Rep. Belk files bill in North Carolina House to revise school grant allocations

A new bill filed by State Rep. Belk seeks to revise the allocation of grants from the Needs-Based Public School Capital Fund to adjust eligibility and funding distribution criteria, according to the North Carolina State House.

The bill, filed as HB 706 on April 2 during the 2025 regular session, was formally listed with the short title: ‘Change to Needs-Based Capital Funding.’

The following is our breakdown, based on the actual bill text, and may include interpretation to clarify its provisions.

In essence, this bill modifies the allocation of grants from the Needs-Based Public School Capital Fund by revising the criteria for local matching funds. Eligible counties must have an adjusted market value of taxable real property under $40 billion or contain census tracts identified as experiencing persistent poverty or low to moderate income. Counties meeting the latter criteria with a property value over $40 billion will have a 35% local match requirement. The bill also repeals certain sections of previous legislation and mandates that starting in the 2025-26 fiscal year, cooperative innovative high school supplemental allotments be distributed equally. Furthermore, state education funds cannot be allocated based on county economic tier designations assigned by the Department of Commerce. The act takes effect July 1, 2025, with Section 1 applying to grant applications submitted on or after this date.

Of the four sponsors of this bill, Belk proposed the most bills (22) during the 2025 regular session.

Bills in North Carolina follow a multi-step process before becoming law. A lawmaker starts by filing a bill, which is assigned to a committee for review. The bill must be read three times in each chamber. If one chamber changes the bill after the other passes it, both must agree on the final version. Once both chambers approve the same bill, it goes to the governor, who has 10 days (or 30 if the legislature is not in session) to sign, veto, or let it become law without a signature.

You can read more about the bills and other measures here.

Belk graduated from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte in 2006 with a BA.

Belk, a Democrat, was elected to the North Carolina State House in 2017 to represent the state’s 88th House district, replacing previous state representative Rob Bryan.