Now that N.C. House and Senate negotiators have started their negotiations on the final state budget deal, John Locke Foundation experts have been offering their analysis of budget issues to media outlets and live audiences. President John Hood participated in a budget debate Tuesday on WUNC Radio’s flagship local program, “The State of Things,” and he discussed Gov. Beverly Perdue’s plea for as much as $1.5 billion in tax hikes during an appearance with Tara Servatius Thursday on WBT Radio’s afternoon program. Freedom Newspapers turned to Hood for analysis of the House budget plan. Among the newspapers carrying the story were the Burlington Times-News and Shelby Star, which also included a positive online reader comment about Hood’s contributions to public debate in North Carolina. (“Generally, if one listens to John Hood, one will get a much more vivid picture of the NC economy both historically and going forward.” Speaking of praise, a recent letter in the Rocky Mount Telegram thanked Hood for his comments about the state budget and government spending.) Two other JLF staffers also made the radio rounds this week to discuss budget issues. After appearing on the Curtis Media Group’s “For Your Information” program last week, Fiscal and Health Care Policy Analyst Joseph Coletti discussed his Can-Do Budget with Lockwood Phillips Wednesday on WTKF. Communications director Mitch Kokai also focused on the budget during his Tuesday morning discussion with Curtis Wright on WLTT.  Kokai also responded to Perdue’s tax ideas in an interview with WTVD Television. In other budget-related news, a recent syndicated column from Scott Mooneyham mentioned JLF support for limiting spending growth in the state Medicaid program. (“It’s also worth noting that scaling back Medicaid in the manner that the House proposes has for years been a key plank of the alternative budget issued by the conservative Locke Foundation.”)