Year: 2018

The budget process spelled out in state law is a thorough, deliberate process, designed to inform citizens at every stage and to maximize their input into the spending of taxpayer…

The new data warehouse – created by last year’s law and this year’s budget proviso – poses serious threats to the privacy of South Carolinians, especially if lawmakers override the…

UPDATE 10/5/18: The Senate’s version of the tax conformity bill passed both houses this week and was signed by the Governor.   Lawmakers left one major question unanswered when they…

Each year, the state spends millions on duplicative administrative positions that could be used in the classroom. Instead of overhauling South Carolina’s antiquated school district model, lawmakers have historically taken…

Download the PDF version here » Lawmakers created a statewide data tracking system via proviso in this year’s budget. The Governor vetoed it, but lawmakers could override the veto when they…

On July 5, the Governor vetoed 42 items and roughly $40 million from the state budget passed by lawmakers in the June special session. Most significantly, the governor vetoed the…

UPDATE: The conference budget passed the House (84-28) and the Senate (30-9) on Thursday, June 28. The budget goes to the Governor’s desk next for line-item vetoes.  HERE’S WHAT IS…

The South Carolina budget process has been eventful this year:  Overall spending has continued to climb; lawmakers have once again refused to follow the transparent budget process mandated by law;…

• Data warehouse would track adults and children alike for “workforce development purposes” • Lawmakers and staff would have direct access to individual data • State government could gather data…

Last June, SCPC revealed in an analysis that revenue from the proposed gas tax hike (now law) was written with the intent to divert the new revenue from the fund…

The energy crisis in South Carolina – triggered by SCE&G’s abandonment of the V.C. Summer nuclear construction project – has been in limbo for nearly a year. Despite months of…

A few weeks ago, the House passed their first version of the state appropriations bill. After it was amended by the Senate, the budget returned to the House for another…

By the time the legislative session ended last Thursday, a number of significant bills had either passed or failed. However, due to the sine die resolution which scheduled two special sessions…

UPDATE: Lawmakers have cancelled the May special session and postponed all business (including consideration of the budget) until the June session (27-28).    In theory, the 2018 legislative session ended last…

A bill – S.954 – targeting current and future utility rates has passed both the House and the Senate as slightly different versions, and is now in conference committee. Here…

Lawmakers often wait until the closing weeks of session to drop their most controversial bills. This year was no exception, with H.5218 and H.5219 aiming to censor gun violence in…

Earlier this month the Senate amended and passed the House budget, and the House is currently debating further amendments prior to sending the bill to conference committee. While the Senate…

Yesterday, a brand-new piece of legislation was filed, bypassed the committee process, and was scheduled for second reading on Friday – all in the span of two minutes. This is…

At this point in the legislative session, one can predict with a certain degree of accuracy which bills will not become law this year. This is due to a legislative…

UPDATE: The House passed this bill by a vote of 107 – 0 on 4/24/18 with one minor amendment. Upon the governor’s signature, this bill will become law.  If the goal…

Additional update: House lawmakers killed H.4421 on its third reading vote (normally a procedural vote, as amendments and debate occur on second reading) by raising the point that the state…

This joint resolution would allow the executive director of the Office of Regulatory Staff (ORS) to file for a circuit court order requiring V.C. Summer documents and/or witnesses to be…

This bill would shorten the legislative session by around four weeks. Instead of ending on the second Thursday in May, it would end on the second Thursday in April. All…

S.854 allows members of the South Carolina Retirement System (SCRS), the Police Officers Retirement System (PORS), and the General Assembly Retirement System (GARS) that become disabled due to a job…

  Over the last several weeks, South Carolina’s pension system has drawn even more attention from lawmakers, prompting them to propose bills that would significantly change the state’s retirement landscape.…

Just in case it wasn’t abundantly clear, South Carolina lawmakers want to make sure citizens know that it is not illegal to pick up sea shells by the seashore –…

UPDATE: When the Senate’s version of the budget returned to the House, the latter readopted the original House budget with additional amendments. The total budget spending approved by the House is…

It’s no secret that South Carolina’s education system is regarded as one of the worst in the country. In many cases, lawmakers have turned to increased spending and growing government…

This week, a number of freshman lawmakers filed legislation to call a convention to amend the South Carolina constitution. Much like the United States Constitution, the South Carolina Constitution can…

This past week, the legislature showed an unusually keen interest in how South Carolinians choose to wear their clothes. H.4957 would make it a civil offense for a person to…