Statehouse Update Mar 28-30

It’s an extremely busy week at the Statehouse as we are less than two weeks away from the crossover deadline (April 10). A bill that does not pass at least one chamber of the Legislature by this date generally will not become law in the current year. Accordingly, several significant bills (some good, some not-so-good) dealing with education, legal reform, taxes and more are on this week’s calendar. 

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Legal reform 

• S.533 – This bill would require juries or judges to consider nonparties in addition to defendants when determining fault in civil cases. This change would ostensibly reduce the number of businesses forced to pay disproportionate damage awards, which is a major problem with South Carolina’s modified “joint-and-several liability” system. We strongly support this proposal (read our analysis of the bill here). A Senate Judiciary subcommittee considers the bill Wednesday at 11 AM.

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Education

• H.3843 – This bill would require each local school board to adopt an open enrollment policy within certain guidelines, which generally would allow students to attend schools other than those they are normally designated for. Expanding school choice through open enrollment is a key priority on our legislative agenda. The bill is on the House floor and could be voted on this week. 
• H.4060 – This broad education bill is primarily designed to encourage students to attend college and be ready to enter the workforce. It states that dual enrollment opportunities must be made available to all qualifying students, and requires (with some flexibility) high school seniors to apply for college financial aid before graduating. Additionally, it would make information on the “economic value” of college majors available online to the public, as determined by the Department of Employment and Workforce. The bill is on the House floor and could be voted on this week.
• H.3728 – This bill prohibits several concepts generally associated with critical race theory (CRT) from being taught in K-12 public schools. Among the prohibited concepts is the teaching that one ethnic/racial group is morally superior or inferior to another. A Senate Education subcommittee will take up the bill on Wednesday at 9:30 AM.  

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Taxation

• Tax incentive bills – A House Ways and Means subcommittee on Tuesday is considering five tax incentive bills that include things like film incentives, rail incentives and additional corporate tax breaks. As a matter of policy, South Carolina would be better off simplifying and reducing the tax burden on as many citizens and businesses as possible, instead of further complicating the tax code and giving breaks to select groups. 
• S.208 – This bill would allow counties to impose additional driver’s license and motor vehicle licensing and registration fees on new residents (subject to a local referendum). We oppose this proposal and believe the state should not enact policies that will penalize future residents and deter economic growth. The bill is on the Senate floor, though it is currently contested. 
• S.284 – This bill would allow local accommodations and hospitality tax revenue to be spent on the development of “workforce housing”. Such revenue is currently restricted to things more closely associated with tourism, such as improving beach access or paying for tourism-related advertisements. Expanding how these funds can be spent will likely increase demand for tax revenue and could inspire tax-hike proposals. The bill is on the Senate floor and could be voted on this week. 
• S.298 – In the event a business or the S.C. Department of Revenue believes the business’s income is not properly represented for tax purposes, the bill sets forth a process to more accurately determine such income, and gives the department significant investigatory power to accomplish this. The bill is on the Senate floor and could be voted on this week. 

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Regulation

• S.165 & H.3605 – These bills would remove barriers to obtaining a work license by preventing licensing boards from using vague terminology for evaluation purposes, and from considering charges against a person that have been dismissed, along with other positive changes. Both bills are currently on the Senate floor.
• S.260 – This bill would require anyone who serves alcohol to take a minimum four-hour class with a test and receive a certificate. It would also create a new state alcohol server training fund. While more education and training may be necessary for some, creating a new regulatory regime for all alcohol servers is not the correct approach to this issue. The bill is on the Senate floor and could be voted on this week. 
• S.566 – This bill would allow a brewery to sell up to 2,000 barrels of beer each year at retail, wholesale, or both, and deliver or ship the beer to licensed retailers in the state. Beer in amounts over 2,000 barrels would generally be subject to distribution and wholesale provisions in the law. The Senate Judiciary Committee takes up the bill Tuesday at 3:00 PM.

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Curbing the use of environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors

• S.111 – This bill would prevent banks and financial institutions from discriminating against customers based on subjective or arbitrary standards, which would include political affiliation, club memberships or other ESG-related criteria. However, they would be permitted to offer services based on subjective standards if those factors are disclosed to customers in advance. 
• S.559 – This bill would prevent banks and credit unions using social credit scores when deciding whether to offer loans. Banned social credit factors would include a person’s political views, religious beliefs, whether they own a firearm, and more. 

These bills were originally scheduled for a Senate Banking and Insurance subcommittee hearing on Wednesday at 11 AM, though that meeting has been canceled. We will continue to monitor the calendar in the event the meeting is rescheduled. 

Learn more about these bills and what South Carolina can do to protect taxpayers from ESG in our recent report. 

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Government structure

• S.95 – This resolution would amend the S.C. Constitution so that the state comptroller general is appointed by the governor with Senate confirmation rather than being elected by voters. The proposed change comes after it was revealed the comptroller’s office is responsible for a $3.5 billion accounting error spanning at least a decade. The Senate Judiciary Committee takes up the bill Tuesday at 3:00 PM.

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Previous Weeks

• Mar 21-23
• Mar 14-16
• Mar 7-9
• Feb 28- Mar 2
• Feb 21-23
• Feb 14-16
• Feb 7-9
• Jan 31-Feb 2
• Jan 24-26
• Jan 17-19
• Jan 10-12