Congressman Hayes Looks To Strengthen The SCHIP Program Without Devastating NC’s Economy

September 30, 2007

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Robin Hayes (NC-08) voted against a dramatic increase in the federal tobacco excise tax which is a component included in State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). The dramatic increase in tobacco excise taxes would be a detrimental impact on North Carolina’s economy.  Last week Hayes co-sponsored legislation proposed by Rep. Barton (TX-6), Ranking Member of the Energy Commerce Committee which would extend the authorization of the SCHIP program to provide benefits to those low-income, uninsured children for whom the program was originally created that does not include the punitive increase in the federal tobacco excise tax that would harm North Carolina’s economy.  

“I support the SCHIP program and I want to see it strengthened,” said Hayes, “but the burden to pay for this bill falls squarely on North Carolina.  A dramatic increase in the tobacco excise tax will have grave consequences on the growers, manufacturers and workforce left in the industry, and would be detrimental across the state’s economy.” 

A letter issued by the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services states that the negative impacts from the SCHIP bill outweigh the benefits:

    Proponents of the increase stress that it would be used to expand the State Children’s Health insurance Program, which provides healthcare to children and families across the country.  An analysis by the Tax Foundation demonstrates that North Carolina households would be net losers, ultimately paying more in taxes than they would receive in S-CHIP benefits.

The letter – signed by Commissioner of Agriculture Steve Troxler,  North Carolina Farm Bureau President Larry Wooten, Tobacco Growers Association of North Carolina Executive Director Graham Boyd, North Carolina State Grange President Jimmy Gentry, North Carolina Agribusiness Council Executive Vice President Erica Peterson, and Flue Cured Tobacco Cooperative CEO L. Arnold Hamm — detailed the detrimental impact of dramatic tobacco tax increases included in the Senate version of this bill and said that the House increase would have a similar negative impact:

  • $15.6 million loss in production value
  • $10.3 million loss in annual payments under the Master Settlement
  • $12.5 million drop in NC cigarette tax revenue
  • $540 million drop in the value added by tobacco manufacturing
  • As many as 1,800 farm jobs lost

“Unfortunately, the tobacco industry has been under attack for years from interest groups that try to bankrupt it in court and through governments that see it as a cash cow for higher taxes.  These groups that have led the fight against tobacco never talk about the workers and farmers who make their living in the industry and support their families.  But when Philip Morris announced they were closing their Concord facility, everyone saw that this embattled industry is the livelihood of a lot of hard-working people and their families.”

Posted by Admin | Filed Under National News 

North Carolina SAT Scores Continue to Decline – Approaching Bottom

September 26, 2007

Results are in and North Carolina’s SAT scores continue to decline and remain near the bottom in comparison with other states. Ignoring their own stated goal of having everyone attend college, state public school officials and administrators have tried to soften this negative news by blaming falling scores on the number of students taking the test in North Carolina. The SAT is one of the only nationally recognized standardized tests given to North Carolina students. Most student tests currently administered in North Carolina are designed by North Carolina’s Department of Public Instruction (DPI), are not nationally recognized, and provide no comparative measure for student achievement either from year to year or with students in other states. The DPI created tests have been widely criticized for those and other reasons. 

Parents, students, educators, and the state’s taxpayers are entitled to know, without attempts by the education bureaucracy to slant the information, how our public schools are doing at providing our children with a sound basic education. Many ask why there is this public relations effort to downplay, rather than correct, these poor results.