North Carolina

​​In 2022, the Office of State Budget and Management (OSBM) created a Chief Scientist position to provide statewide leadership and technical expertise to increase the generation and use of evidence for program and policy decision-making. The Chief Scientist builds capacity within the state to evaluate programs, improve performance, and achieve strategic goals using rigorous scientific methods. The state is a nationwide leader in internal audit requiring, by statute, all state agencies to have an internal audit function, including duties to “review the effectiveness and efficiency of agency and program operations and service delivery.” There is also a Central Internal Audit Office housed within the Office of State Budget and Management, as well as an independent Council of Internal Audit.

​Housed within OSBM, the Office of Strategic Partnerships includes an Evidence Advisor who works with OSBM’s Budget Development section to assist agencies with developing strategic plans, research agendas, conducting evidence reviews of state policies and programs, and executing evaluations.

​​The state’s Chief Data Officer (CDO) oversees the North Carolina Government Data Analytics Center (GDAC), the centralized data office for the state. GDAC facilitates enterprise data management, supports data sharing between agencies, and provides analytic capabilities to leverage the state’s data assets and provide information for state leaders to make evidence-based decisions.

​NCLDS’ data policies, data sharing processes, and strategic direction are overseen by a cross-agency governance board.

​The NC Geographic Information Coordinating Council establishes standards, best practices, and policies for coordinating and advising the use of geospatial data statewide.

​The State Data Center is a consortium of agencies cooperating to provide the public with access to census, demographic, and other state data at a variety of geographic levels. The public Log Into North Carolina (LINC) data platform aggregates the most sought-after data from contributing agencies.

The North Carolina FY 2021-23 budget appropriated $1 million in nonrecurring grant funds to OSBM for state agency research and evaluation needs (6% of OSBM’s budget). OSBM launched the North Carolina Evaluation Fund to support government-researcher partnerships that inform program and policy decisions. OSBM awarded grants to eight high-impact research projects in 2022 on topics including teacher and student outcomes, workforce development, juvenile recidivism, behavioral health and social service programs, and domestic violence. Project pre-analysis plans and final materials to date are available on the State of North Carolina Registry.

In 2022, The NC Department of Information Technology adopted the Fair Information Practice Principles to guide transparent data collection and use, and privacy protection policies.

The North Carolina Longitudinal Data Service (NCLDS) works to connect data from early childhood, K12 education, postsecondary, and employment to help evaluate the longer-term impacts and longer-term successes of various state programs.

Once fully implemented (FY 24-25) NCLDS will provide data contributors, practitioners, and trusted research partners with secure access to this cross-sector, longitudinal, and linked record-level data to help NC answer its most pressing questions.

Agencies that contribute data to the NCLDS will adopt a standardized data use agreement. NCLDS also developed a coordinated data request and review process for secure and timely data sharing. More broadly, the Government Data Analytics Center (GDAC), within the Department of Information Technology, works to transform data into information that facilitates decision support, increases operational efficiencies, and improves outcomes for North Carolina residents by integrating and sharing data assets

North Carolina identified four grant programs or contracts that define evidence of effectiveness for programs and interventions and require or reward evidence-based models in the award of funds. The grant programs are the NC Recovery Housing Program, the Substance Abuse and Prevention & Treatment Block Grant, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Nutrition Education, and Core Programming for Confinement in Response to Violation (CVR) Centers and Correctional Facilities.

EO No. 268 Reestablished the Andrea Harris Social, Economic, Environmental, and Health Equity Task Force. The mission of the Task Force is to identify best practices and advise state government on actions that will further the economic development of disadvantaged communities, improve health and wellness outcomes in underserved communities, and advance equitable practices within state agencies that are inclusive of the lived experience of all North Carolinians.

​​North Carolina’s FY23-25 budget instructions require agencies to justify requests for new and expanded programs and services. In their justifications, agencies indicate the level of existing evidence supporting the expected outcomes of the proposal, using OSBM’s evidence scale, and outline their plans for evaluating its implementation and effectiveness.

​OSBM’s evidence scale provides a common language for communicating the effectiveness of a program or policy and the degree of confidence in those conclusions.

​OSBM provides training to agency staff to develop strong proposals supported by evidence, and offers assistance for evaluation planning.

​The budget instructions also emphasize proposals that align with the Governor’s strategic priorities, including advancing equal opportunities and diversity. 

​​In 2022, the Office of State Budget and Management (OSBM) created a Chief Scientist position to provide statewide leadership and technical expertise to increase the generation and use of evidence for program and policy decision-making. The Chief Scientist builds capacity within the state to evaluate programs, improve performance, and achieve strategic goals using rigorous scientific methods.

​The Governor’s Performance Management Advisory Committee (PMAC) is composed of 13 department heads, senior officials, legislators, and performance experts who advise the Governor on performance management initiatives and strategies for increasing evidence-based policymaking efforts.

​The Office of State Budget and Management (OSBM) will be hosting its fifth annual Performance Management Academy training series for state agency staff in 2024. To date, more than 130 state employees from 20 agencies, boards, and universities have graduated from the Academy.

​OSBM also coordinates a Performance Management Community of Practice, an opportunity for cross-agency practitioners to gather informally, share innovations, and learn from one another on an ongoing basis. ​The Department of Information Technology (DIT) is home to a Process Improvement Team which collaborates with state agencies to use evidence in strategic planning processes. DIT provides monthly training resources for state agencies to learn the Lean Six Sigma process improvement methodology and hosts a Process Improvement Community of Practice.

​The North Carolina Office of State Budget and Management (OSBM) requires that state agencies complete a two-year strategic plan each fiscal biennium. OSBM provides strategic planning guidance and facilitation services to support this process. In FY 2023-25, the guidance directs agencies to incorporate a focus on inclusive and equitable outcomes in their goals and objectives.

​​To expand economic opportunity and a diverse business community, Governor Roy Cooper issued Executive Order 25 in 2017 directing state agencies to increase procurement from Historically Underutilized Businesses (HUBs). E.O. 25 set a goal that HUBs account for 10% of agency spending on goods and services contracts.​

​The Office of Public Engagement and Inclusion (OPEI) is an open door for all North Carolinians to the Cooper Administration. OPEI’s mission is to advocate the Governor’s vision for creating a better educated, healthier and wealthier North Carolina while simultaneously exchanging information and ideas from diverse perspectives across the State.​

While the state does not have an overall strategic plan, the North Carolina Office of State Budget and Management (OSBM) requires that state agencies complete a two-year strategic plan each fiscal biennium. It is a bottom-up approach that fits well with North Carolina’s state government culture. The agencies’ strategic plans include agency or department-wide goals, objectives, and strategies; performance and outcome measures and milestones; existing best practices; and areas for collaboration. The strategic plans conform with the statutory requirement to collect performance information as part of the Governor’s Recommended Budget. OSBM provides strategic planning guidance and facilitation services to support this process. In FY 2023-25, the guidance directs agencies to incorporate diversity, equity, and inclusion concepts into their goals and objectives.