2005 Legislation
Please contact me if you prefer more detail, explanation, or would like to know how I voted on individual bills.Tax CutSmall business will receive a 2% decrease in income taxes over time.

Education Funding
State Trooper Funding
Tort Reform
Higher Education
Agriculture
Transportation
Medicaid Reform
Fish Game & Forestry
Banking & Insurance
Corrections

Funding: Education
* The Base Student Cost is increased by over 315 million dollars or 23.6 percent increase from the previous fiscal year. This is the highest the Base Student Cost has been funded in state history.
* Teacher pay was increased and now is over 300 dollars above the Southeastern Average of $42,437.
* Teachers are on the front lines of education. They are best equipped to realize potential problems early in a child’s development and are extremely helpful in addressing problem situations. That is why it is essential we remain competitive in hiring teachers. Increasing teacher pay and assuring their salaries are above the southeastern average is one of the cornerstones to maintaining an upper echelon workforce in education.
* Teacher supply reimbursement increased by $50 per teacher. Their total reimbursement is now $250.

Funding: State Troopers
A much-needed raise was given to our law enforcement officials while funding 100 more Troopers to protect our citizens. The pay raise will put SC above the Southeastern average.

Tort Reform
* Until this year South Carolina’s judicial system had not been reformed in over 19 years.
* The resulting climate we created in South Carolina was not conducive to new businesses setting up shop in South Carolina and stymied existing businesses’ growth. Our medical community had reached the point of crisis where some physicians contemplated moving their practices or changing careers.
* The Senate fought for and passed caps on medical liability damages at $350,000 per case and assured that only three different entities that were deemed libel could be sued. This was designed to stop the lottery like cash payouts that overbearing lawyers sought. These exorbitant rewards caused the price of doing business to spin horribly out of control.
* Must be 50 percent libel under Joint and Several Liability: This will allow for the defendant to only be responsible for damages directly caused by that defendant if they are 50 % libel for the damages.
* Venue: Assures cases are filed where the cause of action arises or where the defendant resides. Currently many cases are brought to areas in South Carolina where they can find the most favorable jury also known as “jury shopping”.
* Statue of Repose: Reduces the number of years from 13 to 8 whereby business can be sued for construction defects.
* Frivolous Lawsuits: Made it easier to prove that a lawsuit was frivolous by lessening the burden of proof for the prevailing party. If the suit filed proves to be frivolous, reasonable cost and attorney’s fees of the prevailing party are subject to being paid be the losing party. Fines were implemented for the attorney that brings frivolous lawsuit.
K-12 Education
* Safe Schools Act: Defines harassment, intimidation and bullying. The local school districts will develop a policy to deal with the above. The Board of Education will development standards for teacher preparation programs on the identification and prevention of bullying.
* School Districts to Adopt Policy Authorizing Students to Self Administer Asthma Medication: Would have each school district adopting a policy requiring that students with special health care needs have individual health care plans. (IHP) Additionally students with special health care needs are allowed to self-monitor and self-administer medication as prescribed by the health care provider.
* Vocational Education - Amends the law to conform to current language. Uses the term “Career and Technology” instead of “Vocational.” Passed the Senate.
* Nutritional and Physical Education Standards Established in Schools - As amended H. 3499 increases physical education in grades K-5. Reduces ratio of certified physical education teacher to students. Schools administer the SC Physical Education Assessment to students in grades 2,5,8, and high school. Establish policy for healthier foods in schools. The State Department of Education shall develop a coordinated school health model for the school districts.

Higher Education
* Requirement to Receive LIFE Scholarship by Home School Students - Home schooled students – who are in an association that ranks students – may use class rank as a criterion for LIFE qualification.
* LIFE Eligibility, Military Dependents - If the parent/guardian has paid income taxes in SC for majority of military service years and is SC resident. If parent/guardian is in military or retired from military within 4 yrs. of student seeking scholarship.
* Palmetto Fellows Scholarship - Expands eligibility for eligibility (Bob Jones).
* Certain Children of Active Duty Military Personnel to Receive Free Tuition - Children of active duty parents - under certain circumstances - could receive free tuition at a state-supported college/university/technical college.
* Technical Education Institutions, May Change Name-Technical institutions may retain the name ‘technical college’ or change its name to ‘technical community college’ upon a majority vote of the area commission of the institution.
* Institutions of Higher Education Regulatory Relief - Addresses provisions struck in LIFE Sciences - Defines Permanent Improvement Project for the purposes of all higher education institutions and raises the threshold from $100,000 to $500,000 for those projects that must be reviewed by the B&CB.

Agriculture
H. 3235 helps South Carolina’s farmers by clarifying that during certain periods of drought, agricultural operations for food production are protected from mandatory water curtailment. The bill also offers some protection to agriculture operations for non-food production and other businesses that may suffer a critical economic loss as a result of water curtailment.

Transportation
S. 1 - Primary enforcement of the Seatbelt law for adults. Primary enforcement promises to save $2 billion in economic losses and nearly $200 million in direct hospital costs. In addition, it promises to save over 100 lives per year.
S. 106 - “Hold Harmless.” This bill prevents shippers from passing on liability for damages to the trucker when the shipper is at fault. This protects small businessmen, trucking companies, from losses due to negligence on the part of the shipper.
S. 138 - This bill allows for the voluntary registration of All Terrain Vehicles. Such registration would allow law enforcement to more easily track vehicles that are lost or stolen.
S. 307 - This bill prohibits drivers from using the left lane on interstate highways when in front of other traffic. Exceptions to this legislation include the presence of dangerous situations or impractical highway design.
S. 352 - This bill allows SCDOT to mow vegetation at their discretion after input from local jurisdictions. This will eliminate the mow hawk effect so prevalent in the upstate, which resulted from the previous thirty-foot mowing restriction.
S. 596 - This bill allows law enforcement to issue citations via electronic means, i.e. computers or handheld devices. The offender will continue to receive a paper copy of the ticket. The goal is to further automate all law enforcement systems thereby saving manpower and paper, and therefore money. It would also allow law enforcement to readily attain, via their in-car computer, all pertinent information at a traffic stop before they approach the vehicle.

South Carolina Medicaid Modernization Act
* Requires Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) to focus on controlling costs by managing those who are “high users”
* Establishes the Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee (11 physicians and 4 pharmacists appointed by the Director of DHHS)
* Tightens the eligibility processing system and procedures by verifying income and residency before approving eligibility.
* Allows DHHS to request information on policyholders from every health insurer doing business in this state for the sole purpose of assisting the department in determining dual coverage of its Medicaid beneficiaries (in HIPPA compliant format).

Fish Game and Forestry
S. 145 - Related to Arkansas Blue Catfish on Lakes Marion and Moultrie, a person cannot take more than one catfish over 36 inches in one day, commercially or recreationally.
S. 184 - Creates the Francis Marion Trail Commission to establish a heritage and tourism trail honoring Francis Marion’s Revolutionary Campaigns.
S. 212 - Makes it unlawful to hunt wild turkey from a watercraft on the waters of this state.
S. 290 - This bill would create the Hatchery Permit, which would be required of all fishermen catching certain freshwater fish that are produced in hatcheries and stocked in the waters of this state by DNR.
S. 291 - Regarding lifetime hunting license fees, this bill would revise the age of a person eligible to receive a lifetime hunting and fishing license from 65 to 64.
S. 535 - This bill would do away with a moratorium on striped bass on a portion of the Savannah River, now allowing persons to keep two striped bass, striped bass hybrids or white bass which are a minimum of twenty-seven (27) inches in length.
H. 3782 This bill would designate a portion of the Pee-Dee River as a Scenic River.

Banking and Insurance:
S.49 This bill will require coverage for 8 specific mental health disorders in all health insurance policies written in South Carolina for businesses that have more than 50 employees.
S.202 The bill provides for an unsolicited check from a lender that does not meet certain conditions, to be an unfair trade practice.
S.607 This legislation provides for the licensing and regulation of consumer credit counseling organizations by the Department of Consumer Affairs.

Corrections:
S.259 expands the authority of the Dept. of Corrections to take away earned work and good conduct credits of inmates when those inmates file malicious or frivolous claims through the administrative law judges.
S.570 provides for the Dept. of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services, in conjunction with the Dept. of Corrections, to establish day reporting centers for certain non-violent offenders in order to more effectively and efficiently utilize limited bedspace. The Bill includes certain safeguards to ensure public safety.
Defense of Marriage
The 2006 ballot will have a referendum defining marriage as the union between a man and a woman.Uniform Securities ActThis legislation is intended to reform South Carolina's securities regulations and may help prevent the reoccurrence of the betrayal of trust suffered by hundreds of families in South Carolina.