The South Carolina House spent little time on the floor this week, giving the Ways and Means Committee time to debate the budget before sending it to the floor for full House debate the week of March 14, 2022. The Senate spent most of their floor time debating the “SC Hands-Free Act”, which would ban drivers from holding their phones while on the road. The bill was set for Special Order on Tuesday and given second reading by a 37-3 vote Wednesday afternoon.
House Ways and Means Committee Debates State Budget
The House Ways and Means Committee debated the budget in Committee this week, putting the final touches on its version of state’s 2022 - 2023 spending plan. Highlights of the committee’s $14 billion budget proposal include: a restructuring of the state’s education funding formula to make it more simple and transparent for the state and districts; a 5 percent raise for bus drivers; $55 million in recurring funds for tuition mitigation at the state’s higher education institutions; $60 million for needs-based grants; funding for a new public health lab for the Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC); $350 million in additional funding for the South Carolina Ports Authority; a 17 percent starting salary increase for law enforcement officers; and a 3 percent pay raise and $1,500 bonus for state employees. The proposed plan also includes $20 million for a new youth mental health facility within the Department of Juvenile Justice; an additional $1 billion in funding for roads and bridges in the state; and a $4,000 pay raise for all teachers, which raises the minimum starting salary for teachers to $40,000 per year and puts the average starting salary above North Carolina and Georgia. The spending plan now heads to the full House for consideration the week of March 14, 2022. Senate Finance Budget Committee will hear requests from agencies next week; however, the committee has not yet released its schedule for full committee and floor debate.
Prior to finalizing budget debate in committee this week, the full House gave its seal of approval to income tax cut legislation by a bipartisan 110-0 vote. The proposed cut was included in the Ways and Means Committee budget plan and would cost the state about $1 billion each year once fully implemented. The bill now heads to the Senate for consideration and varies from the income tax plan released by Senate Finance Chairman Harvey Peeler (R-Gaffney) last week. Both bodies have pledged to pass some sort of income tax relief for South Carolina families this session.
Vaccine Mandate Legislation Heads to Senate Floor
By a vote of 14-9, the Senate Finance Committee reported to the full Senate vaccine mandate prohibition legislation on Tuesday, sending the controversial bill, which would penalize private employers for enforcing a vaccine mandate, to the floor for debate. Several Republican members of the committee expressed concern over the legislation, arguing that the legislature should not be telling a private employer what it can and cannot do in an at-will employment state. Chairman Peeler encouraged members to work on amendments for the floor but was ready to move the bill forward and put businesses on notice of the potential $7,500 per employee penalty they could pay for four years should they fire an employee for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine. Later Tuesday, Gov. Henry McMaster expressed concern over interfering with the private workings of businesses after the bill passed out of committee, leaving uncertainty over whether he would sign the bill into law should it pass through both chambers in its current form.
DHEC Restructuring Moves Out of Senate Subcommittee
A Senate Medical Affairs Subcommittee debated S. 2 on Thursday morning, a bill by Chairman Peeler that would divide the state’s DHEC into two agencies – a Department of Behavioral and Public Health and a Department of Environmental Services – and move other current agency responsibilities to the Department of Agriculture and Department of Veteran’s Affairs. The legislation, should it pass, would take effect June 30, 2023. Restructuring DHEC has been a priority of Chairman Peeler since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The bill will be debated in full Medical Affairs Committee next week.
Unemployment Insurance Legislation Fast-Tracked in Senate
S. 1090, a bill introduced by Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey (R-Aiken) was fast-tracked in the Senate this week. After being introduced on Tuesday afternoon, the bill made it through subcommittee Wednesday, full committee Thursday morning, and was set for Special Order before the Senate adjourned for the week. The legislation is the result of a class action lawsuit filed last year that alleges the current cap that the Department of Employment and Workforce (DEW) has placed on weekly unemployment benefits is illegal under current statute and that some individuals are entitled to more benefits than they have been receiving. Under the bill by Sen. Massey and Sen. Mia McLeod (D-Richland), the legislature affirms the DEW’s decision to cap the weekly benefit amount for insured workers and allows the department to adjust the weekly amount based on inflation moving forward. The Senate is expected to debate the legislation next week.
New Director of DJJ Named
Gov. McMaster announced his choice for the new director of the Department of Juvenile Justice, selecting Eden Hendrick to lead the state agency that has recently been under fire. Hendrick has served as the acting director since the fall, replacing former Director Freddie Pough, who resigned in September after months of public criticism and outcry over the status of the agency. Hendrick must now be confirmed by the state Senate.
