RALEIGH — The North Carolina Free Enterprise Foundation released its 2023-2024 Legislative Business Ratings on Thursday.
The North Carolina Free Enterprise Foundation (NCFREE) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization based in Raleigh that offers data, research, and analysis on business, legislative, and political topics.
The group’s mission statement describes NCFREE as the “premier research organization in the state seeking to provide non-partisan analysis of the political landscape and its impact on North Carolina’s business environment.”
NCFREE characterized the Legislative Business Ratings (LBR) as an “indispensable scorecard that rigorously evaluates state lawmakers’ alignment with free enterprise principles.”
“Our state’s business climate is shaped by the decisions made in the General Assembly,” said Alex Baltzegar, NCFREE’s executive director. “These ratings empower business leaders to discern which legislators are true champions of free enterprise—and who merely pretend.”
“Since our founding in 1983, NCFREE has been a steadfast advocate for accountability in the North Carolina legislature,” stated Mike Rusher, Chairman of NCFREE’s Board of Directors. “The Legislative Business Ratings are an indispensable resource for voters and business leaders dedicated to preserving and advancing a free-market economy. Our methodology ensures a clear, accurate picture of each lawmaker’s commitment to free enterprise values.”
The rating system used in the LBR to score General Assembly lawmakers has three components:
- Objective Component (67% weight): Evaluates votes on free enterprise legislation.
- Subjective Component (33% weight): Surveys free enterprise leaders about lawmakers.
- Bill Sponsorship Component (small addition/subtraction): Assesses sponsorship of pro/anti-free enterprise bills.
The 2023-2024 ratings evaluated 25 bills for the Senate and 28 for the House. Lawmakers receive 100 points for pro-free enterprise votes, 0 for opposing votes. Bill sponsorship adds or subtracts 0.25 points per bill. The ratings cover both the 2023 Long Session and 2024 Short Session.
Overall, Senate Republicans generally scored higher, with top scores around 99. Democrats scored lower, with lowest scores around 12-18. Senate Republican scores averaged 97.3%, Democrats 31.6%. The highest scoring Senate Democrat was Paul Lowe, Jr. (Forsyth) with 57.8.
Results for the House were similar with Republicans scoring higher with top scores at 99.7 and Democrats lower, with the lowest around 10-16. House Republican scores averaged 97.6%, Democrats 28.4%. There were some exceptions in the House, for example, Rep. Cecil Brockman (Guilford) scored 83.3 and Rep. Shelly Willingham (Edgecombe) received an 80.8.
Here are the top and bottom ten legislators per NCFREE’s rankings. Some legislators were tied for the top spots with identical scores. House Speaker Tim Moore (R-Kings Mountain) just missed being in the top ten with a score of 98.0.
Senate Top 10:
1. Phil Berger (R): 99.4
2. Timothy D. Moffitt (R), Brent Jackson (R), Paul Newton (R), Bill Rabon (R): 99.3
3. Bobby Hanig (R): 99.1
4. Ralph Hise (R): 99.0
5. Benton G. Sawrey (R): 98.9
6. Michael V. Lee (R), Jim Perry (R): 98.6
7. Todd Johnson (R), David Craven (R): 98.5
8. Buck Newton (R), Amy Galey (R): 98.2
9. Michael Lazzara (R), Lisa Barnes (R): 98.0
10. Danny Britt (R): 97.8
Senate Bottom 10 (starting from lowest score):
1. Natasha R. Marcus (D): 12.9
2. Graig Meyer (D): 14.8
3. Natalie S. Murdock (D): 14.9
4. Lisa Grafstein (D): 15.2
5. DeAndrea Salvador (D): 17.8
6. Michael Garrett (D): 18.1
7. Mujtaba Mohammed (D): 18.2
8. Julie Mayfield (D): 18.3
9. Val Applewhite (D): 22.1
10. Gladys A. Robinson (D): 26.7
House Top 10:
1. Destin Hall (R), Jason Saine (R): 99.7
2. John R. Bradford, III (R): 99.4
3. Erin Pare (R), Matthew Winslow (R): 99.0
4. Mark Brody (R), Dennis Riddell (R), John R. Bell, IV (R), Jeff Zenger (R): 98.9
5. Dean Arp (R): 98.8
6. Steven Tyson (R): 98.7
7. John Sauls (R), Mitchell Setzer (R): 98.5
8. Jake Johnson (R), Jared Lowery (R), Crey Mills (R): 98.3
9. Kevin Crutchfield (R), Ken Fontenot (R), Allen Chesser (R), John Torbett (R): 98.2
10. Kelly Hastings (R), Stephen Ross (R), Davis Willis (R): 98.1
House Bottom 10 (starting from lowest score):
1. Pricey Harrison (D): 10.3
2. Carolyn G. Logan (D): 12.4
3. Julie von Haefen (D): 15.2
4. Marcia Morey (D): 16.1
5. John Autry (D): 16.2
6. Maria Cervania (D), Cynthia Ball (D): 18.9
7. Laura Budd (D): 19.3
8. Terence Everitt (D): 19.4
9. Tim Longest (D): 19.7
10. Lindsey Prather (D): 20.6
View NCFREE’s full LBR report.
