May 2019 • Vol. 37, Issue 4
THE
REPORTER
State Employees Association of North Carolina
House budget disrespects state employees, retirees The House budget proposal passed on May 3 in a 61-55 floor vote with little debate. The budget proposes a raise of only 1% or $500, whichever is greater, for most state workers. Adding insult to injury, this raise would not take effect until Jan. 1, 2020, which is six months into the state’s fiscal year. Overall, the proposed budget allocates a measly $44 million for pay raises — less than 0.2% of the entire $24 billion budget. The budget bill does not contain a cost-of-living adjustment or supplement for retiree pensions for the coming fiscal year, even as lawmakers touted revenue surpluses and tax cuts for corporations. The proposal also severely underfunds the State Health Plan, containing just $39 million in the first year of the biennium. This will force the plan to spend the bulk of its reserves. The House budget also ignores wage compression issues throughout state government and fails to provide high
“ This
budget is a slap in the face. ”
SEANC President Jimmy Davis
enough salary increases for key hard-tofill positions. Following the budget unveiling on April 30, SEANC issued a news release calling on all House members to vote against the proposal. “This budget is a slap in the face,” said SEANC President Jimmy Davis. “House leaders have failed to prioritize public services and disrespected the people who provide them. House members of both parties should reject this plan.” The proposal came out just hours before teachers closed schools statewide and took to the streets for their annual rally. Unlike teachers, who can rely on
their local school boards to give them the day off to protest, there is a law that prohibits state employees from walking off the job. “Closing prisons, shuttering hospitals, or abandoning road projects to take to the streets is not an option for most state workers,” said Robert Broome, SEANC Executive Director, reacting to the announcement. “Our members deserve equitable pay and benefits. We’ll be at work tomorrow, but make no mistake, our voices will be heard loud and clear on our own time.” Fortunately, this is not the final budget. The Senate will make its own proposal in late May.
WE CAN’T LET UP NOW! Visit SEANC.org/engage to contact your Senators and tell them: • This budget is unacceptable. • Oppose Bill HB 184.
HB 184 passes House vote, stalls in Senate The N.C. House of Representatives passed House Bill 184 on April 3. This anti-worker bill blocks Treasurer Folwell’s efforts to lower healthcare costs for state employees, retirees and their families. HB 184 prohibits the State Treasurer from enacting a provider reimbursement strategy that could save State Health Plan members $57 million per year in out-of-pocket expenses and save taxpayers more than $258 million annually. The bill strips power from the
Treasurer and the State Health Plan Board of Trustees, which voted unanimously in October 2018 to adopt a strategy to reimburse providers for treatment at 182% of Medicare rates. House leaders refused to send the bill to the Pensions and Retirement Committee for review, even though HB 184 is projected to add more than $1.1 billion to the State Health Plan’s unfunded liability. Lawmakers voted 75-36 to pass HB 184. Dozens of SEANC members were on hand at the vote.
After moving through the House, the bill was stalled in the Senate as of press time. Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger’s office told media outlets soon after the House vote that Berger “would be hesitant to involve the legislature in micromanaging a plan that we authorized the Treasurer to manage just a few years ago.” The bill has been sent to the Senate Rules Committee. Hospital lobbyists vow to continue fighting for movement in the Senate.