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The State House Gavel

The State House Gavel shares updates about the South Carolina General Assembly, including legislative actions, debates and discussions. Featuring news and interviews, so you have access to the latest developments in policy and decisions that shape South Carolina’s future.

The State House Gavel: Gov. McMaster in Austin to talk EVs, House works through budget

South Carolina Public Radio | By Maayan Schechter,

Gavin Jackson, Russ McKinney

Published March 11, 2025 at 6:01 AM EDT

The S.C. House of Representatives started its budget debate on Monday, March 10, 2025, in Columbia, S.C.

Statehouse reporters Gavin Jackson, Russ McKinney and Maayan Schechter are back at the Capitol reporting what you need to know when lawmakers are in Columbia. They'll post news, important schedules, photos/videos and behind-the-scenes interviews with policymakers.

Happy Tuesday.

It's Week 9 of the South Carolina legislative session.

The House gavels in at 10 a.m. for budget debate Day Two.

The Senate returns at noon to continue its tort reform debate.

And Gov. Henry McMaster is in Austin, Texas (where it's about 10 degrees warmer) to speak at the popular South By Southwest festival and conference on a panel about electric vehicles titled, "How EVs Secure U.S. Leadership and Strengthen Communities."

The other panelists are Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Hannah Steinweg, Rivian's public policy manager.

You're reading The State House Gavel, a daily reporter notebook by reporters Gavin Jackson, Russ McKinney and Maayan Schechter that previews and captures what goes on at the South Carolina Statehouse this year while lawmakers are in session.

Notebook highlights:

The S.C. House started its debate over the chamber's version of the $14 billion state operating budget. A refresh of how you can keep up with the debate, and what South Carolinians can expect on debate Day Two.
U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham spoke to a Columbia-based rotary club about his support for Ukraine.
Senators are back in session after last week's tort reform debate hit a wall when the upper chamber refused to table (vote down) an amendment the bill's lead sponsor said would gut the legislation. And a Senate budget panel looking into the $1.8 billion accounting error says it's near the end of its inquiries but plans on Tuesday to hear from SFAA's executive director and from the outside audit firm at least one last time.

Russ McKinney, Maayan Schechter and Gavin Jackson

HFC eyes cuts in budget debate

Packed with snacks (we spotted PayDays, beef jerky, pretzels and Vienna sausages) and comfortable shoes, the South Carolina House started its multi-day debate over its proposed $14 billion state spending plan.

And after about eight hours of debate, the House adjourned without making any changes.

On Monday, we previewed a bit of what the House budget plan includes, such as more money for tuition mitigation, money to fix bridges and roads, money to raise teacher and state employee pay and millions for cellphone interdiction at the state's corrections department.

The budget also includes an accelerated income tax rate cut — an acceleration that the hardline House Freedom Caucus told reporters before the debate does not go far enough.

And to get there, caucus Chairman Jordan Pace, R-Berkeley, says the group wants spending cuts.

You can listen to part of the caucus's press conference:

S.C. House Freedom Caucus press conference 3.10.25

What time does the House return: 10 a.m. Tuesday.

What will the House do Tuesday: The chamber will continue to go through the budget bill, section by section that hasn't yet passed, and take up amendments proposed by members.

How can I see what the budget includes: You can find the House's proposed budget documents on the Ways and Means Committee website, including the summary control document (those are the line items) and the provisos. For a short and sweet version, you can view here.

The S.C. House Freedom Caucus speaks to reporters about the House budget debate in Columbia, S.C., on Monday, March 10, 2025.

Graham rejects pulling Ukraine support

U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham elaborated to more than 100 Columbia Rotarians on Monday his Fox News Sunday message that pulling support for Ukraine would be worse than the Afghanistan withdrawal.

What he said: "When we pulled out of Afghanistan, it was a complete debacle. I think that sent a signal to Putin and other people weakness abounds so let’s take a shot,” Graham said. “Putin is the bad guy. Ukraine is not perfect, but they will be a good ally over time. I'd rather have them fighting with us than almost any army on the continent of Europe.”

Other moments from Graham's appearance:

Graham told the group that the U.S. should continue to arm and provide intelligence to Ukraine. He said the minerals deal with Ukraine must also go through. “I’m not going to push Ukraine to do something they can't accept, but I will push them to think hard about what they can accept. … There are a lot of Republicans, particularly, that don't understand why we're fighting this war, what winning looks like and when it's going to end. And they’re more worried about dealing with problems here at home. I get that to a point. But when you take your eyes off the ball on evil over there, it eventually comes here. Remember 9/11? So you got to do multiple things at the same time.”
One crowd member told Graham that he “broke his heart” after Graham called for Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to resign after the Oval Office meeting with President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance. “Sorry about that,” Graham, who has been to Ukraine eight times, said. “I’ve been working my a— off to get this (minerals) deal done. … I know exactly what went on more than anybody in the world, and they screwed it up. It’s back on track. Trump received a letter from Zelenskyy saying, 'I regret what happened and we're good to go.'"

Graham, who is running for his fifth term in the Senate, summarized his approach to politics.

“People hate me for a variety of reasons, and you always want to give people good choices. I do too much for Democrats, I don't do enough for Democrats. I'm a war hawk. I'm not a war (hawk). What I've tried to do over my time is be logical to the extent politics will allow you to be logical. To keep my job, but not be afraid of my job. When this job is so important to you that you're afraid to do it the way you’d like, you need to leave. And I'm here to tell you I don't trust Putin one ounce, but it’s time for this war to end. And I’m here to tell you all this DOGE stuff, some of it's really good, some of it not so much. I'm glad they're doing it, but that don't get you out of debt. The hard things and the big things have to be done together.”

You can hear more of Graham's remarks in the latest South Carolina Lede podcast by clicking here.

U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham speaks with members of the Columbia Rotary Club after speaking and taking more than six questions from the 100 members during their lunch meeting at Seawells in Columbia, S.C., on March 10, 2025.

Senate returns to tort reform, $1.8B error

The Senate is back in session Tuesday, with plans to return to S. 244, Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey's tort reform bill.

As a refresher: The debate over the Edgefield Republican's comprehensive proposal came to an abrupt stop last Thursday, when a vote to table (vote down) an amendment to the bill proposed by Sen. Goldfinch, R-Georgetown, failed.

Where does the debate stand: We've heard some chatter that a compromise may be on its way. We've also heard the bill largely remains in question as the House moved forward last week with its standalone liquor liability legislation.

Tort reform debate 3.6.25

Tort reform isn't the only topic senators plan to revisit.

Recall the $1.8 billion accounting error?

The Senate Finance Committee panel led by Sen. Larry Grooms, R-Berkeley, is on its way to wrapping up work around the error.

But before they call it a day — or, in this case, two(ish) years worth of work — the panel Tuesday afternoon plans to hear from Grant Gillespie, the executive director of the State Fiscal Accountability Authority (SFAA) over bonding questions, and the auditors from AlixPartners, who conducted the outside audit that determined most of the $1.8 billion was never real cash. The panel also will discuss H. 3430, a bill that would seek to make the auditor an a governor-appointed position.

Flashback: Last month, the panel heard from state Treasurer Curtis Loftis, who testified under oath that he didn't have any disagreements with the audit and accepted the recommendations in the report. But he also at times declined to answer specific questions by the panel, such as whether he shared any responsibility over the error.

S.C. Senate panel hears from treasurer over $1.8 billion error

Recall: Two years ago, then-Comptroller General Richard Eckstrom resigned after it was publicly disclosed that there was a $3.5 billion accounting error in the state's annual financial disclosure. Then news became public about a fund listing a balance of $1.8 billion where there was no designated agency to claim it. Lawmakers started hearings and hired an outside audit firm, AlixPartners, for $3 million. Not long after the audit's release, state Auditor George Kennedy resigned, leaving Loftis as the third party involved in the report who has so far declined to step down. Meanwhile, the whole ordeal is also under federal investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission.