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McCrory hikes taxes on hundreds of thousands of people

Jeremy Sprinkle
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End of EITC the beginning of a Great Tax Shift

You can try to hold on to your wallets, but for many North Carolinians, it's already too late for that. The tax burden is on the move, and it's headed in the wrong direction.

Governor McCrory on Wednesday signed legislation - again behind closed doors - that will end North Carolina's Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC).

The move effectively increases the taxes of over 900,000 working people, and it proves that the majority in charge of our legislature, despite their rhetoric, is happy to increase taxes hard-working North Carolinians to support the upside down nature of our tax system (where the people with the most money pay the least in taxes).

What does this mean for where you live?

Well, communities in every county in North Carolina will be affected by Gov. McCrory's first tax hike. Sadly, the counties where most people claimed the credit are also the most likely to have the highest poverty and unemployment rates in North Carolina.

How big a deal is the EITC for counties, local businesses, and working families?

The total economic impact of the EITC in 2011 was over $1.7 million. Chances are you may know someone who the elimination of the EITC will affect as one in five state taxpayers claimed the credit.

Thousands sign petition to stop the Great Tax Shift

On Thursday, the NC Justice Center delivered to Gov. McCrory and members of the state legislature nearly 8,000 signatures on a petition to stop shifting the tax burden onto working people. The simple petition reads:

"Stop shifting the tax load to middle- and low-income North Carolinians in order to fund tax cuts for the rich and corporations. Any tax reform plan must not make worse the state's already upside-down tax system."

Many of the petition signers included personal messages along with their signatures:

"Good government is fair to business . . . and also fair to people. Both need quality infrastructure, fair policy, legitimate tax rates." -- Dale W. of Jacksonville, NC

"My husband is a county paramedic and I am a teacher. I have not had a raise in 4 years that would match the rate at which food and gas are rising. Stop burdening us with the financial problems you cannot seem to solve!" -- Holly W. of Rocky Mount, NC

"Your tax policies are going to put me out of business and people out of work." -- Pamela H. of Lincolnton, NC

"Our rural counties continue to suffer in poverty as we support expansion of incentives for the wealthy." -- Patty T. of Candler, NC

"Keep this up and you will be voted out in 2014. Please respect and represent all of your constituents." -- TJ C. of Morrisville, NC

The petition can be found at this link.