EXPANDING ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY FOR ALL
Unemployment Down to 2.7%: The unemployment rate in North Carolina has declined from 2.7% to 3.1% since 1993. 628,500 New Jobs: 628,500 new jobs have been created in North Carolina since 1993 -- an average of 97,948 per year, compared to an average of just 38,625 jobs per year in the previous administration. 557,000 New Private Sector Jobs: Since 1993, 557,000 new private sector jobs have been created-an average of 86,805 jobs per year, compared to an average of just 25,125 private sector jobs per year in the previous administration. 67,800 New Construction Jobs: 67,800 construction jobs have been created in North Carolina since 1993 -- an average of 10,566 jobs per year. In contrast, an average of 4,000 construction jobs were lost each year during the previous administration. 342,000 Have Received a Raise: Approximately 106,000 North Carolina workers benefited from an increase in the minimum wage-from $4.25 to $4.75 -- on October 1, 1996. They, along with about 236,000 others received an additional raise-from $4.75 to $5.15 -- on September 1, 1997. Business Failures Down 8.9% Per Year: Business failures have dropped an average of 8.9% per year since 1993, after increasing 22.4% per year during the previous administration. [Oct. 98 data] Poverty Has Fallen: Nationally, the poverty rate has fallen from 15.1% in 1993 to 13.3% in 1997. In North Carolina, the poverty rate has fallen from 14.4% in 1993 to 11.4% in 1997--down 3.0% under President Clinton. [Census Bureau] A $500 Child Tax Credit to Help Families Raising Children: To help make it easier for families to raise their children, the balanced budget included a $500 per-child tax credit for children under 17. Thanks to President Clinton, the Balanced Budget delivers a child tax credit to 678,000 families in North Carolina. Home Ownership Has Increased in North Carolina: Home ownership in North Carolina has increased from 68.7% to 70.3% since the fourth quarter of 1993. Home Building Up 9.2%: Home building has increased by an average of 8.7% per year since 1993, after falling over 1.1% per year during the previous administration. Over $25,000 of Reduced Federal Debt for Every Family of Four: The national debt will be $1.7 trillion lower in FY99 than projected in 1993 -- that's $25,000 less debt for each family of four in North Carolina this year. 34.6% Growth in Total Bank Loans and Leases: North Carolina has seen a 34.6% average growth rate in total bank loans and leases per year since 1993. In contrast total bank loans and leases increased 3.0% during the previous administration. 36.5% Growth in Commercial and Industrial Loans and Leases: Since 1993, North Carolina has experienced a 36.5% annual growth rate in commercial and industrial loans and leases. In contrast, commercial and industrial loans and leases grew only an average of 2.6% per year during the previous administration. EXPANDING ACCESS TO EDUCATION
Over 17,000 Children in Head Start: Over 17,000 North Carolina children were enrolled in Head Start in 1998. In FY99, North Carolina will receive $94.0 million in Head Start funding, an increase of $39.7 million over 1993. More High-Quality Teachers With Smaller Classes for North Carolina's Schools: Thanks to President Clinton, the final FY99 budget provides for the first year of the President's new initiative to hire 100,000 new, well-prepared teachers, to reduce class sizes in the early grades to a national average of 18. North Carolina receives $24.7 million in 1999 to hire about 635 new public school teachers. And, under President Clinton's proposal, North Carolina would receive $29 million in FY00 to support a total of 790 teachers. $10.1 Million in Goals 2000 Funding: This year [FY99], North Carolina receives $10.1 million in Goals 2000 funding. This money is used to raise academic achievement by raising academic standards, increasing parental and community involvement in education, expanding the use of computers and technology in classrooms, and supporting high-quality teacher professional development. $7.7 Million for Technology Literacy: This year [FY99], North Carolina receives $7.7 million for the Technology Literacy Challenge Fund which helps communities and the private sector ensure that every student is equipped with the computer literacy skills needed for the 21st century. Connecting North Carolina's Schools and Libraries to the Internet: The E-rate program is part of the Administration's effort to connect every classroom and library to the information superhighway, giving every child access to the resources and knowledge available online. This program helps schools and libraries by providing discounts of 20 to 90 percent on telecommunications services, internal connections and Internet access - with the largest discounts going to the poorest urban and rural schools. In the first year of funding alone, North Carolina received over $25.5 million in E-rate discounts. Over $140.5 Million for Students Most in Need: North Carolina will receive $140.5 million in Title I grants (to Local Educational Agencies) providing extra help in the basics for students most in need, particularly communities and schools with high concentrations of children in low-income families [FY99]. 82,300 Students Will Receive Pell Grants This Year: This year [FY00], North Carolina will receive $153.2 million in Pell Grants for low-income students going to college, benefiting a total of 82,300 North Carolina students. Expanded Work-Study To Help More Students Work Their Way Through College: The FY99 budget includes a significant expansion of the Federal Work Study program. North Carolina will receive nearly $20 million in Work-Study funding in 1999 to help North Carolina students work their way through college. Nearly 2,000 Have Served in North Carolina through AmeriCorps: Since the National Service program began in 1993, 1,904 AmeriCorps participants have earned money for college while working in North Carolina's schools, hospitals, neighborhoods or parks. [through 11/98] Tuition Tax Credits in Balanced Budget Open the Doors of College and Promote Lifelong Learning: The balanced budget included both President Clinton's $1,500 HOPE Scholarship to help make the first two years of college as universal as a high school diploma and a Lifetime Learning Tax Credit for college juniors, seniors, graduate students and working Americans pursuing lifelong learning to upgrade their skills. This 20% tax credit will be applied to the first $5,000 of tuition and fees through 2002 and to the first $10,000 thereafter. 158,000 students in North Carolina will receive a HOPE Scholarship tax credit of up to $1,500. 193,000 students in North Carolina will receive the Lifetime Learning Tax Credit. [fully phased-in FY00 plan] Expanded Job Training to North Carolina's Dislocated Workers: Thanks to President Clinton, the FY99 budget includes a significant expansion in the dislocated worker program. North Carolina will receive $13.8 million in 1999 to help 8,210 of North Carolina's dislocated workers get the training and reemployment services they need to return to work as quickly as possible. FIGHTING CRIME AND VIOLENCE
Murder Down in Winston-Salem and Charlotte: Since 1992, murder has declined 40% in Charlotte and 61% in Winston Salem. In addition, robberies have also declined 11% in Charlotte, 18% in Raleigh and 37% in Winston Salem. [1992 and 1997 Uniform Crime Reports] Juvenile Arrests Down in North Carolina: North Carolina's juvenile murder arrests have decreased 26% between 1992 and 1997. [FBI, Uniform Crime Report, 1992 and 1997] 2,595 More Police: The President's 1994 Crime Bill has funded 2,595 new police officers to date in communities across North Carolina. [through 7/99] Reducing Crime with Drug Courts: Working to reduce drug-related crime in North Carolina, the Clinton Administration has awarded a Drug Court grant to the community of Cherokee. Drug courts use the coercive power of the criminal justice system to combine drug testing, sanctions, supervision and treatment to push nonviolent, drug-abusing offenders to stop using drugs and committing crimes. Nearly $5 Million to Combat Domestic Violence: Through the Violence Against Women Act, North Carolina received $4.8 million in federal funds in FY98 to establish more women's shelters and bolster law enforcement, prosecution and victims' services. $1.5 Million in Grants for Battered Women and Children: In FY98, North Carolina received approximately $1.5 million in HHS's Family Violence Prevention Program grants to assist women and children fleeing domestic abuse, an additional $290,000 increase over FY97. $9.5 Million to Keep Drugs & Violence Out of North Carolina Schools: North Carolina receives $9.5 million in FY99 for the Safe & Drug Free Schools Program, which invests in school security and drug prevention programs. MOVING NORTH CAROLINA RESIDENTS FROM WELFARE TO WORK
193,063 Fewer People on Welfare: There are 193,063 fewer people on welfare in North Carolina now than there were at the beginning of 1993 -- a 58% decrease. [through 3/99] Child Support Collections Up 87%: Child support collections have increased by $146 million-or 87% -- in North Carolina since FY92. [through FY98] Encouraging Responsible Choices-Preventing Teen Pregnancy in North Carolina: Since 1993, President Clinton and Vice President Gore have supported innovative and promising teen pregnancy prevention strategies, with significant components of the strategy becoming law in the 1996 Personal Responsibility Act. The law requires unmarried minor parents to stay in school and live at home or in a supervised setting; encourages "second chance homes" to provide teen parents with the skills and support they need; and provides $50 million a year in new funding for state abstinence education activities. Efforts are making a difference, adolescent pregnancy rates and teen abortion rates are declining. And between 1992 and 1997, teen birth rates declined 12% in North Carolina. $84.8 Million for North Carolina Welfare-to-Work: In 1998 and 1999, North Carolina received $48.9 million in Federal welfare-to-work state formula grants (the state matched $24.5 million in funding), helping North Carolina welfare recipients get and keep jobs. In addition, $11.4 million in competitive grants were awarded to North Carolina localities to support innovative welfare-to-work strategies and Native American tribes in North Carolina received $118,000 in Federal funding. Part of the President's comprehensive efforts to move recipients from welfare to work, this funding was included in the $3 billion welfare to work fund in the 1997 Balanced Budget Act. Helping People Get to Work: Through the Access to Jobs initiative, the Clinton-Gore Administration is working with communities across the country to design transportation solutions to help welfare recipients and other low-income workers get to and from work. Statewide, North Carolina has received $501,000 to fund innovative transit projects. In addition, Charlotte and Winston-Salem have received a total of $396,395 for these transportation projects. INVESTING IN NORTH CAROLINA'S HEALTH
Health Care for Uninsured Children: The balanced budget included the largest single investment in health care for children since the passage of Medicaid in 1965 -- an unprecedented $24 billion over five years to cover as many as five million children throughout the nation. This investment guarantees the full range of benefits-from checkups to surgery -- that children need to grow up strong and healthy. It ensures that prescription drugs, vision, hearing, and mental health coverage now offered at the state level are extended to millions of uninsured children. To expand health coverage to more uninsured children in North Carolina the balanced budget provided $79.5 million in 1998. This compares to the 1995 Republican plan vetoed by President Clinton that would have denied health care coverage to 223,500 children in North Carolina. Helping Nearly 200,000 North Carolina Women and Children with WIC: The Clinton Administration is committed to full funding in the Special Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC). In FY98, North Carolina received $96.2 million in total WIC grant funding, helping 197,700 women, infants and children in need receive health and food assistance, 22,700 more than in 1994. More Toddlers Are Being Immunized: As a result of the President's 1993 Childhood Immunization Initiative, childhood immunization rates have reached an historic high. According to the CDC, 90% or more of America's toddlers in 1996 received the most critical doses of each of the routinely recommended vaccines-surpassing the President's 1993 goal. In North Carolina in 1996, 98% of two-year olds received the vaccines for diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis; 96% received the vaccine for polio; 94% received the vaccine for measles, and 95% received the vaccine for Haemophilus influenzae B, the bacteria causing a form of meningitis. Increased Funding for Ryan White by $31.9 Million: Between 1993 and 1998, North Carolina communities received $31.9 million in Ryan White formula and other HIV/AIDS program funds. This funding provides people living with HIV and AIDS medical and support services, including the AIDS Drug Assistance Program which helps those without insurance obtain much needed prescription drugs. [HHS, Health Resources and Services Administration, 12/98] Tobacco Plan Will Cut Smoking and Premature Deaths by 48% in North Carolina: The Clinton Administration's tobacco proposal, combined with the recently enacted state tobacco settlements, will cut youth smoking and resulting premature deaths 48% in North Carolina by 2004. Between 2000 and 2004, 114,800 of North Carolina's youth will be kept from smoking and 36,700 will be spared a premature tobacco-related death. [Treasury Dept., 2/99] 3,470,000 Americans in North Carolina Cannot Be Assured They Have Patient Protections: Even if North Carolina enacted all the protections in the Patients' Bill of Rights, 3,470,000 people in North Carolina cannot be assured they have the comprehensive patient protections recommended by the President's Advisory Commission. This is because the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) may preempt state-enacted protections. That is why the President has called on Congress to pass a federally enforceable patients' bill of rights so that everyone enrolled in managed care may have a basic set of protections. Notably, 1,730,000 North Carolina women are in ERISA health plans and are therefore not necessarily protected. Women are particularly vulnerable without these protections because they are greater users of health care services, they make three-quarters of the health care decisions for their families, and they have specific health care needs addressed by a patients' bill of rights. PROTECTING THE ENVIRONMENT
$16.5 Million in Safe Drinking Water Funding: This year [FY99], thanks to President Clinton, North Carolina will receive $13.4 million for the Drinking Water State Revolving Funds to provide low-interest loans to municipalities to build, improve, and prevent pollution of drinking water systems. In addition, North Carolina will receive $3 million in Public Water Supply Supervision grants to help monitor drinking water quality and enforce health standards. Seven Superfund Sites Cleaned Up: Since the President took office in 1993, the EPA completed seven toxic waste site clean-ups North Carolina. The sites are located in Shelby, Swannanoa, Aberdeen, Cordova, Morrisville, Concord and Belmont [through 6/99]. This is in contrast to the one site cleaned up under the two previous administrations combined. Revitalizing Brownfields in North Carolina: As part of the Clinton-Gore Administration's efforts to clean up Brownfields, the EPA has awarded grants to communities in North Carolina-Burlington, Winston-Salem, Charlotte, Fayetteville, and High Point-for environmental clean-up and economic revitalization. These projects are intended to jump-start local clean-up efforts by providing funds to return unproductive, abandoned, contaminated urban properties to productive use. SPEARHEADING RURAL AND URBAN RENEWAL EFFORTS
Revitalizing North Carolina's Communities: Hailfax/ Edgecombe, Robeson County, and Charlotte were all designated Enterprise Communities in December, 1994 and were awarded $3 million each to create more jobs, housing, and economic opportunity for area residents. Expanding the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Will Help Develop 4,000 To 4,900 New Affordable Housing Units in North Carolina Over the Next 5 Years: Last year, the President and Vice President pushed for a 40-percent expansion in the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit. This year, the President and Vice President will try again to enact tax incentives to develop affordable housing. In North Carolina alone, this proposal would mean an additional 4,000 - 4,900 quality rental housing units for low-income American families during the next five years. Helping Rural North Carolina Families: Since 1993, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has invested more than $1.74 billion in North Carolina for rural economic development efforts including rural water and sewer, housing and business assistance.[through FY98] PROVIDING DISASTER RELIEF
$574 Million in Federal Emergency Assistance: Since 1993, North Carolina has received $574 million in disaster relief. This includes $29 million in assistance for severe storms, flooding, tornadoes, and Hurricane Bonnie. Additionally, FEMA has provided disaster relief assistance to North Carolina for Hurricane Fran, and Bertha which occurred in 1996. [FEMA, 12/98] EXPANDING FUNDS FOR TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENT
Nearly $3 Billion in Federal Highway Aid: Since 1993, North Carolina has received over $2.97 billion in federal highway aid. Included in this funding is $37.4 million for emergency relief in response to natural disasters and $272,000 for scenic byways. These funds have helped generate 125,198 jobs. [through FY98] Over $245 Million in Aviation Funds: From FY93-FY98 North Carolina received over $245 million in Airport Improvement Project funds to help build and renovate airports, and, when necessary, to provide funds for noise abatement to improve the quality of life for residents who live near airports. Over $190 Million in Transit Funds: North Carolina has received over $190 million in FTA funds since 1993. Saving Lives and Property: In 1997 the United States Coast Guard saved 150 lives and over $157 million of property in North Carolina.
Last Updated August 1999
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