The House and Senate have been unable to reach an agreement on a budget, which Stein says has only exacerbated existing issues. Those include the Medicaid cost difference funding gap and teacher pay.
Other topics addressed in the proposal include raises for state employees, restoring scholarships for children of wartime veterans, and funding critical operating needs for both the Department of Adult Corrections and the State Bureau of Investigation.
"The state has added more than 300,000 people. The cost of living has increased by more than 6%, and the federal government is abandoning long-held commitments. Yet we have not had a full budget, so the state keeps operating at a baseline, limping along - so much so that some things are already breaking," Stein said.
Last year, the House budget proposal did gain bipartisan support in that chamber, though the House and Senate ultimately remained in a stalemate.
Stein further emphasized that a separate, comprehensive budget is still needed beyond what was discussed Monday.
The biggest portion of the request was $397,000,000 toward teacher and instructional support raises, which includes a 13% raise in starting teacher pay, a 5.8% average raise, and a 2.5% school principal pay raise, while restoring master's pay for more than 1,000 teachers.
"We are a bottom-10 state when it comes to public school teacher pay. After you've taught for 15 years, you don't get another salary increase for a decade. And starting teacher pay is lower in North Carolina than every one of our neighboring states," said Stein.
"Businesses are moving into the area, but they want a talented workforce. Well, how do you get a talented workforce? You have a strong public education system," added Dr. John Lassiter, a Principal at Hertford Grammar School.
He said he believes the current pay structure and schedule need to be addressed.
"I want to keep people who are from a community in the school that they live. And that's the challenge that we face specifically in the Northeast, in Currituck County, Elizabeth City, in Pasquotank, even in Perquimans. You know, a short drive, you can make $12,000 (to) 15,000 more," said Lassiter.
The second-largest portion of the proposal went towards Medicaid Rebase funding, with the Governor requesting $319,000,000.
"Without $319 million needed to fully fund North Carolina Medicaid program, the program will run out of money before the end of the fiscal year. This has real consequences that people in North Carolina will feel, putting access to health care for more than 3 million people at risk. This is about one in four people, including over half a million babies and children," said NCDHHS Secretary Dr. Dev Sangvai.
"It's a very complex topic. But I think, bottom line, we need the Medicaid Rebase to make sure that patients continue to have access to care and that the costs are under control. If these patients lose their coverage or if they lose their access to providers who've left the system because of the cuts, they're going to end up with higher cost health care later in the process," noted Tina Gordon, the CEO of the North Carolina Nurses Association.
Another section of Stein's plan focused on behavioral health, calling for a 10% raise for state nurses and healthcare workers who treat people with severe mental illness. That portion included a request of $28,380,000.
"We have hundreds of inpatient beds in state psychiatric facilities that sit empty because we don't have the staff to serve those beds. That is a tragic waste," said Stein.
"We need nurses in place in mental health and otherwise to make sure that we have nurses trained specifically in behavioral health care and providing that care in the appropriate environment. What we don't want is for people to have to resort for using the emergency department for that type of care. That's not good for anybody," added Gordon.
In a statement, Lauren Horsch, the Deputy Chief of Communications for Senate President Phil Berger, wrote:
"The General Assembly is scheduled to return in a few weeks, and Senate Republicans remain committed to addressing the state's most pressing needs in a responsible, fiscally sound manner. Gov. Stein's proposal is the opposite of that. It would create a recurring budget deficit and force the state to increase taxes on working families."
In a statement, Demi Dowdy, spokeswoman for House Speaker Destin Hall, wrote that the proposal "raises serious concerns", charging the healthcare plan "refuses to include basic cost controls and guardrails to protect taxpayer dollars."
She wrote in part:
"The House has committed to making necessary investments in healthcare, but it must be done in a way that ensures transparency and responsible stewardship of taxpayer funds. Furthermore, the Governor's proposed raises for teachers and law enforcement are less than those already passed by the House. These critical investments cannot wait, and we urge the Senate to join us in passing these raises for all our state employees."
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