BRADENTON, Fla. - North Carolina residents would decide in a statewide referendum this October or November if the state should issue $3 billion in general obligation bonds, according to a bill filed April 16.
The bonds, part of Gov. Pat McCrory's budget plan, would pay for transportation projects and infrastructure projects. If voters approve the entire plan, it would be the largest amount of debt authorized by the state.
Details were laid out in House Bill 940, which contains the budget and a lengthy section on the finance plan. The bill calls for two questions about the debt to be placed on the ballot - one for the transportation and the other for infrastructure.
The $1.5 billion in infrastructure bonds would pay for projects involving the state's capital needs, including new facilities, renovation of existing facilities, and technology infrastructure improvements. The North Carolina National Guard, the University of North Carolina System, and the community college system would also benefit from bond proceeds.
The proposed $1.5 billion in transportation bonds would distribute funding according to the Department of Transportation's Strategic Mobility Formula to pay for 27 permit-ready highway projects throughout the state. Bond proceeds would also fund the paving of 176 unpaved secondary roads totaling 113 miles.
The State Board of Elections would reimburse counties for expenses if they do not already have elections scheduled later this year.
The bonds would have maturities up to 40 years.
So far, McCrory has detailed the plan in Winston-Salem and at Appalachian State University, according to published reports.
In prior events about the bond plan, McCrory said the total amount of debt he expected to be issued would total $2.6 billion.
