Amidst calls for greater austerity measures, Republican legislators are pressing for a reduction in job positions across state administration within the present year. The proposition of job cuts encoded within the budget bills of both, the Senate and the House, imply that some people currently holding state employment positions would face termination.
A significant role that is marked for removal under the Senate budget is the position of the chief scientist in the Office of State Budget and Management. David Yokum, who has been fulfilling this role since 2022, discovered the potential threat to his job following the public release of the budget bill.
I approached the spokesperson for Senate leader Phil Berger, seeking insight into the rationale behind the specific job cuts. In her response, Lauren Horsch disclosed that the Senate Budget Committee had been directed to identify expenditure patterns that were ‘repetitive or not crucial for fulfilling the state’s requirements.’ However, the explanation stopped short of providing a more detailed justification.
In an attempt to understand the role a scientist would play within a budget organization, I turned to Yokum. He explained that his work predominantly involved aiding the budget agency and the budget formulation process in recognizing and incorporating existing evidence that highlighted the efficacy of various programs and policies. His contribution ensured that the budget planning discourse was rooted in high-quality information, providing a critical basis for the efficient allocation of limited taxpayer resources.
Yokum’s position is facing potential elimination at a time when Republicans, at both state and federal levels, are actively working to streamline governmental operations. Meanwhile, the North Carolina Department of Commerce is also likely to see a decrease in its workforce.
Both House and Senate budget plans propose cuts to the Culture and Community Engagement Office in this department, an entity that was formerly known as the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Office. The Senate budget also seeks to terminate the position of the deputy secretary for clean energy economic development.
On finding out about the proposed job cuts, Chief Deputy Secretary Jordan Whichard voiced his concerns. Currently, Jennifer Mundt holds the position at risk; her profile on the agency’s site notes that she ‘coordinates efforts to secure energy-related economic and workforce opportunities for North Carolina.’
Legislators are also keen on downsizing certain environment-related positions. The Office of Environmental Education and the Environmental Justice Initiative are up for elimination under both budgets. Some of the roles marked for dismissal within the Department of Environmental Quality are assigned civil rights compliance tasks, including a key player in the ongoing Helene recovery.
House leaders have argued that their planned cuts primarily targeted positions and initiatives tied to diversity, equity, and inclusion, which lawmakers have unanimously voted to dismiss. Restricting their focus to programs considered emblematic of DEI allows the House budget to exclude some of the job cuts proposed in the Senate counterpart.
If passed, the House budget bill would secure the positions of Yokum, the chief scientist of the budget office, and the deputy secretary for clean energy. In addition to this, it has also retracted its initial proposal to remove the Office of Health Equity at the Department of Health and Human Services, which actively works to address health inequities among marginalized groups.
This decision happened after a review of public feedback, according to Rep. Donny Lambeth, a Republican for Forsyth. The office was reinstated in the proposal due to the crucial work it does in addressing health disparities.
As the budget migration continues, additional alterations might still be made. However, the ongoing negotiations between the House and Senate leaders within an unusually constrained budgetary cap signifies that it is likely that some positions earmarked for dismissal will eventually find their way into the final fiscal plan.