NC legislators shoot down Cooper's $52 million plan for child care income tax credits

The North Carolina General Assembly voted to override Gov. Roy Cooper's veto of the state budget, enacting their own spending plan. It covers the next two fiscal years of spending – through June 30, 2019.

When Cooper announced his veto, he mentioned three specific things the legislature could do to get him to agree to a compromise. One was to reinstate North Carolina's tax credit for child care expenses.

"For my signature on a budget they should eliminate the corporate tax cut, include the child care tax credits that were set out in my budget, and limit their income tax cut to those making less than $150,000 a year," Cooper said.

But legislators made no changes to the budget before overriding his veto.

The child care tax credit has been a priority for Cooper. In 2016, one study found, it cost North Carolina families an average of nearly $17,000 a year to have two kids in child care.

Previously, we had rated Cooper's promise to reinstate this tax credit as In The Works, since he had laid out a plan for setting aside $52 million a year for credits to make child care more affordable for North Carolina families.

However, the Republican-led General Assembly eliminated it as part of a 2013 tax overhaul, and lawmakers demonstrated this week that they have no intention of signing it back into law at this point in time.

We rate this promise Stalled.