Yesterday, the North Carolina Senate voted to put two constitutional amendments on the November 2026 general election ballot: a voter ID measure that will ensure that all voters, not just those voting in person, would be required to show a photo ID to vote and another enacting a tax cap measure which would lower the maximum income tax rate the state can impose.
Senate Bill 920, which passed 30 to 19, sets the maximum income tax rate the state can levy from 7% to 5%. In 2018, voters passed a constitutional amendment (by 57.35% to 42.65%) to lower the maximum allowable income tax rate from 10% to 7%. Since then, the General Assembly has continued to cut taxes below that 7%. With this amendment, North Carolinians will have the opportunity to better align the tax cap with current tax rates and implement a constitutional barrier against any large tax hikes in the future.
“North Carolina is an economic powerhouse, thanks in part to the tax reforms the General Assembly has implemented over the past decade,” Sen. Paul Newton said. “Those reforms have returned billions of dollars to hardworking North Carolinians. As our tax rate continues to go down, it’s appropriate for the citizens to have a say in setting the maximum income tax rate.”
Senate Leader Phil Berger added “Over the past decade, the General Assembly has been a good steward of your tax dollars. By keeping spending in check and regularly cutting taxes, our state has experienced exponential growth. While we continue to cut income tax rates, the people of North Carolina deserve the opportunity to lower the maximum rate to avoid repeating disastrous tax-and-spend policies.”
Senate Bill 921, which also passed 30 to 19, modifies the voter ID provision in North Carolina’s constitution to require all voters to show a photo ID, not just those voting in person. Currently, the constitution’s voter ID language is specific to those voting “in person.” This change would require voters to show a photo ID for in-person voting during the early voting periods and on Election Day, and when voting absentee by-mail and provisional.
“Voter ID is a commonsense security measure that needs to apply equally to all voters. As voting has evolved over the years, protecting against fraud needs to as well,” Sen. Warren Daniel said. “We shouldn’t treat one form of voting differently, and our constitution should reflect that.”
Polling shows strong support for each of the proposed amendments. On the tax cap reduction, a recent poll of North Carolinians shows 71% are in favor of reducing the maximum allowable income tax rate in North Carolina to 4% — a full percentage point lower than the current proposal. That same poll found that 70% of North Carolinians support requiring voters to provide photo identification, even without exceptions.
