Ballot measures to hike taxes got walloped around the state again yesterday, going 2-for-20 on sales tax hikes and once again failing to enact a single land transfer tax. Makes me think that this route is off the table now for Mecklenburg, but who knows. You woulda thought a billion or so in bond packages would be impossible for the November ballot, yet that is where we are headed.

More broadly, I think the outcome signals that Raleigh is gonna hafta fundamentally rethink the state-local interaction, particularly around taxation. Counties manifestly believe they are short on revenue — not true, but let’s roll with that — yet state lawmakers do not want give the power to enact taxes directly to county commissioners, whom they view as their vassals.

Something’s gotta give.