Category: Legislation

H.3220 creates the Education and Economic Development Coordinating Council. It would be comprised of various agency heads and education representatives. The council’s role would be to advise the Department of Education,…

H.3217 would require any firearm dealer or owner to immediately report the loss or theft of a firearm to a law enforcement agency. How this law would be enforced is unclear.…

Currently, when property is seized through civil asset forfeiture, law enforcement is permitted to keep the property indefinitely. H.3210 would provide that property seized through asset forfeiture must be returned after…

H.3207 would reduce the size of the Judicial Merit Selection Commission (JMSC) from ten to eight members. It changes the appointment of members, allowing the Governor, who currently does not have…

H.3205 would allow judges, magistrates, solicitors, clerks of court, and workers’ compensation commissioners to carry concealed anywhere in the state, whether they are active in their positions or retired. Current law…

H.3204 would require the Judicial Merit Selection Commission (JMSC) to provide a list of all qualified candidates for judgeships to be submitted to the General Assembly for election. This would change…

H.3111 would impose a fourteen cent per gallon gas tax hike, the proceeds of which would be used to improve road conditions and supporting infrastructure. The legislation includes a provision…

H.3181 would require private firearm sales, with the exception of sales or transfers between licensed manufacturers, dealers, or between immediate family members, to undergo a national background check. Confirmation of the…

H.3180 requires that before any sale, exchange, or transfer of a firearm, a national instant background check must be performed. The process cannot continue until the results come back in. As…

H.3179 would remove the roll-call requirement for certain legislative votes. Legislators would be able to vote on “a certain number” of budget sections, as authorized by the chambers’ rules committees. This…

H.3178 would remove the roll-call requirement for certain legislative votes. Legislators would be able to vote on up to ten budget sections. However, members would be able to record their individual…

H.3174 would allow judges, magistrates, solicitors, clerks of court, and workers’ compensation commissioners to carry concealed anywhere in the state, whether they are active in their positions or retired. Current law…

H.3146 is a constitutional amendment that would change the Superintendent of Education from an elected position to a cabinet position with advice and consent of the Senate. In order for this to…

H.3140 requires all high schoolers seventeen and older register to vote. Schools are also prompted to offer information about and the importance of voting in their social studies classes. Voting is…

H.3137 loosens the regulations placed upon micro distilleries and manufacturers. With this bill, micro distilleries or manufacturers do not have to limit their sample size to half an ounce and can…

H.3090 is a joint resolution calling for a referendum of voters in the election of 2018 to raise members’ salaries from $10,400 to $42,830. Legislators each receive mileage compensation, free office…

H.3088 is a joint resolution to conduct an advisory referendum in the 2018 election to gauge voters’ support for a gas tax increase. The question would ask if voters would be…

H.3066 would create a College and University Board of Regents, which is meant to make the governance of higher education more effective and uniform. The Board would consist of seventeen members…

At first glance, H.3018 appears to protect non-elected state employees from privacy infringement. However, upon closer examination, it is yet one more way for the government to be less transparent. Non-elected…

H.3006 would require movie theaters to install metal detectors and for sporting arenas and concert venues to either install metal detectors or use a wand to inspect attendants. This is an…

H.3053 would prohibit higher education tuition rate hikes during the four years following a student’s initial enrollment, or for eight semesters. If the student has not completed the degree by…

H.3003 would prevent computers from being sold or distributed in South Carolina without an active filter for obscene content. The filter could be deactivated by the consumer after payment of…

WILL THE NEW LAW CUT SOUTH CAROLINA’S HALF-YEAR SESSION, OR IS IT ANOTHER FAUX REFORM? Gov. Nikki Haley recently signed a bill shortening South Carolina’s legislative session. Media reports indicate…

THE GOVERNOR HAS SIGNED IT, BUT VERY LITTLE HAS CHANGED In 2012, the Policy Council began calling for the abolition of the legislature’s power to police its own members’ ethics…

ANY OR ALL OF THESE BILLS COULD BECOME LAW SOON – AND AFFECT YOU DIRECTLY In the final hours of the 2016 legislative session, lawmakers passed a dizzying array of…

IT MIGHT BE THE MOST CONVOLUTED REFORM BILL WE’VE SEEN YET. [Update: On Wednesday, June 8, Gov. Haley signed the bill analyzed below, calling it “incomplete reform” and “far less…

HOUSE LEGISLATION WOULD MAKE IT A FELONY TO GIVE ‘INCOMPLETE’ TESTIMONY On Wednesday, outgoing Rep. Walt McLeod filed a bill allowing any legislative committee to require any committee testimony they hear…

HOUSE, SENATE SQUABBLE OVER SEMANTICS, AGREE ON KEEPING LOOPHOLES House leadership has developed a compromise with Senate language in an amendment to H.3184, legislation supposedly intended to abolish lawmakers’ power…

A RELATIVELY UNIMPORTANT BILL ON A HIGHLY IMPORTANT TOPIC [Update: This bill was passed by the General assembly and signed by the governor.] Last week, the Senate put H.3799 on the…

ON INCOME DISCLOSURE AND LEGISLATIVE SELF-POLICING, LAWMAKERS WANT CREDIT FOR REFORM WITHOUT CHANGING THE SYSTEM At the moment, the two hottest issues in the State House going under the banner…