Two Gavels, Three Amendments: Sen. Tom McInnis on Your Ballot

Welcome back to the Carolina Cabinet, Cumberland County's smartest hour of talk radio. In this special session, host Peter Pappas sits down with State Sen. Tom McInnis, the Republican who represents North Carolina Senate District 21: all of Moore County and part of Cumberland County. McInnis grew up in Richmond County, built Iron Horse Auction Company, was first elected in 2014, and chairs the Senate Finance and Regulatory Reform committees. This November he faces Democrat Paul Taylor of Spring Lake. McInnis walks through the 41-cent gas tax holiday that passed 152 to 1 and where the money came from, his death-by-distribution fentanyl law, and his push to drop testing barriers for new teachers. Peter presses him on the three constitutional amendments on this year's ballot (voter ID, a 3.5% income tax cap, and state limits on local property tax increases) and on why local voters should trust Raleigh to set that limit. They also cover the new state veterans home near Fort Bragg, data centers and who pays for their power, nuclear energy, Moore County's water supply, housing costs, and the community colleges training the region's workforce. Early voting is open through Saturday, October 31, at any early-voting site in your county. Election Day is Tuesday, November 3. Find all of our candidate conversations at thecarolinacabinet.com. CHAPTERS 00:00 Show open 00:23 Meet Sen. Tom McInnis 01:31 Housing shortage and regulation 03:11 Icebreakers 04:16 Why an auctioneer ran for the Senate 05:36 District 21, then and now 08:34 The 41-cent gas tax holiday 09:40 Death by distribution 10:22 Teacher licensing 11:27 Paying for the gas tax holiday 13:38 Three amendments on the ballot 15:13 Should Raleigh cap local property taxes? 17:13 Property taxes and retirees 19:43 Military pensions 20:08 The veterans home 22:09 Data centers 24:01 Nuclear power at Fort Bragg 27:10 Soldiers and voting 28:00 Growth and housing in Moore County 29:13 Water supply 32:53 Local taxes and the state's role 34:58 Raising taxes in an emergency 37:30 Community colleges 39:19 How to reach Sen. McInnis 41:06 Early voting