"Absent term limits, legislators getting older, less productive, more entrenched;
young [North Carolinians] inadequately represented
WPRI study, “The Case for Term Limits for [North Carolina] Legislature,”
finds turnover rates among lowest in nation,
analyzes causes and pitfalls of long, comfortable careers
A new [North Carolina] Policy Research Institute study reveals
just how stagnant [North Carolina's] current political world is,
and how public policy has suffered.
… since 1977 the average age of [North Carolina] state senator and representative
has increased 12 and 13 years respectively.
The Assembly has the fifth lowest turnover rate in the country
while the Senate has the seventh lowest.
Incumbent legislators have lost only 5% of general elections since 1963.
"We’ve seen that for more and more legislators,
serving in the statehouse has become more of a career than a public service,"
said Senior Fellow Christian Schneider.
"… given our recent history of fiscal mismanagement,
that might actually be a boost for our state’s finances."
The study documents how legislators with more than 12 years of service
typically draft far fewer bills than their less experienced colleagues,
and often avoid sound fiscal planning.
Modern [North Carolina] legislators…enjoy advantages of incumbency
– including taxpayer-funded mailings and support staff
– that help stymie competition…"
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