Felons, peeping toms would have to submit DNA

South Carolinians arrested on felony charges as well as stalking and peeping charges would have to submit a DNA sample to SLED. That's according to a bill that a House committee approved Tuesday.

The DNA would be entered into a national database and used to solve crime cases. "There's enough unsolved crimes out there that (law enforcement) has some DNA evidence that hopefully (this bill) would help solve crimes," said Rep. Murrell Smith, R-Sumter.

The bill was vetoed by Gov. Mark Sanford last year and the veto was sustained by the House. Committee members amended the bill Tuesday, prohibiting DNA sampling of juveniles without a court order and limiting the sharing of DNA information to U.S. law enforcement. The bill now heads to the House.

House panel approves public prayer bill

A House panel has signed off on a prayer bill that gives state and local governments three methods for prayer at the beginning of meetings. The bill, which has already passed the Senate, allows a governing body to let rotating members lead prayers, select a chaplain who leads prayers or create a pool of clergy from the community who rotate the prayer duty. The bill now heads to the full House.

Worries grow about payday lending restrictions

Lawmakers said Tuesday they're concerned a Senate payday lending bill is being killed in a House subcommittee. During a news conference today, a group of senators and House members, Democrats and Republicans, called on the House leadership to vote on the Senate-passed payday lending bill that would cap the interest the companies are allowed to charge and also limit the number of loans a consumer can have outstanding at any time.

Harrell: 'I don't plan to run' for governor

House Speaker Bobby Harrell, R-Charleston, has decided he will not run for governor in 2010.

Harrell was among the speculative front-runners for the GOP nomination.

Harrell said after discussing it with his wife, Cathy, that he could best acomplish his goals - particularly economic development and turning S.C. into a modern economy - as House Speaker.

"I don't plan to run," Harrell said. "The goals that I want to see accomplished I can best accomplish from here. For me it's always the things I want to see done, not the office."

Among the other GOP contenders floated are Attorney General Henry McMaster, U.S. Rep. Gresham Barrett and Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer.

Retirees, but not lawmakers, could get pay hike

The House approved a bill today that would give S.C. retirees a cost of living increase but would exclude lawmakers who are eligible for benefits from receiving more money.

The Senate killed the portion of the bill giving lawmakers an increase, a point that became politically sensitive as lawmakers have shaved nearly all state government spending amid a sluggish economy and sagging state revenues. 

Pro-cigarette tax group urges House action

A coalition of health care, business and anti-smoking groups urged the House to take up a 50-cent a pack cigarette tax approved by the Senate last week. The bill would expand Medicaid, but also help low-income individuals purchase health insurance.

House leaders have been skeptical of using the money for Medicaid, but tax advocates said raising the tax will discourage people form smoking and eventually save the state money.

Shampoo 'education' on chopping block

Gov. Mark Sanford will sign into law a bill that will remove a state regulation that requires people who professionally shampoo hair to get 1,500 hours of training.

Sanford will hold an 11 a.m. bill signing ceremony at LaSpalon in Columbia to highlight this and other regulation the governor considers excessive.

Sanford: Budget deficits violate the law

Gov. Mark Sanford said that a proposed state budget that would likely force two agencies to run deficits next year could violate the state constitution requiring a balanced budget.

The Department of Corrections estimates it will run a $4.3 million deficit in the current year's budget, a problem that will only worsen for the budget year beginning July 1. Likewise, the State Department of Education said a $9 million cut to school bus fuel and maintenance will likely force the agency to run a deficit beginning early next year.

"That's not a balanced budget," Sanford said. "We are shirking that which we are constitutionally required to do."

The deficit, Sanford said, could open the state up to a lawsuit challenging the budget.
The State Budget and Control Board deferred a decision at its meeting today about Corrections deficit, opting to let state budget officials work with the agency to use other sources of revenue -- such as sales at prison stores -- to close the agency's budget gap.

Carville: Clinton should 'fight until the last dog dies'

U.S. Sen. Barack Obama has likely locked up the Democratic presidential nomination, but political consultant and Clinton family advisor James Carville told about 500 people at Furman University that U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton should fight until the last dog dies.

"I still hear some dogs barking," said Carville, the flamboyant Louisianan known as the left's ragin' Cajun. "I'm for Senator Clinton, but I think the great likelihood is that Obama will be the nominee.

"As soon as I determine when that is, I'll send him a check."

DeMint takes aim at unions

 

U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint wants to protect workers' rights to secret ballot in union elections and to make sure workers can opt of union membership, according to amendements he's offering to a Senate bill on monopoly bargaining.

Here's the release from DeMint's office.

Conservation group to endorse candidates

Conservation voters, a group that includes the S.C. Conservation League and other environmental groups, has released a list of the candidates it is endorsing in the June 10 statewide primary.

The group will hold a news conference Tuesday to discuss the endorsements.

Graham campaign appoints 'family values' panel

The campaign for U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham has appointed a panel of S.C. abortion foes and "pro-family" advocates to help build support for Graham's re-election campaign.

Cigarette tax proponents to push cause Tuesday

South Carolina Tobacco Collaborative will address the media Tuesday morning to urge the S.C. House of Representatives to pass a Senate version of the cigarette tax.

The Senate version of the tax, which would raise the state's lowest-in-the-nation cigarette tax to 57 cents from 7 cents, would be spend on health care.

The House version of the tax would be used for tax relief.

The collaborative has supported the tax on the grounds that it would discourage some from smoking. It has also advocated proceeds from the tax be spent on health care.

Another lawmaker calls on Rex to change PACT

A second Republican lawmaker is calling on the Democratic state schools chief to take the lead in eliminating the annual testing program for elementary and middle school students and replace it with new exams that do a better job measuring academic achievement.

State Sen. Kevin L. Bryant of Anderson sent Jim Rex a letter Friday urging the superintendent to marshal a switch in tests with the help of two politically appointed panels that oversee public education. Bryant also posted the letter on his web site.

Click here to read Bryant's letter

Continue reading "Another lawmaker calls on Rex to change PACT" »

Wilber Lee Jeffcoat, a South Carolina superdelegate, has pledged to support Sen. Barack Obama for president.

Jeffcoat, a retired trucking supervisor and member of the S.C. Democratic Party executive committee, confirmed to Obama aides Friday that he would support the Illinois U.S. senator.

Jeffcoat said he'd planned to wait until all states had voted before choosing a candidate. But the tough delegate math U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton faces and fear the campaign could remain contentious prompted him to declare.

Gov. Mark Sanford today said he would veto the Senate's cigarette tax hike if it comes to his desk in its current form.

Sanford said the state should not raise any tax without an offsetting tax cut.

He criticized the Senate plan as a "double tax increase" for the way it increases taxes immediately, but will also mean having to raise taxes later on to cover future growth in the programs it seeks to expand.

The Senate approved a 50 cent a pack tax increase to the cigarette tax, which would generate $158 million a year.

A candidate running for a House seat in Richland and Kershaw counties has asked his opponent to sever her ties with a third-party group that advocates using tax credits to pay for private schools.

The Senate has shot down a proposal that would tie the state's cigarette tax to inflation.

Led by Lexington Sen. Nikki Setzler, lawmakers argued that the General Assembly ought to vote on every tax increase.

Lawmakers have approved $2.4 million toward the state’s AIDS Drug Assistance program that helps provides lifesaving medicines for people with HIV who have low income and little or no prescription drug insurance coverage. The money will go toward helping some of the estimated 800 South Carolinians a year diagnosed with HIV/AIDS.

The House has recommitted to committee a bill that would allow the sale of hard liquors on statewide election days, meaning the bill  won't likely survive. 

Right now, state law bans the sale of liquor on election days. 

State Republicans have chosen Indiana U.S. Rep. Mike Pence as the keynote speaker for the Silver Elephant dinner at the end of May.

Pence, a four-term Congressman from Columbus, Indiana, serves on the House Judiciary and Foreign Affairs committees.

The Silver Elephant dinner is the state GOP's largest fundraiser each year. Last year radio talk-show host Sean Hannity was the keynote speaker.

House Majority Whip James Clyburn said he fully expects the Democratic Presidential nominating contest to continue even though Tuesday's split between U.S. Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama considerably dimmed Clinton's chances of capturing the nomination.

Clyburn said he thinks continuing the race helps Democrats, as  Clinton and Obama will keep registering new voters and energizing Democrats.

"We need to have all of our stars on the field until (June) third," Clyburn said.

But Clyburn has one worry. He wants the divisive politics to end.
"It's the way candidates conduct themselves that will determine how the surrogates will conduct themselves," Clyburn said. 

A House committee has approved a bill to banish parole and create an alternative court called Middle Court for drug offenders.

A House panel has approved a bill to outlaw alcohol inhaler devices which allow people to inhale alcohol instead of drinking it.

Rep. Merle Smith said several other states have outlawed the machines which are increasingly popular at bars.

The machines are a way for people to get drunk faster, Smith said. Rep. Mick Mulvaney argued that the prohibition would be a slippery slope.

"I'm just worried that we're going to outlaw shot glasses next" because they deliver liquor faster to a person's blood stream. The bill next heads to the full House.

House Minority Leader Harry Ott said he will divert debate today on a controversial immigration bill, forcing lawmakers who say they are anxious to pass a bill this year to forestall discussion for at least a day.

Uneasy about new Senate-passed legislation on the issue, caucus members took sharp aim at the bill, which is expected to come up today in the House.

Republican presidential nominee in waiting John McCain will be in South Carolina Friday for a Columbia fundraiser.

The Palmetto Scoop,  S.C. political blog, has posted the invitation to the $1,000 per person reception at the Columbia Convention Center.

McCain will be joined by a dozen special guest, which include U.S. Sens. Lindsey Graham and Jim DeMint and Gov. Mark Sanford.

A Senate bill has received key House approval that will require commercial drivers who test positive for drugs or alcohol to successfully complete a drug or alcohol program. Otherwise, the driver will lose his or her job. The bill now heads back to the Senate.

The House will likely not discuss amendments to the Senate budget today, saving that debate for tomorrow.

State economists cut revenue projections after the House passed the budget, forcing the House to cut $240 million in spending.

With so little money available, Ways and Means chairman Dan Cooper said, there may be less than a dozen differences for House and Senate lawmakers to resolve in conference committee.

The S.C. Senate will begin debating a bill that would raise the state's cigarette tax from 7 cents a pack to 57 cents a pack, which would raise more than $125 million annually.

The question that will likely consume lawmakers today is how to spend the proceeds.

Gov. Mark Sanford said again Thursday the immigration bill passed by the Senate falls short of his expectations. Sanford called on citizens to let lawmakers know of their displeasure with the bill.

The bill, which woud require employers to take additional steps to verify the employees they hire are in the United States legally, doesn't require employers to use an electronic verification system Sanford prefers. Instead, the so-called E-verify system is one of three options an employer would have. A valid S.C. drivers license and a state form to verify immigration status could also be used. 

"By stripping out the e-verify requirement last night, the Senate has taken out the single most effective part of this immigration reform bill," Gov. Sanford said. "For anyone who cares about real immigration reform, the time is now for them to email or call their Senator or House member - or better yet show up in person at the State House on Tuesday to tell their elected leaders face-to-face how they feel."

Jeffcoat, a S.C. superdelegate, chooses Obama

Wilber Lee Jeffcoat, a South Carolina superdelegate, has pledged to support Sen. Barack Obama for president.

Jeffcoat, a retired trucking supervisor and member of the S.C. Democratic Party executive committee, confirmed to Obama aides Friday that he would support the Illinois U.S. senator.

Jeffcoat said he'd planned to wait until all states had voted before choosing a candidate. But the tough delegate math U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton faces and fear the campaign could remain contentious prompted him to declare.

Sanford: Cigarette tax faces a veto

Gov. Mark Sanford today said he would veto the Senate's cigarette tax hike if it comes to his desk in its current form.

Sanford said the state should not raise any tax without an offsetting tax cut.

He criticized the Senate plan as a "double tax increase" for the way it increases taxes immediately, but will also mean having to raise taxes later on to cover future growth in the programs it seeks to expand.

The Senate approved a 50 cent a pack tax increase to the cigarette tax, which would generate $158 million a year.

Candidate fearful of SCRG influence in House race

A candidate running for a House seat in Richland and Kershaw counties has asked his opponent to sever her ties with a third-party group that advocates using tax credits to pay for private schools.

Cigarette taxes will not increase with inflation

The Senate has shot down a proposal that would tie the state's cigarette tax to inflation.

Led by Lexington Sen. Nikki Setzler, lawmakers argued that the General Assembly ought to vote on every tax increase.

HIV/AIDS treatments to get $2.4 million

Lawmakers have approved $2.4 million toward the state’s AIDS Drug Assistance program that helps provides lifesaving medicines for people with HIV who have low income and little or no prescription drug insurance coverage. The money will go toward helping some of the estimated 800 South Carolinians a year diagnosed with HIV/AIDS.

Still no alcohol sales on election days

The House has recommitted to committee a bill that would allow the sale of hard liquors on statewide election days, meaning the bill  won't likely survive. 

Right now, state law bans the sale of liquor on election days. 

GOP picks Silver Elephant speaker

State Republicans have chosen Indiana U.S. Rep. Mike Pence as the keynote speaker for the Silver Elephant dinner at the end of May.

Pence, a four-term Congressman from Columbus, Indiana, serves on the House Judiciary and Foreign Affairs committees.

The Silver Elephant dinner is the state GOP's largest fundraiser each year. Last year radio talk-show host Sean Hannity was the keynote speaker.

Clyburn: Dems campaign will continue

House Majority Whip James Clyburn said he fully expects the Democratic Presidential nominating contest to continue even though Tuesday's split between U.S. Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama considerably dimmed Clinton's chances of capturing the nomination.

Clyburn said he thinks continuing the race helps Democrats, as  Clinton and Obama will keep registering new voters and energizing Democrats.

"We need to have all of our stars on the field until (June) third," Clyburn said.

But Clyburn has one worry. He wants the divisive politics to end.
"It's the way candidates conduct themselves that will determine how the surrogates will conduct themselves," Clyburn said. 

Parole would be banned in S.C. under House bill

A House committee has approved a bill to banish parole and create an alternative court called Middle Court for drug offenders.

Alcohol inhaler outlawed by House panel

A House panel has approved a bill to outlaw alcohol inhaler devices which allow people to inhale alcohol instead of drinking it.

Rep. Merle Smith said several other states have outlawed the machines which are increasingly popular at bars.

The machines are a way for people to get drunk faster, Smith said. Rep. Mick Mulvaney argued that the prohibition would be a slippery slope.

"I'm just worried that we're going to outlaw shot glasses next" because they deliver liquor faster to a person's blood stream. The bill next heads to the full House.

Democrats plan to stall immigration bill

House Minority Leader Harry Ott said he will divert debate today on a controversial immigration bill, forcing lawmakers who say they are anxious to pass a bill this year to forestall discussion for at least a day.

Uneasy about new Senate-passed legislation on the issue, caucus members took sharp aim at the bill, which is expected to come up today in the House.

McCain coming to S.C. this week

Republican presidential nominee in waiting John McCain will be in South Carolina Friday for a Columbia fundraiser.

The Palmetto Scoop,  S.C. political blog, has posted the invitation to the $1,000 per person reception at the Columbia Convention Center.

McCain will be joined by a dozen special guest, which include U.S. Sens. Lindsey Graham and Jim DeMint and Gov. Mark Sanford.

House OKs bill to send drivers to drug rehab

A Senate bill has received key House approval that will require commercial drivers who test positive for drugs or alcohol to successfully complete a drug or alcohol program. Otherwise, the driver will lose his or her job. The bill now heads back to the Senate.

House won't debate budget until Wednesday

The House will likely not discuss amendments to the Senate budget today, saving that debate for tomorrow.

State economists cut revenue projections after the House passed the budget, forcing the House to cut $240 million in spending.

With so little money available, Ways and Means chairman Dan Cooper said, there may be less than a dozen differences for House and Senate lawmakers to resolve in conference committee.

What to do with cigarette tax money

The S.C. Senate will begin debating a bill that would raise the state's cigarette tax from 7 cents a pack to 57 cents a pack, which would raise more than $125 million annually.

The question that will likely consume lawmakers today is how to spend the proceeds.

Sanford: Immigration bill not tough enough

Gov. Mark Sanford said again Thursday the immigration bill passed by the Senate falls short of his expectations. Sanford called on citizens to let lawmakers know of their displeasure with the bill.

The bill, which woud require employers to take additional steps to verify the employees they hire are in the United States legally, doesn't require employers to use an electronic verification system Sanford prefers. Instead, the so-called E-verify system is one of three options an employer would have. A valid S.C. drivers license and a state form to verify immigration status could also be used. 

"By stripping out the e-verify requirement last night, the Senate has taken out the single most effective part of this immigration reform bill," Gov. Sanford said. "For anyone who cares about real immigration reform, the time is now for them to email or call their Senator or House member - or better yet show up in person at the State House on Tuesday to tell their elected leaders face-to-face how they feel."