Budget stalemate persists in North Carolina over Medicaid expansion

RALEIGH (WTVD) -- For more than two weeks, North Carolina has been without a state budget.

Republicans are at odds with Gov. Roy Cooper and neither side is budging.

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"The legislature passed a budget and the Governor is blocking that budget or any budget based on our conversations over his Medicaid or nothing ultimatum," North Carolina Sen. Phil Berger said during a press conference Tuesday.

In a memo sent Tuesday, Cooper said he wants a clean expansion of Medicaid but is willing to talk about compromise on the issue--as long as a Medicaid expansion is part of the conversation.

Cooper issued a compromise July 9 he said invested in public schools and health care, while balancing the state's budget.

Republicans continue to push to override Cooper's veto but have not yet gotten enough votes to do so.

"The idea that the $24+ billion budget gets held up for one policy item does not make any sense," Berger said.

The good news for North Carolina citizens: unlike a federal budget, our state does not shutdown over a budget disagreement. Instead state funding remains allocated as it was in the previous year's budget.