NC Gov. Josh Stein signs budget changes, including taking some of his power away

Dawn Baumgartner Vaughan, The News & Observer (Raleigh) on Aug 11, 2026

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RALEIGH, N.C. — Democratic North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein signed two bills on Tuesday that make changes to the state budget that only became law last month.

The General Assembly sent Stein six bills before adjourning last week, with no voting sessions planned until after the November election.

House Bill 268, which is now law, takes more power away from the Stein administration and gives it to Republican elected officials, as well as changing funding levels that were set by the state budget that Stein signed into law in July. The Senate and the House each passed the bill in late July.

The governor praised some provisions while criticizing others he called “petty.”

“This bill strengthens disaster relief, teacher workforce pipelines, and economic development programs. It supports the Small Business Infrastructure Program and the Division of Community Revitalization, which are working tirelessly to support western North Carolina recovery. It also enables public schools to start teacher apprenticeship programs as early as this year and supports access to loans for North Carolina teaching fellows,” Stein said in a statement when he signed the bill.

“I regret that the General Assembly saw fit to include some petty provisions that undermine the executive branch and impede the work of government on behalf of North Carolinians,” he said.

Here’s what’s now state law:

Power shifts from Democrats toward Republicans

—The bill adds a way for the Senate to thwart a gubernatorial Cabinet appointee. The Senate can already vote against confirming a Cabinet secretary, but now, if no confirmation hearing is held before the official end of the General Assembly’s legislative session, an interim secretary would be out of a job. Stein circumvented this happening to his interim secretary of public safety by shifting his job out of the Cabinet and into a different role in his administration.

—The secretary of state, currently Democrat Elaine Marshall, is removed from the executive board of the Local Government Commission, which includes the state auditor, treasurer and secretary of revenue. Marshall’s seat will be filled by an appointment from the legislature recommended by the Senate president pro tempore, currently Republican Sen. Phil Berger.

—Stein’s appointment to the Local Government Commission will need to be confirmed by the General Assembly and have served as a mayor or other member of a city’s governing board for a four-year term.

—The comprehensive budget that became law shifted some control over property from the Department of Administration, which is a Cabinet agency of the Stein administration, and gave it to offices held by Republicans: State Auditor Dave Boliek, Labor Commissioner Luke Farley and State Treasurer Brad Briner. The new bill adds the State Bureau of Investigation and State Highway Patrol to the list of exempt agencies that can choose to bypass Department of Administration oversight on purchasing, contracts, acquisition and maintenance of property, as well as office space leases.

—Stein previously described the shifts as Republicans giving power “to their friends.”

Some programs, vacant job cuts restored

Some vacant jobs and programs that were cut in the $34 billion budget that Stein signed in July are restored in this adjustment bill.

—Restores $3.8 million in vacant position cuts at the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

—Restores $188,000 in recurring funds for the Energy and Infrastructure Office to the Department of Commerce.

—Restores $482,000 in recurring money for the Office of Education and Outreach in the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

—Reduces staffing cuts in the Department of Insurance from $2.7 million to $1.5 million.

—Extends funding to Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library to 2032, rather than ending it in 2027.

Stein also signed a second, smaller budget adjustment bill, House Bill 562, that takes back funding allocated to a property owners’ association in Republican Rep. Joseph Pike’s district and sends it instead to Harnett County government. The bill also adds America’s Semiquincentennial license plates to the options from the NC Division of Motor Vehicles.

More housing options with reg reform bill now law

Stein also signed into law the state’s annual regulatory reform bill, which includes a provision that allows accessory dwelling units, known as ADUs, to be built in large cities by right.

“North Carolina is growing rapidly, and the cost of housing is increasing,” Stein said when he signed the bill.

“We need to build more housing units of all types to drive down rents and mortgages. This bill cuts red tape to help produce more houses and apartments and deliver results for North Carolinians. It also makes it easier for families to install solar panels or battery systems to save on their utility bills,” he said.

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