North Carolina state senators are about to disembowel a liberal cash cow. One of the biggest organizations , The Golden LEAF Foundation is about to have a serious amputation, as reported by Carolina Journal:
The measure would transfer $142 million in cash balances and unexpended revenues from the three recipients of North Carolina’s tobacco settlement in 1998 — the Golden LEAF Foundation, the Health & Wellness Trust Fund, and the N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund.
Golden LEAF would take the largest hit. It would lose a $67-million annual allotment due April 15. The Health & Wellness Trust Fund would lose $12 million, and the Tobacco Trust Fund $3 million.
The legislation wouldn’t impact Golden LEAF’s future allotments, nor would it touch the group’s corpus valued at $555 million.
For years, Republicans and limited government advocates have criticized Golden LEAF as a political slush fund, but Democrats at the committee hearing defended it as a job-creator.
Democrats are protesting this frontal assault:
“The Golden LEAF fund was designed for tobacco-dependent counties, the poorest counties in the state, to put money back in those counties for job creation,” said Sen. Michael Walters, D-Robeson. “We’re taking that assurance that we’ve given those folks away from them again. We’re going to push these poor countries back into recession further than we ever thought we would.”
I wonder if Senator Michael Walters had anything to do with the smoking ban in North Carolina bars and restaurants. That law went into effect last year. Can you imagine how much of an economic impact that had on the poor tobacco dependent counties. Don't worry farmers, Sen. Michael Walters wants to send a welfare check to you, courtesy of The Golden Leaf fund and your fellow taxpayers.
Source: http://www.carolinajournal.com/articles/display_story.html?id=7351
http://www.wral.com/news/local/story/7475886/
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