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Harry Davis thinks too much of the stimulus spending is next year.

The Appalachian State University finance professor, who is the economist for the N.C. Bankers Association, said only 30 percent of the $789 billion stimulus package signed by President Obama will be spent this year.

He said that creates several problems:

NOT STIMULATING. Money spent next year will likely be after the economy has start to recover, so it won't be stimulus, by definition.

TOO MUCH DEBT. The additional spending and ongoing federal budget deficits are pushing debt too high, leading to a risk of inflation that could hurt the recovery.

NOT ONGOING. He said the infrastructure spending is necessary, but it ought to be included in the annual budget because it is an ongoing need.

"We need to spend money on infrastructure five years from now, so we need to get this spending in the regular budget, as opposed to this one-time shot in the arm," he said.

More after the jump.

The House and the Senate gaveled in the short session just after noon.

Along with the state budget, they will consider bills that passed at least one chamber during the 2007 session as well as some new legislation, Dan Kane reports.

One bill was introduced in the House, to provide $660,624 for Juvenile Crime Prevention Councils serving Franklin, Granville, Person, and Vance counties.

Other bills filed on opening day included a $44.7 million request for the Smart Start child care program and legislation limiting ski resorts' liability for injuries that typically occur in skiing.

Lawmakers can also expect another visit from Appalachian State University's football team, which won its third straight NCAA Division I championship in December. Resolutions filed in both chambers would honor the team's accomplishments, which include beating football powerhouse the University of Michigan.

Six North Carolina universities are ranked in the top 100 by Kiplinger’s Personal Finance as the country’s “Best Values.”

The magazine’s February 2008 edition ranks UNC at Chapel Hill No. 1 for the seventh consecutive time. N.C. State University is No. 13, Appalachian State is 27, UNC at Wilmington is 36, UNC at Asheville is 40 and UNC at Greensboro is ranked No. 68.

Gov. Mike Easley applauded the rankings in a news release.

“This recognition reflects our commitment to providing academic excellence and an affordable college education for all students in our state,” Easley said in the release.

The rankings are based on cost and are designed to combine value with a first class education.

A North Carolina sports team is playing for a championship on Friday.

So, naturally, the governor is in a betting mood.

Gov. Mike Easley announced today that he has made a friendly wager with Delaware Gov. Ruth Ann Minner on the national championship game on Friday between the Appalachian State University Mountaineers and the University of Delaware Blue Hens.

Easley is putting up, surprise, a pound of Eastern North Carolina barbecue from Wilbur's in Goldsboro and a pound of western barbecue from the Barbecue Center in Lexington. He'll also throw in a case of Cheerwine.

Minner is putting up what are described as Delaware favorites - Grotto's pizza, Nic-o-Boli's and Dogfish Head root beer.

After weeks of uncomfortable negotiations, Cole Jones, an East Carolina University graduate student, has resigned his position as president of the UNC Association of Student Governments — giving up his seat on the UNC Board of Governors.

Jones was never sworn in to the UNC board because of controversy surrounding his conviction in August of a misdemeanor assault in Craven County. He is appealing and has said the allegation was false. The charge stemmed from a domestic situation involving relatives of his son, Jones has said.

Jones submitted his resignation letter, dated Oct. 8, to UNC President Erskine Bowles and UNC Board of Governors Chairman Jim Phillips, reports Jane Stancill.

Another student will be sworn in Friday. Cody Grasty, a graduate student at Appalachian State University, will take the student seat on the UNC board.

U.S. Rep. Howard Coble attended Appalachian State University for just a year back in 1949.

But his short tenure was enough to send him to the House of Representatives floor for a minute this morning to brag on the Mountaineers' unexpected win last weekend over football powerhouse Michigan, Barb Barrett reports.

ASU, a Division I-AA team, beat the University of Michigan 34-32 in Ann Arbor on Saturday in what was widely considered a phenomenal upset.

"As big a fan as I am of the Mountaineers football program, even I could not have predicted a win over Michigan — in the Big House," said Coble, a Greensboro Republican. "I am compelled to sing the ASU praises … for all of my colleagues."