Governor weighs in on state budget, abortion veto, other issues

Gov. Roy Cooper predicted Tuesday morning that the state House will uphold his veto Wednesday on an abortion bill.

He also criticized the legislature's planned business tax cuts and weighed in on Vidant Health's fight with the University of North Carolina system and the General Assembly.

Speaking to reporters after a monthly Council of State meeting, Cooper also touched on a controversial Duke Energy bill pending in the legislature, his administration's handling of hurricane recovery funding and efforts he'd like the state make against gun violence. He also reiterated his support for Medicaid expansion, which so far hasn't found much of a foothold in the Republican-controlled General Assembly.

The governor didn't threaten to veto the state budget moving through the legislature or a tax package that rolls back the state's franchise tax on businesses, but he made his concerns clear.

Cooper said he wasn't issuing ultimatums because, "I don't want to be saying something that I don't do, because this legislature is going to send us legislation that probably has some things we like and probably has some things we don't like."

"So, we would need to see what it is before I decide whether to veto it," he said.

As for the "born-alive" abortion survivors bill, the House is slated to attempt an override vote on his veto Wednesday. The Senate already voted to overturn the veto, but Republican leadership faces more difficult numbers in the House, where they hold a majority but will need to pull more Democrats to reach the three-fifths threshold needed.

"I think the veto will be sustained," Cooper said. "We need to move on from these divisive social and political issues and talk about the real issues facing the people of North Carolina: education, health care, bringing good-paying jobs."

Other issues Cooper spoke to Tuesday:

Medicaid expansion: The governor continued to push the proposal to expand taxpayer-funded health care to hundreds of thousands of North Carolina's working poor, but he again stopped short of saying he'd veto a budget that doesn't include expansion.

"Medicaid expansion is an important part of this legislative session," he said. "We still believe there are enough Republicans and Democrats to pass Medicaid expansion if it ever got to the floor. ... We're willing to negotiate the parameters of it."

Tax cuts: The House and the Senate have both advanced plans that lower the state's franchise tax, which is a tax on a business' net worth. The plans also increase the state's standard deduction, cutting personal income taxes, but they would also increase sales tax collections on internet purchases and tinker with other parts of the tax code. The net effect would be an increase in online sales tax payments and a tax cut for North Carolina businesses.

"Most of what we're talking about in tax relief that the legislature wants to do is for corporations," Cooper said. "What we need instead is investment in health care and education. So, I have deep concerns about whittling away our tax base with giveaways to corporations across the board, without any guarantee of jobs or really any guarantee of it improving our economy. We would rather see higher teacher pay."

Duke Energy rates: The state's largest electric utility is pressing legislation this session to change how the North Carolina Utilities Commission approves rate increases. Cooper said he's "very concerned about how it will affect consumers" and that he believes talks are underway to amend the bill.

Bill supporters argue that the legislation simply gives the Utilities Commission more ways to deal with rate increase requests, but it doesn't require them to approve multi-year increase plans. Cooper said he has a lot of confidence in the commission, which he appoints with General Assembly confirmation, but that doesn't mean he supports the bill as written.

"I still have concerns about it, and I think that you would have to show to me what the benefit is to consumers at the end of the day," the governor said.

Guns: Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam announced Tuesday that he'll call the Virginia legislature into special session to consider gun control measures in the wake of last Friday's mass shooting in Virginia Beach.

Gun control bills in North Carolina haven't gone very far in the legislature, with the Republican majority preferring to beef up school security spending. When asked about Virginia's special session, Cooper reiterated his support for measures that he and other Democrats have proposed in the past.

"It is so frustrating and sad to see these events of gun violence occur again and again," the governor said.

Vidant Health: The hospital in Greenville has been sparring with the UNC Board of Governors over appointments to its board, and the Senate upped the ante in that fight last week with budget language that could cost the facility $35 million.

Cooper said the move "looks like a political vendetta."

"I'm concerned when political vendettas affect rural health care," he said. "That's a tremendous amount of money. ... I'm very concerned about that, and I hope that's not part of the final budget."

Hurricane spending: House leaders announced plans this week to reopen hearings into the state's hurricane recovery efforts after a legislative report again criticized the Cooper administration's pace on a federal grant following Hurricane Matthew.

Cooper said that program is just one of several and that hundreds of millions of dollars have been spent on recovery. He also noted that the state created a new office to deal with these issues. Progress after Hurricane Matthew has been "slower than it should be," he said, but it's "picking up." When the federal government releases funding from this program for the Hurricane Florence recovery, the state's new department "will be ready to go," he said.