BRIEFS: GOP’s McKissick criticized; Street is new correspondent
Staff reports | New S.C. GOP Chairman Drew McKissick is getting roundly criticized for cavalierly saying he would turn over voter information that a seemingly partisan presidential commission wants...
View ArticleNEWS BRIEF: Lawmakers hear two hours of testimony on opioid crisis
By Lindsay Street, Statehouse correspondent | He wasn’t the kind of person you thought would have been involved in drugs, one man testified. Funerals for overdoses less than a week apart, a woman...
View ArticleBRIEFS: Prevention program on chopping block; New number two
The Trump administration has cut a federal grants program advocates say has helped to decrease S.C. teen pregnancy rates. Also: S.C. Attorney General Alan Wilson announced Monday that Circuit Court...
View ArticleBRIEFS: South Carolina’s failing grade plus a great digital resource
The Palmetto State’s low jobless rate and huge economic development victories over the years haven’t been enough for it to escape being named the nation’s worst on jobs and business, according to a new...
View ArticleNEWS BRIEFS: Nuclear fallout at Statehouse, a Q&A and impact of life sciences
In the wake of billions spent on nuclear reactors that will remain unfinished for the foreseeable future, South Carolina lawmakers this week established a bipartisan caucus, and others will reconvene...
View ArticleBRIEF: Feel soggy? Leaked report provides insights
There sure has been a lot of rain around the Midlands and coast over the last 30 days, and now a federal report shows major rain events are occurring with higher frequency over the last 100 years in...
View ArticleNEWS BRIEFS: On Amazon’s sales taxes; Legislators opposed to offshore drilling
Staff reports | Amazon didn’t have to worry about paying taxes on South Carolina sales for five years thanks to the blessing of lawmakers of a controversial incentive package. It allowed the retailer...
View ArticleNEWS BRIEFS: Abortion politics; Dissecting a meltdown; Pressure play
Gov. Henry McMaster on Friday morning issued an executive order halting any local or state funds that go toward the state’s three abortion providers. He is also seeking to exclude the clinics from the...
View ArticleTALLY SHEET: Bills introduced on tax credits, relief and sales tax exemptions
Staff reports | State lawmakers introduced 108 bills over the past week, many of which were congratulatory or memorials, such as one to honor the late Rep. Joe Neal, D-Hopkins, for his service. He died...
View ArticleTALLY SHEET: Lawmakers file bills to thwart opioid abuse
Staff reports | Four Republican House members this week filed a package of 10 bills designed to thwart the rising epidemic of opioid and heroin abuse. It’s a comprehensive approach to build a...
View ArticleBRIEFS: Pension reform on the way; Winthrop Poll and Trump
Staff reports | It looks like the General Assembly is serious about enacting state pension reform this legislative session, perhaps as early as next week in the House. Currently, the state pension...
View ArticleTALLY SHEET: From cutting tax brackets to regulating porn
Staff reports | As the legislative session heads toward the halfway mark in terms of legislative days, lawmakers for the first time introduced fewer than 100 bills over the past week with the Senate...
View ArticleTALLY SHEET: From the state budget to guns, vouchers and partisanship
Staff reports | The House Ways and Means committee this week formally introduced its annual budget bill and related bills in preparation for next week’s floor debate on how the state will spend about...
View ArticleTALLY SHEET: Few bills introduced this week
Staff reports | The pickings were slim for new bills introduced in the House and Senate other than the usual stream of congratulatory resolutions. Among the handful of substantive bills: College...
View ArticleTALLY SHEET: From abortion politics to pyramid schemes
Staff reports | State lawmakers introduced an array of bills dealing with everything from abortion and pyramid schemes to the state’s Freedom of Information Act and how it budgets. Senators introduced...
View ArticleBRIEF: Shock and awe
Staff reports | Members of the state legislature are still in shock over allegations that state Sen. John Courson (R-Columbia) has been indicted on ethics charges.
View ArticleTALLY SHEET: Crossover date comes early this year
Staff reports | With the General Assembly going out of general session a month earlier this year, the annual “crossover” deadline this year will be April 10. After that date, original bills from one...
View ArticleBRIEFS: Gauging S.C.’s health; Statue of Hollings to be unveiled
Study shows urban areas in S.C. healthier than rural Staff reports | The state’s healthiest place in terms of health outcomes and factors is Beaufort County, according to newly-published data at...
View ArticleTALLY SHEET: From body cameras to political party registration
Staff reports | When state lawmakers return to Columbia after Easter – they’re taking a furlough week next week – they’ll likely be introducing fewer bills as an important procedural date comes April...
View ArticleTALLY SHEET: When legislating is like making mayonnaise
Staff reports | The old saying goes that it's not a pretty sight watching either laws or sausages being made. This week, though, a little bit of mayonnaise must have been added to the mixture. State...
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