Senate Summary | Week of February 19-21, 2008
Filed Under Bryant, Caucus, McConnell, Ritchie, Thomas, Top News, Vaughn | 1 Comment
Quote of the Week: “It’s all about accountability. We want the citizens of this state to know how their money is being spent. The more access taxpayers have to information the more likely they are to hold government accountable for the spending of those dollars.” Senator Kevin Bryant (R- Anderson), a co-sponsor of the Truth in Spending Bill (S.1144) introduced this week and vocal advocate of financial disclosure.
Vaughn to Retire at End of Term
After 18 years of service in the General Assembly, Senator Lewis Vaughn (R-Greenville) has decided not to seek re-election in November. “In September I had the best physical of my life, but since then a series of health related issues have arisen, and I don’t think it is fair to my family, my constituents or my colleagues to seek re-election in the fall,” says Senator Vaughn.
“The people of District 5 need and deserve active representation, and that is part of what brings me to this decision,” explains Vaughn.
“I have thoroughly enjoyed serving the people of the Greer and Greenville community, and although I will not be seeking re-election, it is my intent to stay engaged in the issues facing the Upstate.”
Senator Vaughn was elected to the Senate in a 2006 special election to fill the seat left vacant by the retirement of J. Verne Smith. He serves as a member of the Corrections & Penology Committee, Fish, Game, and Forestry Committee, General Committee, Judiciary Committee, and the Rules Committee.
Drug Testing for Candidates Moves to Full Judiciary Committee
A constitutional amendment (S.1070) requiring all future candidates for any elected office in South Carolina to pass a drug test began making its way through the legislative process this week by gaining approval from a Senate Judiciary Subcommittee. The subcommittee chaired by Senator Jim Ritchie (R-13), Majority Whip, gave the bill a favorable report as amended.
The subcommittee amendment added judges to the list of officials that would be required to submit the results of a recently completed drug test along with candidate filing papers. The bill will now go before the full Senate Judiciary Committee, which is expected to meet again on Tuesday, February 26, 2008.
DUI Reform - Stronger Penalties for Repeat Offenders On Wednesday, February 20, the Senate debated DUI Reform (H.3496). The debate was highlighted with spirited exchanges on proposed amendments.
The Senate did pass the bill and returned it to the House with several key enhancements to current law including: the creation of a two-tiered system for first-time offenders; stronger penalties for increased blood alcohol levels; enhanced penalties for repeat offenders; and the elimination of unnecessary law enforcement procedures.
“I am proud of the work that the Senate did in quickly passing DUI reform,” says Senate President Pro Tempore, Glenn McConnell (R-Charleston). “While the House wanted to convict all South Carolinians without being able to defend themselves, the Senate made it easier to convict those who are guilty while ensuring that the innocent were protected. We showed that you can be tough on drunk driving without being tough on people’s rights.”
On Thursday, February 21, the bill was given third reading and sent over to the House.
Fire Sprinkler Bill Remains Hot as it Moves to Full Committee The Labor, Commerce and Industry Regulation Subcommittee working on the fire sprinkler legislation gave a favorable report to S.860 as amended during a meeting on Thursday, February 21.
The amendments to the bill included: preventing public or private utilities from charging exorbitant “tap-on” fees for sprinkler systems, and provides for an 80% cost of installation tax-credit for the installation of sprinkler systems in private residences not required by law.
The bill now heads to the full Senate Labor, Commerce and Industry Regulations Committee.
Illegal Immigration Reform Moves to Conference Committee Last week the Senate completed final debate on the Illegal Immigration Reform Act (S.392) creating the strongest illegal immigration reform bill to be proposed in the General Assembly. The debate centered on the House amendments and the requirement of private businesses to verify legal status of new employees. After working out the details of these new provisions, the Senate sent the bill back to the House.
The House voted on Thursday, February 21, to “nonconcur” with the Senate’s latest amendments, which sends the bill to a conference committee. The committee will be comprised of three Senators and three members of the House. Conference committee meetings could begin as early as next week.
Payday Lending Regulated
On Tuesday, February 19, the Senate took up the “deferred presentment” bill (S.398), better known as the Payday Lending Bill.
The three-hour debate was filled with a volley of political maneuvers, one of which included an amendment that failed 18-23, to completely ban payday lending.
Ultimately, the Senate passed a bill with several major provisions including: the creation of a state-wide database; a seven-day cooling-off period between loans; limiting borrowers to only one loan at a time; maximum loan amounts based on income; and a standard calculation formula established by the Board of Financial institutions.
The bill now moves to the House of Representatives.
SC HealthNet Introduced
On Tuesday, February 19, Senator David Thomas (R-Greenville), Chairman of the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee introduced a bill (S.1129) that would create the South Carolina HealthNet, a pilot project initiative by the Department of Insurance. The project would provide basic health coverage to between 150 - 200 thousand of South Carolina’s working uninsured. Premiums for this basic coverage plan are expected to be in the range of $165 for single coverage to $450 for family coverage. The plan would also contain annual coverage caps of $150,000 per person.
Proponents of SC HealthNet hope to secure grants, establish public-private partnerships, and collect premiums to help fund the effort, eliminating the need for taxpayer funding.
“The mission of SC HealthNet is to introduce a state program distributed through private carriers, which will make basic health insurance truly affordable,” says Scott Richardson, Director of the South Carolina Department of Insurance.
The bill was referred to the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee.
Spending Caps Study Committee Continues Work The Senate Spending Caps Study Committee met on Wednesday, February 20, and heard additional testimony from Dr. William Gillespie, the state’s Chief Economist, as well as updates from Senate legal counsel on the continued efforts to draft appropriate language for the constitutional amendment on spending caps and the statutory language outlining implementation of a spending cap.
The next meeting of the subcommittee is expected to take place in the next two weeks.
Truth In Spending Bill Introduced
Under the “Truth in Spending Act” (S.1144) introduced on Thursday, February 21, taxpayers will no longer need to wonder where their tax dollars are being spent. They will be able to go online and see for themselves. The bill requires all state and local government entities, including school districts, to post monthly expenditures over $100 on their website.
Under the provisions of the bill, online listings of expenditures must be updated monthly and must include: the transaction amount, name of payee, and purpose of expenditure. In addition to cash expenditures, monthly credit card statements must also be posted online. The bill does make some exception for law enforcement expenditures that could jeopardize the operations of a department.
State or local governments that do not maintain a website will be required to send information to the State Budget and Control Board who will post the information on a designated section of the Board’s website.
The bill was referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee.
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Knotts named to judicial screening commission
Filed Under Caucus, Cleary, Knotts, McConnell, Top News | Leave a Comment
Sen. Jake Knotts, R-Lexington, has been appointed to replace Sen. Ray Cleary, R-Georgetown, on the S.C. Judicial Merit Selection Commission, according to a commission release.
“I have been involved in some aspects of the judicial system in this state my entire career,” Knotts said. “I look forward to assisting in this process and ensuring that the integrity of the judicial selection process is protected.” Read more
Legislation could provide help for South Carolina start-ups
Filed Under Bryant, Caucus, Top News | Leave a Comment
State Sen. Kevin Bryant, R-Anderson, said he hopes that a bill he’s supporting will give investors one more reason to put their money behind South Carolina start-ups.
Senate bill 287, the South Carolina Entrepreneurial Success Fund Act, would provide tax breaks to those who invest in funds that offer seed money to start-up businesses. The bill received a favorable report last week in the subcommittee of which Sen. Bryant is chairman and is gaining support among business leaders.
To be eligible, investors would need to create a seed fund of $10 million. The fund must be managed by a South Carolina taxpayer, and 70 percent would need to be invested in local companies that are three years old or younger. Read more
Council approves sites for new Olanta, Timmonsville libraries
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The Olanta and Timmonsville libraries have new places they can soon call home.
Florence County Council voted Thursday to survey, appraise and accept documents for land that will serve as the sites for the towns’ new branch libraries.
The future Timmonsville library property, donated by Kaye Floyd and her family, is on U.S. 76, a highway with improvements on the horizon.
“If we widen 76, all the gates will be open for the town to grow,” said councilman Mitchell Kirby, whose district includes Timmonsville. Read more
