NC lawmaker would force Trump to release his taxes, says idea has popular support

Breaking with 40 years of precedent, President Donald Trump has continued to refuse to release his tax returns.

Trump has said voters don’t care about his taxes – which PolitiFact ruled False. It wasn’t true before the election and it isn’t true now.

But have even voters in states that Trump won been clamoring to see his tax returns?

That’s the case in North Carolina, according to PolitiFact NC.

State Sen. Jay Chaudhuri, a Democrat from Raleigh, introduced a bill in the N.C. General Assembly that would force anyone running for president who wants to be on the ballot in North Carolina to release his or her tax returns. It’s called the “Tax Returns Uniformly Made Public Act,” or the T.R.U.M.P. Act.

It’s one of at least 25 similar bills to have been filed in states around the country, after a failed attempt in Congress.

And while there is some debate as to whether such a bill would be constitutional, Chaudhuri said it’s certainly popular – even in a state like this one, which went for Trump over Hillary Clinton by a margin of 50-46.

“This bill has a lot of support – by a majority of North Carolinians and members of both parties,” Chaudhuri said.

PolitiFact NC looked into that and found out he has a point – but with one important caveat. It ruled Chaudhuri’s claim Mostly True.

For more details on what kind of support the T.R.U.M.P. Act enjoys in North Carolina, and why to view Chaudhuri’s claim somewhat cautiously, read the full fact check here.

This story was originally published April 21, 2017 at 5:08 PM with the headline "NC lawmaker would force Trump to release his taxes, says idea has popular support."