Democrats who can’t secure budget funding are making excuses, says NC Rep Tricia Cotham
Democrat-turned-Republican Rep. Tricia Cotham said Monday that representatives have a responsibility to bring money back to their districts for local projects and that Democrats who were unable to do so are making excuses.
The eastern Mecklenburg legislator’s comments came during WBT radio’s Breaking with Brett Jensen show Monday evening when she talked about a range of things related to the budget. Passed last week by the legislature, the budget includes more than $18 million for projects or groups based in the town of Mint Hill — from a new community center to a leadership program led by the town’s chamber of commerce.
Mint Hill projects or groups received more funding in the budget than other Mecklenburg County towns just months after Cotham’s party switch gave Republicans a supermajority in the General Assembly.
“I take tremendous pride in helping my hometown and helping my constituents because that is what the work that we are supposed to do as legislators, find a way,” Cotham told Jensen. “Unfortunately, many lawmakers in the other party will just say, ‘I didn’t have access to it’ or, you know, ‘I couldn’t get anything done because I was in the minority.’ And I take great offense to that because, let’s not forget, I served in the minority and I still brought back projects to the district and I don’t accept that excuse.”
Cotham won last year’s 112th District election in eastern Mecklenburg County by a wide margin as a Democrat. In April, though, she gave Republicans a supermajority when she flipped parties. Her stated reasons for flipping included that Democrats were hostile toward her and want to “villainize who has free thought.” In the months since, Cotham helped Republicans pass expansions on private school vouchers, charter school enrollment and new abortion restrictions.
Jensen didn’t ask Cotham what influence her party flip had on her district-level projects in the budget, and Cotham didn’t respond to a request for an interview from The Charlotte Observer.
Mecklenburg County Democratic Party Chair Drew Kromer said Tuesday it’s good Mint Hill is receiving state funding for a new community center and other projects, but “we were expecting a bigger consolation prize in exchange for Cotham’s party switch.”
Kromer said Cotham’s party switch “enabled a Republican budget that provides paltry raises for state employees, allows vouchers to divert nearly half a billion dollars away from public schools to private schools, and compounds staffing shortages in state agencies like the DMV.”
“Before Cotham handed the Republicans a supermajority, they had to work with Democrats to pass a state budget that better met the needs of our state—now they were able to do it behind closed doors with no Democratic input,” Kromer said.
Mint Hill projects in budget
Cotham said she was responsible for Mint Hill funding included in the budget, which covered six projects.
“All lawmakers have the responsibility of bringing back money to their districts, and I take that very, very seriously and started early in the year,” she said. “The first time Mint Hill and I ... met was in early February, I believe, and we started having ongoing conversations, and I would hear from constituents their interest or what they thought was important, talking with our police officers.”
She said that members of the N.C. General Assembly have to learn how to “work his or her appropriation request.” She said that includes talking to Republican leadership and the chairs of appropriations committees.
“It’s kind of the saying ‘the squeaky wheel gets the grease,’ and you have to really keep working it and be persistent,” Cotham said. “And unfortunately many people don’t do that, and they just want to sit back and complain. And I don’t accept complaints. I look for solutions.”
Projects funded in Mint Hill through special appropriations or infrastructure funds include:
▪ $16 million for capital improvements and equipment at the Mint Hill community center
▪ $1.3 million to help the Mint Hill Athletic Association with capital improvements and equipment
▪ $750,000 for the town of Mint Hill to “support the police department’s infrastructure and equipment needs.” Cotham named the needs specifically as including new carpets and roofing as well as body cameras.
▪ $150,000 for the Mint Hill Historical Society to pay for capital improvements or equipment
▪ $75,000 for the Mint Hill Chamber of Commerce to fund its leadership training program
▪ $60,000 for Servant’s Heart of Mint Hill to provide “poverty alleviation” programs
Mint Hill funding compared
The amount of state money allocated to Mint Hill projects or groups is more than the budget allocated in the 2023-2024 fiscal year for Project Breakpoint — an effort to move the Western and Southern Open tennis tournament from Cincinnati to Charlotte. While Mint Hill projects total about $18.3 million, the state budget will give $17.5 million this year and $2.5 million next year to the tennis project.
But the dollar amount allocated to all Charlotte-based groups or projects vastly exceeds Mint Hill projects.
Here is how much other Mecklenburg County towns received in the state budget through special appropriations or the infrastructure fund:
▪ $13.2 million for three items in Huntersville — the biggest of which would help build a fire safety facility at Central Piedmont Community College’s campus there.
▪ $3.5 million for two items in Cornelius, including money for capital improvements and a town history museum.
▪ $1.15 million for capital improvements in the town of Davidson
▪ $390,000 for three items in Matthews
▪ Zero items listed as funded in Pineville
This story was originally published September 26, 2023 at 1:26 PM.
