grooms Archives - SC Senate Republican Caucus

BREAKING: South Carolina Supreme Court Upholds Heartbeat Bill

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 23, 2023

COLUMBIA, S.C. – Today, the South Carolina Supreme Court determined Act 70 of 2023, the Heartbeat bill, to be constitutional. The Court vacated the preliminary injunction and upheld the act with a decisive majority of justices.

South Carolina Supreme Court Upholds Heartbeat Bill

Fifty years of patience and devotion from the pro-life movement culminated in the fall of Roe last summer. The Dobbs decision meant relief for many across the nation and a renewed vigor to take up the fight for life at the state level.

South Carolina’s Dobbs moment is upon us now.

Today, the State Supreme Court made clear that South Carolina may enact a law to protect unborn children from abortion once a heartbeat is detectable.

The steadfast work of Senate Republicans on behalf of the most vulnerable has resulted in the birth of a new South Carolina; one that is no longer an abortion destination but a refuge for the unborn.

Our fight is not over. Today, we celebrate, and tomorrow, we continue striving to make South Carolina a free, safe, and beautiful home for all her citizens.

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PRESS RELEASE: South Carolina Senate Republicans Stand Up for Life

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 23, 2023

SOUTH CAROLINA SENATE REPUBLICANS STAND UP FOR LIFE

COLUMBIA, S.C. — Today, the Senate voted to concur in House amendments to S. 474, a bill to prohibit the performance of abortions once the heartbeat of an unborn child is detectable, approximately six weeks into a pregnancy. This life-saving legislation includes exceptions in cases of rape, incest, medical emergency, or fatal fetal anomaly.

Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey issued the following statement:

“A heartbeat clearly indicates life. Today, Senate Republicans kept their promises and stood up for life in South Carolina. All children with a beating heart will soon be protected in this State. South Carolina will not be the abortion capital of the Southeast.”

Senator Larry Grooms, who authored the bill, added:

“There is no greater right than the right to life. Government’s primary purpose is to protect life. Every abortion takes a life. I am delighted that South Carolina will now join fourteen other states in protecting life once a heartbeat is detected.”

This bill is headed to the Governor for his signature.

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PRESS RELEASE: Senate Republicans Keep Political Activism Out of the Classroom

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 10, 2023

SENATE REPUBLICANS KEEP POLITICAL ACTIVISM OUT OF THE CLASSROOM

COLUMBIA, S.C. — Today, Senate Republicans passed H. 3728, the Transparency and Integrity in Education Act. The bill protects students from political indoctrination by identifying certain concepts which must not be included in classroom instruction. According to the bill, no student may be taught that one race is inherently superior to another race or that members of one race bear responsibility for the actions committed in the past by members of the same race.

Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey celebrated the bill’s passage: “The citizens of South Carolina do not want political activism in the classroom. H. 3728 keeps the subjective opinions of those who want to rewrite American History from creeping into South Carolina’s schools.”

The bill encourages fact-based discussions of history. “I want students to learn about Jim Crow,” Senator Massey added. “I want them to learn about slavery. I want them to learn about the holocaust. I don’t want them to be blamed for those things.”

Republicans are committed to fighting for truth and transparency in education. This legislation requires that all instructional materials be made known to parents and available for review. “This is the year of parental rights, and today the Senate took a giant step toward eliminating classroom secrecy,” said Senator Larry Grooms, a member of the Senate Education Committee. “Parents have a right to know what is being taught in their child’s classroom, and today Republicans enshrined that right into law.”

H. 3728 returns to the House for concurrence and then to the Governor’s desk.

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PRESS RELEASE: South Carolina Senate Doubles Down on Education

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 16, 2023

SOUTH CAROLINA SENATE SENATE DOUBLES DOWN ON EDUCATION

COLUMBIA, S.C. — Today, Senate Republicans passed S. 285, the Academic Choice in Education (ACE) act. The bill permits nonprofit scholarship funding organizations to issue scholarships for qualifying students to cover the educational expenses associated with attending a private school or home school program. Taxpayers may claim contributions to funding organizations against their tax liability.

Senate Republicans today kept their promises to students and taxpayers by passing another major school-choice initiative. The Academic Choice in Education act will fund school choice for thousands of South Carolina students at no cost to the State while reducing burdens on taxpayers.

Senator Tom Davis, who authored the bill stated: “When providers have to compete and consumers are given a choice, the result is a better service at a lower cost. The State’s education system lacks the benefit of this market principle, and today the Senate fixed that.”

Students in public schools, including disadvantaged and exceptional needs children, as well as children in home school programs, are eligible to receive scholarship funding. “South Carolina’s children deserve a robust educational system with options: public, private, parochial, and home schools,” said Senator Sean Bennett, chairman of the subcommittee who heard public testimony on the bill. “Today, the Senate added to State’s toolbox another choice for students and families.”

Majority Leader Shane Massey made clear at the start of the legislative session that education reform is the number one priority for the Senate Republican Caucus. The passage of the ACE act comes on the heels of S. 39, adopted in February, which creates trust funds for low-income families to cover costs associated with sending students to the school of their choice.

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PRESS RELEASE: South Carolina Senate Passes Heartbeat Bill

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 9, 2023

SOUTH CAROLINA SENATE MAJORITY LEADER SHANE MASSEY RELEASES STATEMENT ON THE PASSAGE OF HEARTBEAT BILL

COLUMBIA, S.C. — Today, the State Senate passed S. 474, a bill to prohibit the performance of abortions at the point the heartbeat of an unborn child is detectable, approximately six weeks into a pregnancy. This important legislation includes exceptions in cases of rape, incest, medical emergency, or fatal fetal anomaly.

Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey issued the following statement:

“Just last month, the Supreme Court of South Carolina issued a decision to strike down the strongest pro-life bill ever passed by the General Assembly, the Fetal Heartbeat and Protection from Abortion Act of 2021.

As a consequence, abortion is now legal in South Carolina through five months of pregnancy. While neighboring states have responded to the Dobbs decision with strong pro-life laws, South Carolina is becoming an abortion destination. In January, over one thousand abortions were performed inside the State, putting South Carolina on a trajectory to more than double its annual abortion numbers.

Fortunately, the State Senate adopted S. 474 today. This bill prohibits abortions at the point an unborn child’s heartbeat is detectable. Senate Republicans took time to read the opinions offered by the justices, and this bill incorporates our responses to the concerns they raised. I am confident that we have constructed this bill in such a manner that protects the unborn and withstands constitutional scrutiny.

I pray the South Carolina House of Representatives passes this bill quickly to help save thousands of lives in our State.”

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