The Senate Rejected the Clean Voter ID:
The Voter ID bill was passed twice by the House the session and both times it has come back from the Senate with amendments that will probably not pass a court battle. An opinion was released from the state Attorney General's Office that established the opinion of the state that the Senate version of the voter ID bill isn't constitutional. However, the opinion DID SAY THE HOUSE VERSION of the legislation is constitutional. The South Carolina Senate insisted on an unconstitutional Voter ID bill additions that killed the bill last year. So the Voter ID bill (H-3003) heads to Conference between the two houses which includes 3 House and 3 Senate members. The bill is on life support because it has died 3 times before in Conference.

Spending Accountability Act of 2011 Signed Into Law:
Roll Call Voting (H-3004) is what this bill is best known by. I am a co-sponsor of the legislation which was unanimously approved by the House in the first week of the session in January. On April 12, 2011, Governor Nikki Haley signed this bill into law.

Gov. Haley said, "This is an absolutely historic day. It's a historic day because this is a three year battle that we took on and we said, this is about the people of this state. And this is about the people having the right to know what their elected officials are doing all the time, because elected officials work for the people not the other way around. And today we have just gone from one of the weakest states in the country on transparency to one of the strongest in the nation on accountability."

From the very beginning of my term as your Representative of District 83 I have included links on my site so that you can easily see how I vote and which bills I have sponsored and co-sponsored. I believe it is very important for my constituents to know what I am doing on their behalf. Representatives Tom Young (Aiken) and Bill Taylor (Aiken) have similar voting links on their sites as well. 

Interstate Wildlife Violator Compact Signed by the Governor:
Gov. Haley signed this bill into law On April 12, 2011. I authored the bill and was the primary sponsor of the Interstate Wildlife Compact bill. I an honored to say it was co-sponsored by over 30 colleagues on both sides of the isle. (H-3374) calls for South Carolina to join the Interstate Wildlife Compact, which is like a drivers license compact. In the event you travel to another state and have a game or fishing violation, you will be treated as if you were in your home state; accept the citation from the officer and continue on your way. In the past, SC-DNR made a non-resident violator post bail on the spot or go to jail. This bill saves time and money for the game wardens. There is no cost for SC to join the Compact. 

Here is an article on the South Carolina Radio Network website about the compact. 

Here is audio interview of me explaining the need to join the compact. 

You can also click here to see a map of the United States showing all the member states. We are currently listed as Green indicating "legislation passed". We will be listed as a red state as soon as all the paper work is done. 

Governor Signs Local Goverment Reform Into Law:
The Local Government Reform Bill (H-3625) prohibits an individual from serving on the governing body of a state, county, municipal board or commission while at the same time being employed by that board or commission. Previously, State Rep. Smith had filed a similar piece of local legislation that Gov. Haley vetoed, saying it violated the Constitution and home rule, and State Rep. Smith led the House's effort to unanimously uphold the veto. The bill was restructured to included the whole state not just Aiken County. It passed the house and Senate and is now law. Rep. Roland Smith was the primary sponsor and Rep. Bill Taylor and I were co-sponsors of the bill.

Bill Wylie Entrepreneurship Act Passed:
The state House Wednesday passed, by a vote of 78 to 18, the Bill Wylie Entrepreneurship Act (H-3779), which aims to create a business environment that will better enable angel investors in South Carolina to reinvest resources back into the state to help spur the growth and expansion of small businesses. The "significant piece of economic development legislation is designed to spark new business growth and private sector innovation in our state," Speaker of the House Bobby Harrell. The bill is headed to the Senate for consideration. I voted in favor of this bill.  

Fair Tax Support:
The new Fair Tax bill would replace all taxes on individual and corporate income with a vastly-increased sales tax – thus spreading the tax burden around to more people and it will encourag economic growth by providing an incentive for savings and investment. Speaking to the Aiken Rotary Club on Monday, SC House Speaker Bobby Harrell explained why he's signed-on supporting the SC Fair Tax Act. Check out what he says on this You Tube audio clip.  

UPDATE: Transparency and Government Reform:
The following is an update on the South Carolina House Republican Caucus 2011-2012 Legislative Session Agenda;

On the Record Voting or Roll Call Voting – The House again approved a statute providing for more recorded votes by lawmakers. The "Spending Accountability Act", (H-3004), passed the House the first week of session, and the bill gained approval in the Senate. The House then approved the minor changes in the amended bill and the act was sent to the Governor to become law. On April 12, 2011, Governor Nikki Haley signed this bill into law. 
 
Higher Education Transparency – The Caucus will fight to open the books of state colleges and universities. (H-3185) passed the House. It was sent to the Senate and then referred to the Committee on Education. It was ruled favorable and is currently on the Senate floor. 
 
Agency Restructuring – Bill (H-3066) was approved by the House and was sent to the Senate. The Senate has since referred it to the Committee on Judiciary. On April 6, 2011 the majority of the committee reported that the bill was favorable with Amendments. This bill moves fourteen divisions of the Budget and Control Board to a new department: general services, employee insurance programs, the State Information Technology Division, procurement services, veterans' affairs, Office of Executive Policy, and the state energy office, among others. These offices largely provide administrative or inter-governmental services, rather than providing services directly to the people of South Carolina. Legislation creating a Department of Administration was approved by the House in 2004, 2008, and 2009. The Department of Administration will give our Governor more power over the executive branch of government that she heads. This bill is a major first step in strengthening our state's chief executive. 
 
Spending Caps – The Spending Cap Bill (H-3368) limiting how much the state can spend. Letting people spend their own hard-earned dollars and ensuring government serves the people by getting out of our way, is something in which I truly believe. We should do all we can to limit the size of government. This bill was sent to the Senate on 3/10/2011 and the Senate referred it to the Committee on Finance on the 15th of March. It still sits there today. 
 
Voter ID – Was passed twice by the house and sent to the Senate. Each time the Senate has sent it back with Amendments. The bill is now headed to conference to iron out the differences. 
 
Shorten the Legislative Session – The House will work to shorten the legislative session, work more efficiently, and save taxpayers money. Multiple bills (including (H-3080), (H-3091), and (H-3176) have all been referred to the House Judiciary Committee.
 

Please be sure to stay up to date with all that is going on in Columbia. If you have any questions, comments or concerns, I am always available..