Op-ed: Why I support tackling our Nation’s debt
By Robert Freeman
Former Cabarrus County Commissioner
As a conservative, former business owner, and former Cabarrus County Commissioner I take the fiscal stewardship of taxpayers’ dollars very seriously. Having the experiences of serving my fellow citizens and running a business, I know that it’s impossible to continually spend money without regard to the consequences of debt. That’s why I support tackling our Nation’s debt, reducing our deficits and balancing our budget. But the ways of achieving this are just as important as the goal. Under the current proposal the clean energy tax credits have been slated for demolition, with the direct-to-consumer credit being repealed or eliminated by 2025 and the rest being phased out by 2030.
Yanking the rug out from under businesses and companies that have planned and invested with these credits will cause serious economic harm, especially in rural communities, where many of these projects are located. Here in North Carolina, Toyota has planned a $12 billion expansion at its battery manufacturing plant in Randolph County, bringing over 5,000 jobs. Over in Pitt County, the solar manufacturing company Boviet has announced a $294 million dollar investment in a solar module manufacturing plant that will create 908 high paying jobs. Both counties have less than 200,000 residents, making these investments even more critical to the local economies. Yanking the tax credits away could threaten future investment opportunities. Toyota’s investments are scheduled to continue ramping up through 2030 but those could come to halt if the clean energy tax credits are repealed.
In addition to the potential job losses, North Carolina could lose out on billions of dollars of other investments. Since 2022, 22 clean energy projects have been announced in the state. These total $19.7 billion dollars and are expected to bring 10,571 jobs to the state. But due the repeal of credit transferability and the 6-month start of construction timeline at the passage of the final bill any projects that have not already broke ground, could be killed.
Beyond job and investment losses, energy consumers could see their energy bills spike. According to one study, if the clean energy tax credits are repealed, North Carolina’s energy consumers could see an increase of 13.5% on their utility bills, well above the estimated national average increase of 7%. This means that North Carolinians could see an additional $300 annual hit to their budgets just to pay for electricity.
Congress and President Trump are correct to try and balance the budget, reduce the annual deficit and pay down our debt, but taking an axe to the clean energy tax credits is not the way to go about it. The current proposal as written will cost North Carolina high paying manufacturing jobs, billions of dollars of investments, and energy consumers’ rates. It’s now the Senate’s turn to fix this bill and keep the credits that businesses have relied on.
Are you tired of being bombarded by paywalls and pop-up ads when trying to read the news? Do you believe that access to reliable political news should be free and accessible to everyone? Then we urge you to support NC Political News, a weekly electronic political news outlet.
NC Political News is committed to providing high-quality, unbiased political reporting with columnists from all political sides. Unlike other news outlets, NC Political News is free to read and supported by businesses who purchase ad space on our website and in our newsletter, which goes out Monday through Friday at 7:00 am. This means that readers like you can access the news without being asked to pay a cent or dealing with frustrating advertisements.
However, to continue providing this valuable service, NC Political News needs your support. If you believe in the importance of accessible, free news, we urge you to click the image below. Any amount of support is appreciated.
Together, we can keep the news free and help ensure our state stays informed and connected.
