LUMBERTON — Two lawmakers who represent Robeson County fully support legislation advancing through the state Senate that would give millions of North Carolina taxpayers refunds from a larger-than-anticipated revenue surplus.
The Senate Finance Committee voted Thursday to approve a measure to send out $663 million through checks of up to $250. Amounts would depend on the taxpayer’s filing status and what they owed during 2018. The plan is to give single filers $125 and couples who file jointly $250. The checks would go out in late November of early December.
The legislation was born earlier this year during discussions of a possible tax refund when the surplus was projected to be about $600 million, said Sen. Danny Britt Jr., a Republican from Lumberton. Lawmakers learned earlier this month that the surplus was $900 million.
“That huge number is really what prompted us to start crunching the numbers in earnest,” Britt said. “It’s based on the philosophy that tax revenues don’t belong to the government, they belong to the people who earned that money in the first place. If government collects too much, then government should try to send it back whenever possible.”
The legislation has his full support, Britt said.
“Years of responsible tax and budget policies have resulted in a boom decade in North Carolina,” he said. “We’ve had surpluses for five straight years, and this is the biggest one yet. We should return this money back to the people who earned it.”
Rep. Brenden Jones, whose District 46 covers part of Robeson County, also supports the legislation and will back it when it gets to the House of Representatives.
“I look forward to supporting this rebate for North Carolina taxpayers who work hard to support our state and deserve relief when our rapidly growing economy results in such a large revenue surplus,” the Republican lawmaker said.
Jones rejects the notion that the legislation is an attempt to buy votes for Republican candidates in upcoming elections.
“It’s consistent with our approach to tax relief, putting money back in the pockets of working North Carolinians and growing the economy by letting people spend their own money better than the government can,” Jones said.
Britt also says it’s not about wooing voters.
“Government collected too much money last year, so we’re giving it back. The final surplus was tallied just a couple of weeks ago, so it’s impossible to have presented this plan any sooner, and elections are every two years, so there’s always an upcoming election,” he said. “If we were only interested in the election, then we’d wait to send the checks until October of next year.”
Senate leader Phil Berger, a Republican, told Finance Committee members Thursday that returning money to taxpayers is one good option when the state government collects more money than it needs.
Democratic Sen. Floyd McKissick, of Durham, said legislators should look instead at using the excess on needs such as school construction. But Berger says the Republican budget vetoed by Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper contains such funds.
Cooper vetoed the $24 billion state budget approved by the Republican-controlled General Assembly on June 28. The spending plan has since been locked in a stalemate with the GOP lawmakers. Cooper and Democratic lawmakers want Medicaid expansion in the budget, which Republican leaders oppose. The budget includes a provision calling for a special session to discuss health-care reforms separately.
Joseph Coletti, a senior fellow at the John Locke Foundation, said there are three good ways to deal with one-time money like the surplus: put it into savings, spend it on capital, or return it to taxpayers. The money shouldn’t go toward something that would create an ongoing expectation of state spending, he said.
“Arguably, the best use of the surplus, as with any one-time bonus, would be to save it so North Carolinians do not face higher taxes and fewer services during the next recession,” Coletti said. “Saving money would also leave open the possibility of reaching an agreement on a budget plan for the current year.”
The refund measure is expected on the Senate floor next week.
