2026 NC & Dare County Ballot Amendments

Dare Democrats urge you to vote NO on the 3 NC Ballot Measures.

NC 2026 Ballot Measures

  • Property Tax Levy Limit Amendment - Require the state legislature to pass laws limiting the amount that property taxes may increase

  • Reduce Income Tax Rate Cap from 7% to 3.5% - Reduce the maximum allowable income tax rate from 7% to 3.5%

  • Require Voter Identification Amendment - Require photographic identification to vote for all voters, not just those voting in person

From the League of Women Voters of NC:

For more information on these NC Amendments, visit the League of Women Voters of NC

NC Property Tax Levy Limit Amendment

NC Personal Income Tax Cap Amendment

NC Photo ID Amendment

Dare County Local Sales and Use Tax

  • Local sales and use tax at the rate of one-quarter percent (0.25%) omitted addition to all other State and local sales and use taxes

Opposition: (8/26/26 BALLOTPEDIA)

  • Alexandra Sirota, executive director of the NC Budget & Tax Center: "A levy limit will not address the unaffordable housing costs that so many households are facing. What legislators need to do today is to invest in building more affordable housing and providing direct relief to households that are faced with unaffordable property tax bills."

  • State Rep. Deb Butler (D-18): "The truth is, property taxes are not rising because cities and counties suddenly went on a wild, drunken binge and started spending like sailors. It’s because of the cost shifting that we have done from this body."

  • Gov. Josh Stein (D): "[The amendment is] a con, a cynical shell game and a millionaire protection cap. It will not put any more money in anyone's pockets. But what it will do is make regular people pay the consequences of it next year and years into the future because it will insulate the very wealthy from ever having an increase in their income tax. We have to have a balanced budget every year when revenues are needed. You know who’s going to have to pay? It’s you. Regular people every time they go buy something through the sales tax.”

  • NC Budget & Tax Center: "A limit on the income tax rate won’t keep total state and local taxes low. In reality, states with income tax limits or no income tax tend to rely more on sales taxes, property taxes, and fees to fund the programs and services that are necessary to move our communities forward. Already, North Carolina’s overall tax code is regressive, asking the greatest share of the lowest income households in state and local taxes than the wealthiest households."

  • Katelin Kaiser, policy director of Democracy North Carolina: “This is another attempt to disenfranchise voters by mail, and it is working. Legislative leadership has made it more difficult for students, older people, and people who are disabled to vote by mail in North Carolina.”

  • Democracy North Carolina: "The voter ID law causes confusion whether or not it is the law of the land. Even after the voter ID law was overturned in the past, it continued to wreak havoc, deterring voters from the ballot box even after it had been stricken. Voter ID has a direct and disparate impact on those in the Black and brown communities. Research has found that Black voters are more likely than white voters to lack a qualifying ID. In addition, voter ID laws have been shown to be an active deterrent to voting, particularly for Black and brown voters. It’s been shown that voters without ID are either unable to vote because they arrive at the polls without an ID, or more significantly, those without ID decide to not go to the polls in the first place as a result of the law."

  • Bob Phillips, executive director of Common Cause: "I would be very sorry to see someone be disenfranchised because they have trouble including a copy of their photo ID with their mail-in ballot."

This is a non-partisan issue.

From the Dare County Website

  • Sales tax rate change: From 6.75% to 7.00% total sales tax in Dare County ($.0025 increase)

  • Exclusions: This sales tax increase would NOT apply to groceries, gasoline, prescription medicines, vehicles, and some agricultural supplies.

  • Estimated annual revenue: $6.1 million 

  • Estimated resident cost: $14/year for individuals -OR- $22/year for families

  • Estimated visitor contribution: More than 70%

  • Proposed use: Dare County Parks & Recreation improvements

More Information

Click on the images to download these very informative handouts from the NC Budget and Tax Center