Carolina Journal Radio No. 849: Reform needed for broken N.C. school financing model

North Carolina’s system for funding public schools is broken. A more student-centered approach to funding could fix the problem. Terry Stoops, John Locke Foundation vice president for research and resident scholar, discusses recommendations from a new report that recommends a major overhaul of N.C. public education financing. When most of think about markets, we think of goods and services. Salim Furth, senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, focuses his attention on the market for neighborhoods. Furth discusses the implications of applying economic principles to the places where we live. The N.C. Constitution bans felons from serving as sheriffs. There’s some confusion about the eligibility of a person who has had a felony conviction expunged from his record. The N.C. House recently debated a measure designed to clarify the rules for potential sheriffs with criminal convictions expunged. N.C. lawmakers have debated for years the rules restricting placement of billboards beside state roads. The latest debate involves replacement of billboards that must be torn down when a local government condemns the surrounding property. Some legislators emphasize the billboard owners’ property rights, while others worry about blocking local government control of billboard placement. Multiple Democratic politicians continue to push for a government-mandated $15-per-hour minimum wage. Jon Sanders, John Locke Foundation director of regulatory studies, highlights economists’ assessments of the idea. Sanders notes that little news coverage of the $15 wage includes analysis from economists, who tend to criticize the idea.