The Make Taxes Suck Less Plan

NC by the Numbers

This Is What "Low Taxes" Got Us

The General Assembly keeps cutting taxes. Here's what we're getting in return.

0

in per-student school funding

0

in school funding effort (dead last)

0

in teacher pay

0

corporate tax rate (lowest in the country, heading to 0%)

0

Medicaid funding gap

0

committed to private school vouchers through 2033

0

of voucher recipients were already in private school

↑?%

your property taxes, as counties scramble to cover what the state won't

North Carolina's flat income tax is heading toward elimination. The corporate rate is already 2% and scheduled to hit 0% by 2030. The state ranks dead last in the nation in school funding effort. And the General Assembly just committed $6.5 billion in public money to private school vouchers with zero accountability.

Meanwhile, counties are raising property taxes to cover what the state won't fund. The state cuts its own revenue, shifts the burden downward, then proposes capping the counties' ability to compensate.

Call this what it is: a choice to defund public services while giving the biggest breaks to the people who need them least.

Jen Wiles, candidate for NC House District 75

↑This is Jen

About this plan

This framework builds on the People-Powered Plan published by Jen Wiles, candidate for NC House District 75. Jen established the core of this plan. I added some additional revenue sources. Our districts overlap and so do our priorities.

See for Yourself

What Would You Pay?

Here's the idea: zero state income tax on the first $100K you earn. Progressive rates above that. Slide to your income and see the difference.

Income Tax Calculator

Filing status

Children

Annual household income

$65,000

Current Law

$0

3.99% after deductions

This Plan

$0

$0 on first $100K

You save

$0

no numbers shared · just the link

How does this work?

This calculator applies NC's standard deduction and child deduction to current law, because that's how your actual tax return works. Current law uses the 2026 flat rate of 3.99%. The proposed plan's $100K floor replaces the standard deduction. Does not include itemized deductions, other credits, or federal adjustments. Sources: NCDOR.

Child deduction: NC currently allows up to $3,000 per child, but it phases out as income rises. Single filers lose it entirely above $70K, head of household above $105K, and joint filers above $140K. This deduction only applies to the current law side. Under the proposed plan, the $100K floor already eliminates taxes for most families with children, making the child deduction unnecessary.

Why might your back-of-napkin math differ? If you multiply your gross income by 3.99%, you'll get a higher current-law number than this calculator shows, because you're skipping the standard deduction. That shifts the crossover where the plan costs more. On gross income the crossover is ~$460K. With deductions applied, it's ~$400K. This calculator shows what you'd actually owe under each system.

Where It Goes

Every Dollar Has a Job

Up to $12 billion in new revenue from taxes that suck less. Here's where it goes.

Public Schools

$20K per student target

NC currently ranks 50th in per-student funding and dead last in effort. The Leandro remedial plan, killed by the Supreme Court on April 2, 2026, would have required billions more. The constitutional right to a "sound, basic education" still stands. We can wait for another 32-year lawsuit, or we just fund our schools.

Universal Pre-K

$1.0-1.5B annually

Every child in North Carolina should have access to quality early childhood education regardless of zip code or family income. The research is clear: Pre-K pays for itself in reduced remediation, higher graduation rates, and better outcomes.

Healthcare and Medicaid

$1.5-2.0B annually

Fully fund Medicaid. Protect the expansion. Close the $319 million gap. With $40 billion in projected federal cuts over the next decade, the state needs to be ready to fill holes, not create new ones.

Innovations Waiver

$1.5B to clear the waitlist

Over 20,000 people with intellectual and developmental disabilities are on North Carolina's Innovations Waiver waitlist. The average wait is 9.5 years, and Forsyth County hasn't enrolled a new registrant in four. This clears the list.

Housing

Right of first refusal, land trusts, ADUs

Give local governments tools to keep housing affordable. Right of first refusal on properties being sold. Community land trusts. Accessory dwelling unit legalization. Limits on corporate bulk purchases of residential properties.

Minimum Wage

$15/hr tethered to inflation

North Carolina's minimum wage is still $7.25. The federal floor. It hasn't moved since 2009. A $15 minimum tethered to inflation means it never falls behind again.

The Plan

Where the Money Comes From

Current law versus this plan. Every source, every estimate.

Revenue Source	Current Law (2026)	This Plan	Est. New Revenue
Personal income tax¹	3.99% flat on all income (heading to 1.99%)	0% on first $100K. Progressive above: 4.5% at $100-250K, 5.5% at $250-500K, 7.5% at $500K-1M, 9.5% above $1M	$2.5-3.5B
Sales tax modernization²	Goods taxed, most services exempt	Extend to professional and luxury services	$1.0-2.0B
Corporate income tax³	2% flat, heading to 0% by 2030	6% with $0 on first $500K profits	$3.0-4.0B
Corporate minimum tax	None	Floor so large corps can't zero out through carve-outs	TBD
Corporate tax break reform⁴	$750M+/yr in large-corp exemptions	End data center exemptions, close loopholes	$0.7-0.9B
Data center impact fees⁵	Tax-exempt electricity at $75M threshold	MW-hour surcharge, water impact fees, jobs accountability	$0.2-0.4B
Capital gains surcharge⁶	Taxed at flat 3.99%	2-3% surcharge on realized gains above $500K	$0.3-0.5B
Real estate transfer tax⁷	$1 per $500 (among lowest in US)	Additional 0.5% on transactions above $1M	$0.2-0.4B
Speculative land surcharge⁸	None	Escalating surcharge on corporate-held vacant land (3+ years)	$0.05-0.15B
Voucher reform⁹	$625M/yr and growing, on track to exceed $800M by 2027-28, no caps, no standards	End program, reinvest in public education	Up to $0.6B
Total new revenue			$8.0-11.9B

All revenue estimates are directional and need microsimulation modeling before becoming official projections. Ranges reflect published analyses from the Budget & Tax Center, ITEP, Tax Foundation, and NCDOR data.

Sources and state precedents

1NC's flat rate is 3.99% heading to 1.99%. Tax cuts since 2013 have cost an estimated $18B/yr in foregone revenue. BTC estimates $980M/yr from a 7% surcharge on $1M+ incomes alone.
2Washington expanded sales tax to professional services in Oct 2025. Maryland enacted a 3% tax on data/IT services in Jul 2025. Tax Foundation: exempting services is regressive.
3NC's 2% rate is the lowest in the nation, cut from 6.9% in 2013. A 6% rate is at or near the national average. BTC: the state should keep its corporate income tax.
4Specific exemptions from NC DOR Tax Expenditure Reports: sales-only apportionment (~$165-173M), mill machinery (~$254-259M), piped natural gas (~$184-191M), manufacturer electricity (~$93M), manufacturing fuels (~$60M+).
5Charlotte's all-in effective tax rate for data centers is 24% of net income, the lowest of any major market nationally, compared to 80% in Santa Clara County, California. Florida tightened its exemption to 100MW+ in 2025. South Carolina requires 25 jobs at 150% county income.
6Washington expanded to a graduated structure, 9% top rate on gains over $1M (2025). Maryland enacted a 2% surcharge on gains for income over $350K (2025). Massachusetts taxes short-term gains 3.5 points above ordinary income. Minnesota enacted a net investment income surcharge. ITEP published a "Wealth Proceeds Tax" framework for state adoption.
7New York's "mansion tax": 1% surcharge on $1M+, tiers up to 3.9% at $25M+. New Jersey: additional 1% on $1M+. Connecticut and Hawaii have similar tiered structures. All have been in place for years with stable revenue.
8DC has taxed vacant properties at elevated rates since 2003 (~5% vs 0.85% for occupied). Philadelphia surcharges vacant land. Vancouver and Toronto vacancy taxes have reduced speculative holding. Least-tested category at state level; most precedents are municipal.
990% of recipients already in private school. $6.5B committed through 2033, zero accountability standards. 104K+ students enrolled.

Sales Tax Modernization

Boots vs. Consultants

Right now a factory worker buying boots pays sales tax. A corporation paying $200K for a management consultant doesn't. We're fixing that.

Tax these

Legal services (exempt legal aid and pro bono)
Accounting and tax preparation (exempt VITA and free filing)
Management consulting
Marketing and advertising (exempt small businesses under $500K revenue)
Architecture and engineering, commercial (exempt residential under $500K)
IT consulting and custom software
Commercial real estate services (exempt residential)
Executive recruiting and staffing (exempt basic temp staffing)
Financial advisory services (exempt basic banking)
Luxury personal services (concierge, personal shopping)

Don't tax these

Healthcare. Childcare. Education. Personal care (haircuts, nails). Residential repairs. Basic home services. Nothing that hits working families.

Other states are already doing this

Washington expanded sales tax to professional services in October 2025. Maryland enacted a 3% tax on data and IT services in July 2025. The Tax Foundation notes that exempting services is actually regressive, because wealthy people spend more on services.

What They'll Say

Yeah, We've Heard It

Every argument against this plan has an answer. Here are the most common ones.

"You're raising taxes on everyone"

No. The first $100,000 of income is tax-free. Most North Carolina families make under $100K. They'd pay zero state income tax. Even at $250K, you'd still pay less than you do now. The crossover where you'd owe more is around $400K. The people paying significantly more are those making $500K+ and corporations currently paying 2% (or nothing).

"Businesses will leave"

Small businesses with under $500K in profit pay $0 in corporate income tax under this plan. The proposed 6% rate is the national average. Businesses don't relocate over average tax rates. They relocate over workforce quality, infrastructure, and quality of life. All of which require funding.

"You're taxing my haircut"

No. We're taxing the $50,000 consulting engagement. Haircuts, healthcare, childcare, education, and personal care all stay exempt. The only services taxed are professional and luxury services, the kind corporations and wealthy individuals purchase.

"The state can't afford this"

North Carolina is losing an estimated $18 billion per year in ongoing tax cuts. We rank dead last in school funding effort. Teachers work second jobs. Medicaid is $319 million underfunded. We can't afford not to invest.

"What about school choice?"

90% of voucher recipients were already enrolled in private school. We're spending $6.5 billion in public money through 2033 with zero accountability standards. No testing requirements. No financial transparency. No outcome reporting. Public money should come with public standards.

"Data centers bring jobs"

A billion-dollar data center might employ 50 people. NC gives them tax exemptions starting at a $75 million threshold. Virginia's JLARC found that data center tax exemptions cost the state over $1 billion in FY 2024, jumping to $1.6 billion in FY 2025, more than 80% of all state economic incentive spending. Florida and South Carolina are already tightening theirs. We should too.

"Leandro is dead"

The case is gone. The constitutional right to a "sound, basic education" isn't. The 1997 and 2004 rulings establishing that right were not overturned. We can either wait for another 32-year lawsuit or just fund our schools. This plan chooses the second option.

"This is a Democratic wish list"

Funding schools is a constitutional obligation. Funding Medicaid is basic governance. A 6% corporate rate is the national average. A $15 minimum wage is already the floor in 17 states and D.C., with more scheduled to reach it in the next two years. This is math, not a platform.

A teacher making $55,000 shouldn't pay the same rate as someone making $5 million. Most families would pay less under this plan. The money exists. It's just going to the wrong places.

Taxes Suck. Let's Make Them Suck Less.