3 restructuring bills are yet another piece of our conservative reform agenda that we have approved this year – joining Tort Reform, the Higher Education Transparency Act, Voter ID, Charter School Reform, the Repeal Amendment, and Roll Call Voting.

The first piece of legislation bill (H-3066) approved Wednesday 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.

Whether we enact the next two reforms that we approved this week is entirely up to you – the voter.

The House voted for a (H-3152) constitutional amendment that will give voters the right to decide if the Governor and Lieutenant Governor should run on the same ticket. Our main concern for passing this bill is to safe guard the direction of the office. If something was to happen to the Governor, and the Lieutenant Governor would take over the office, it is possible that the Lieutenant Governor would be a democrat, or have an entirely different agenda. The two leaders at the top of the executive branch should share an agenda and show the state what can be accomplished when they work as a team.

A second amendment (H-3070) will also let voters decide if the State Superintendent of Education should be appointed by the governor and not elected. A huge step toward improving education is allowing the State Superintendent and Governor to work as partners in priorities and needs of education. It would de-politicize the office and improve coordination between the governor, the office and the General Assembly. Our teachers, our parents, and most of all, our students deserve opportunity that is second to none in education. Roughly half of the state's general fund budget pays for K-12 Education, making it important that the state Superintendent of Education has the same agenda as the Governor. Anybody who pays attention to politics knows that education is a key issue in every governor's race – despite the fact that the governor has virtually no control over our state's public schools. This needs to be fixed.

The few, nearly all Democrat, opponents of these amendments claimed we were taking power away from the people. That could not be further from the truth. In this country, all power is vested in the people, who give that power to the government. In this case, the voters of our state will have the final say, not the General Assembly. If these are approved by the Senate, they will appear on the ballot in November 2012.

With the passage of the 3 Government Restructuring bills last week, One of our local representatives received praise from Gov. Haley. Below are the comments about Representative Tom Young of Aiken:

"Today, we earned big wins for the people of our state, and we couldn't be more excited. I want to thank the House – especially Chairman Harrison and State Rep. Tom Young – for leading on these critically important issues." – Governor Niki Haley was quoted when she learned of the bill's passage.

Debate on a bill to punish teens for sexting in SC has been delayed. The term refers to sending sexually explicit photos by cell phones or computers, in what can constitute cyber-bullying. The sponsor hopes an anti-sexting law would educate parents and help teens understand the negative emotional repercussions. The proposal would make it illegal for juveniles, ages 12 through 17, to knowingly transmit sexually explicit photos. Offenders would face up to a $100 fine and be required to complete an educational program.

 

This bill (H-3292) is currently being delayed. There has been a tremendous amount of feedback. I appreciate all the comments that I have received. As I said last week, I am going to watch this bill very closely. As it stands now, I don't see this bill being passed as is. I think the most common sense approach to this will be more debate and understanding of how important it is for law enforcement to understand the full impact of this bill. I am a believer and supporter of the Second Amendment and a long time member of the NRA.

 

On Tuesday March 1, 2011, we were joined by our Senate Colleagues in the House chamber to listen to the remarks of the National Commander of the American Legion. The Honorable Jimmie Foster was introduced and spoke to us about veterans issues.

At the beginning of his speech he mentioned how delighted he was with the proposed bill (H-3760) to honor vets in South Carolina. This is the bill I brought to the floor and is heavily co-sponsored by my colleagues. It is good to know that other vets appreciate simple things we as citizens and lawmakers can do. This should have been done a long time ago.

Below are the comments about the bill to honor veterans in the South Carolina:

"Ladies and gentlemen of this great body, symbols matter. And that is why I was delighted to learn that this Legislature is considering a law that would allow for the inclusion of one's military veteran status on South Carolina drivers licenses. States already do this for organ donors. We call organ donations "the gift of life" and that is exactly what these transplants provide for countless people. But veterans also provide the gift of life – The American way of life. History indicates that without the sacrifices made by our veterans, America would probably be living under fascist, communist or some other totalitarian rule." – Jimmie Foster – National Commander of the American Legion

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On March 3, 2011, Dr. Gary C. Redding, Senior Pastor of First Baptist Church of North Augusta was recognized by the South Carolina House of Representatives with a House Resolution. The occasion was to recognize his retirement and commend him for 22 years of service to his congregation, his community and his God.

Reps. Hixon, J. R. Smith, Taylor and Young: Introduced the Resolution: H. 3781 The Resolution passed.

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Aiken Town hall Meeting with the Governor:
Gov. Nikki Haley's "The Movement" tour to focus on Haley's push for legislative report cards and potential business reforms will be held in March. The March 15 meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. in the first floor conference room of the Aiken Municipal Building. Attendees can access the building from 215 The Alley.

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