and discusses a curious double standard about private companies profiting from public education North Carolina state government has been dealing with budget surpluses in recent years But State Treasurer Dale Folwell is highlighting a long-term budget challenge Folwell says unfunded liabilities for state retiree pension and health benefits will consume billions of dollars from the budget in the coming years Folwell wants to see structural changes that will help North Carolina deal [... more]

After President Trump announced plans to pull the United States out of the Paris climate agreement N C Gov Roy Cooper joined more than public officials across the country in signing an open letter pledging continued support for the agreement Rick Henderson Carolina Journal editor-in-chief analyzes Cooper's action and the response from Republican legislative leaders Henderson also discusses North Carolina's ability to take any actions on its own that would affect global warming North Carolina lawmakers continue to wrestle with the best way to handle taxation of sales made over the internet One idea under discussion would force online vendors [... more]

The U S Supreme Court has refused to hear a case involving North Carolina's election law That decision leaves intact an Appeals Court ruling striking down the law It also means North Carolina will not require voters to show a photo ID at the polls Rick Henderson Carolina Journal editor-in-chief assesses the significance of the ruling Some pundits and politicians worry about the American trade deficit Donald Boudreaux professor of economics at George Mason University says those worries are misplaced Boudreaux addresses common myths surrounding trade and the desirability of surpluses rather than deficits Some state lawmakers want to make [... more]

The NCAA has agreed to return some of its championship events to North Carolina in the coming years The college sports organization made that decision after the General Assembly repealed the controversial House Bill bathroom law with a compromise that blocks local governments from regulating bathrooms or enacting ordinances dealing with private employment or public accommodations until December Carolina Journal Editor-in-Chief Rick Henderson analyzes reaction to the NCAA's decision While Gov Roy Cooper wants to end future state funding for Opportunity Scholarship school vouchers some of his Democratic Party colleagues in the N C General Assembly disagree A group of [... more]

The N C House has approved legislation that would limit the amount of damages neighbors could collect in nuisance lawsuits against hog farms and other agricultural operations But a key amendment stopped the bill from applying to the hundreds of lawsuits already filed against the world's largest pork producer Smithfield Foods Carolina Journal Editor-in-Chief Rick Henderson analyzes the debate over new limits on nuisance lawsuits North Carolina has seen dramatic improvements in recent years in the libertarian Cato Institute's report ranking Freedom in the States The report's co-authors are William Ruger vice president for policy and research at the Charles [... more]

The popularity of public charter schools has prompted North Carolina's largest public school system to lower its enrollment projections Terry Stoops the John Locke Foundation's director of research and education studies assesses the significance of these enrollment changes for parents students traditional district schools and taxpayers The American system of constitutional government depends on citizens who hold a basic understanding of the way the system works That's why people like N C Supreme Court Associate Justices Sam Ervin IV and Paul Newby stress the importance of civics education Chief Justice Mark Martin has charged Ervin and Newby with leading a [... more]

This week NC Family president John Rustin talks with Nina Rees president and CEO of the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools about how North Carolina's charter school law performed in a new report that ranks charter school laws across the nation [... more]

NC Family president John Rustin talks with Todd Ziebarth Senior Vice President for State Advocacy and Support at the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools about the group's annual report Measuring Up to the Model A Ranking of State Charter School Laws including how North Carolina fared in the report [... more]