Legislative eNews-fEBRUARY 23, 2007

LOCAL

Hilton Head Town Council Passes Smoking Ban
The Hilton Head Town Council on Tuesday gave final approval to a ban on smoking in public indoor areas, including bars and restaurants, in a unanimous vote.  The ban goes into effect on May 1.  The Hilton Head Island ordinance makes all of Southern Beaufort County smoke free after the Town of Bluffton and the Beaufort County earlier passed bans on smoking in public indoor areas.  Efforts to pass a state-wide ban are under discussion in Columbia.

STATE

Education Reform Plans
State Education Superintendent Jim Rex was in Hardeeville on Thursday to discuss his plans to change and improve the state’s public education system.  As part of town hall meetings across the state, Rex plans to hear from local communities before embarking on alternatives to the current education system.  Rex has called for accelerating innovation in the schools, elevating and invigorating the teaching profession, increasing choice in public education, refining accountability to ensure maximum results and minimum testing, and providing fair and more equitable school funding.   To see the full plan go to http://edu.sc.gov/agency/superintendent.

Legislature Proposes Raising the State Cigarette Tax
A bill that would raise the state's tobacco tax 93 cents to match the national average was introduced in the House Wednesday.  At the current 7 cents a pack, the state's cigarette tax is the lowest in the nation.

The increase would raise $223 million a year, which could be used to fund a variety of health programs, including a tobacco prevention program, as well as expand the Children's Health Insurance Program and allocate more than $83 million to help small businesses provide health insurance for their employees, according to bill supporters.

DOT Legislation Introduced in House
The House this week introduced a bill based on the work completed by the House DOT Study Committee. The bill would bring reform to the Department of Transportation, making the agency more accountable and changing in how the agency is governed.  The legislation (H. 3575) introduced makes five major proposals:

  • A new DOT board will consist of seven members who will be required to have five years of experience or a four year degree in a related field, and must also live in the district they represent. A new Secretary of Transportation will be appointed by the governor. New board districts, modeled after the existing engineering districts, would be created so counties are not split and the needs of the state’s rural counties are better represented.
  • An internal auditor would report directly to the commission. The State Auditor would perform follow-up audits as needed.  A financial audit will be preformed every year.
  • The DOT would establish objective measures for ranking road projects to include: safety, economic development concerns, traffic volume, and pavement quality.
  • The entire DOT board would approve all contracts over $500,000.
  • The reformed DOT would be funded with $200 million over the next five years from existing revenue streams of the general fund.

Affordable Housing Proposals Offered
Legislation filed this week would amend state law to allow local governments to establish housing trust funds.  Money in those funds then would be used to gain federal and state matching dollars that could fund homeless shelters, down payment assistance and other programs aimed at making housing more affordable.

Immigration Bills on the Move in Columbia
Over 20 bills have been introduced this session that would deal with illegal immigration.   However, in the House there are four bills that have more likely chances of passage.  They would:

  • Require all state contractors and subcontractors to participate in a federal worker authorization program that verifies employees’ Social Security numbers, a process intended to determine that a worker is a U.S. citizen or in the country legally.
  • Order the S.C. Law Enforcement Division to negotiate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to train state and local police officers so that they can enforce immigration laws.
  • Regulate the cottage industry of people who advertise themselves as providing “immigration assistance.”
  • Form a study committee.

A House subcommittee last week approved four such bills, sending them to the Judiciary Committee. Five other immigration bills failed to get out of the subcommittee.  The Senate Judiciary Committee this week met to review a comprehensive bill that also includes initiatives similar to those moving in the House. The Senate bill is a product of a subcommittee that met several times in the fall to hear public testimony on immigration.

Jasper Port
The bill granting the South Carolina State Ports Authority (SCSPA) sole authority to condemn the port site in Jasper County was reported out of the House LCI, Business and Commerce Subcommittee this week.

FEDERAL
US Chamber is Opposing New Effort to Unionize Workers
If a bill moving through the House of Representatives passes, unions would be certified as the bargaining agents for workers once they get a majority of eligible employees to sign authorization cards. This new system would replace secret ballot elections, which have been the primary means for granting unions recognition since the National Labor Relations Act was amended in 1947. The new process would be open-ended in terms of time, leaving unions as long as they need to collect signatures.  The bill has passed the House Education and Workforce Committee and is slated for House floors consideration as early as next week.  The US Chamber reports the bill affects businesses of all sizes, but especially smaller companies.