Senate Democrats have their tax plan ready.

According to a document received by the Associated Press, the Senate Finance Committee will consider a proposal today that would reduce the sales tax rate but expand the services it covers, repeal the food tax and raise sin taxes.

The plan would raise $600 million a year, more than the $500 million in revenue missing from the Senate budget passed earlier this month.

Under the plan:

* The sales tax rate in most counties would drop from 6.75 percent to 6 percent.

* The sales tax would be expanded to cover moving services, building repairs and downloaded music.

* Corporate and individual income tax rates would go down.

* The 2 percent tax on food at grocery stores and other retailers would be repealed.

* The cigarette tax would be increased 15 cents per pack.

* The alcohol excise tax would be increased.

The House is also expected to put together its own proposals for modernizing the tax code.

A poll shows support for increases in the alcohol and tobacco taxes.

The survey by Democratic firm Public Policy Polling shows 60 percent support for a five percent tax on alcohol, compared to 35 percent opposition. Five percent were unsure.

It also found 53 percent supported a dollar-a-pack increase on cigarettes, compared to 41 percent opposition. Seven percent were unsure.

President Dean Debnam attributed support to perception that the taxes are voluntary.

"It's up to folks whether they smoke and drink or not, and citizens seem to be more accepting of these sorts of opt in taxes than they would be about increases that hit everyone like income taxes," he said in a statement.

Gov. Beverly Perdue proposed raising the two taxes, but the increases did not make it into the Senate budget that passed last week. 

The automated survey of 979 North Carolina voters was taken from April 8-11. The margin of error is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.

Gov. Beverly Perdue presented a $21 billion budget proposal Tuesday that whacks more than 1,000 jobs from state government and slices $360 million from overall state spending.

Spending will be slashed across every single category of state spending, Mark Johnson and Ben Niolet report.

The state Department of Correction was hit particularly hard with a loss of 527 jobs and a budget reduced by $68 million. Universities will lose $167 million and 73 jobs.

Perdue is proposing raising a tax on cigarettes by $1 a pack. Other tobacco products would see a tax increase. The increases, which would take effect in September would raise $350 million in new revenue.

A new 5 percent alcohol tax would generate $158 million. Perdue is also proposing increasing the annual license fee on professionals from $50 to $200. The increase would generate $27 million, according to her budget proposal.

Perdue, a Democrat in her first year as governor, told education leaders Monday that the budget would focus on education and jobs at the expense of others.

Here's what we know of Gov. Beverly Perdue's budget so far:

* Make deep cuts to state functions, perhaps between $1.3 and $2 billion.

* Raise cigarette tax by $1-per-pack and alcohol tax by 5 percent.

* Increase overall spending for state education by $350 million over the next two years, including 2.5 percent increase for K-12 schools, using some federal stimulus money.

* Raise per-pupil spending. 

* Expand the Earned Income Tax Credit from 5 to 6.5 percent. 

* Fund various small infrastructure projects and  

* No additional debt. 

For the second year in a row, North Carolina may consider a sin tax hike.

In his final budget in 2008, Gov. Mike Easley proposed a 20-cent increase in the cigarette tax, to 55 cents a pack, to raise public school teacher pay.

He also proposed an additional four cents on a can or bottle of beer, three cents on a bottle of win and four percent on liquor to pay for the mental health system.

(In a classic Easleyism, he said heavy drinkers would probably end up needing treatment sooner or later anyway.)

Today, Gov. Beverly Perdue is expected to propose much stiffer hikes of $1-per-pack of cigarettes and 5 percent on alcohol. 

It is not known yet whether Perdue will tie the increased revenue to specific spending, but teacher pay and mental health were not enough for Easley. Legislators rejected his two proposals out of hand.

Gov. Beverly Perdue is expected to propose sin tax hikes.

A budget slated to be presented to the public today is expected to include a $1-per-pack increase in the cigarette tax and a 5 percent tax on alcoholic beverages.

The tobacco tax increase would come on top of a 62-cent increase in the federal tax. The alcohol tax would apply to drinks at a bar and from bottles and cans bought in stores.

The two taxes would help generate more than $400 million for the state budget.

Senate leader Marc Basnight has previously said he supports both increases.

Perdue is also expected to propose a variety of spending cuts to meet a $3 billion revenue shortfall in the next year's budget. (N&O)

The House will be working out of the spotlight for now.

Because it's their turn this year, the state Senate will have first crack after Gov. Beverly Perdue presents her proposed budget this week.

But that doesn't mean the House is out of the loop.

House budget writers and committee chairs will be briefed on the governor's budget in the coming days and will consult with their Senate counterparts during negotiations.

State Rep. Deborah Ross, a Raleigh Democrat, said that the House plays a key role, though mostly offstage in the first phase.

"It's not like we just sit around," she said. "The Senate gets its crack first and then we will make our mark after that."

Already this session, Senate leader Marc Basnight has said he favors raising taxes on alcohol and cigarettes, while Speaker Joe Hackney has downplayed that idea. It's not clear if Perdue's budget will include so-called sin taxes.

North Carolina residents are ready to raise the taxes on sin.

So say the latest results from the Elon University Poll, which asked whether people would support a hike in the so-called "sin taxes" on cigarettes and alcohol.

The poll surveyed 758 North Carolina residents from Feb. 22-26. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.6 percentage points.

Here's what they had to say:

Liquor tax: 78 percent support tax increase, 18 percent oppose

Wine tax: 76 percent support increase, 20 percent oppose

Cigarette tax: 73 percent support increase, 23 percent oppose

Beer tax: 72 percent support increase, 23 percent oppose

Rep. Garland Pierce
Scotland County Democrat
Third Term

What two things would you cut in the state budget? He doesn't want to cut public safety, education, health care or social services, if possible. "The only places people are talking about (cutting) are in staffing. That can be a little leaner. When there are jobs that have not been filled, surely they will not fill them at this point. I don't know if a four-day workweek would work or not."

Are there any taxes you would be in favor of increasing? Not sure. He might be willing to support a modest increase in "sin taxes" on alcohol and cigarettes. "Those who enjoy those things, I'm not trying to tax them out of what they do," he said.

— Ryan Teague Beckwith 

Rep. Mitch Gillespie
Marion Republican
Sixth Term

What two things would you cut in the state budget? He declined to offer any proposed cuts but said Republicans have suggestions.

Are there any taxes you would be in favor of increasing? "I'm not in favor of any tax increases, even sin taxes. You're still taking money out of people's pockets and sending it to a bureaucracy in Raleigh."

— Mark Johnson