Senate budget goes to conference (May 22, 2023)
The N.C. Senate released, debated in several committees and passed its budget this week, giving the bill final approval Thursday and sending it to a conference committee with the House. Here are many of the agricultural highlights in the Senate’s spending proposal: $130,000 for the Large Animal Healthcare Enhancement Act; $10M non-recurring (NR) in the first fiscal year and $8.9M NR in the next fiscal year for NC Ag Manufacturing Initiative; $3M NR for the N.C. Agriculture Cost Share Program; $100,000 to NC Grange for Farmers Appreciation Day; $10M to N.C. Foundation for Soil & Water Conservation for animal waste fertilizer cost share funds grants to support the development of fertilizer production activities on farms utilizing liquid waste management systems; $350,000 recurring (R) to transfer the Tobacco Farm Life Museum to the Tobacco Trust Fund; $500,000 R for N.C. Sweetpotato promotions; $3.9M R for research stations; $15M NR for the N.C. Agriculture Development & Farmland Preservation Trust Fund; $2M R for the N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund; $1M R for the NC State Agricultural Research Platform, in which NCSU will contract with SAS Institute for an agricultural research platform to enrich research initiatives and support future grant opportunities; $1M R for the N.C. A&T Agricultural Research Platform, in which NC A&T State will contract with SAS for an agricultural research platform to enrich research initiatives and support future grant opportunities; $500,000 R for the NC State Christmas Tree Genetics Program; and $10.6M R for additional funds to support NC A&T's Agriculture Research and Cooperative Extension programs. In the conference committee, budget negotiators will sort through differences between the House and Senate budget versions and come up with a final budget to send to the Governor. A bill passed earlier this session expands Medicaid with a big caveat: Expansion hinges on the General Assembly’s budget becoming law. For more information about these bills or any others of interest, visit the North Carolina General Assembly website, www.ncleg.gov. Bills are searchable by bill number and subject.
