Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
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: SC Senate starts private school voucher debate

State Sens. Billy Garrett, left, R- Lexington, and Brian Adams, R-Goose Creek, talk before a Senate session, Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Collins)
Jeffrey Collins/AP
/
AP
State Sens. Billy Garrett, left, R- Lexington, and Brian Adams, R-Goose Creek, talk before a Senate session, Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Collins)

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.

Good morning.

It's Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2024, and we're gaveling in along with the Senate at 1 p.m. and the House at 2 p.m.

This is The State House Gavel, a new daily reporter notebook Gavin Jackson, Russ McKinney and Maayan Schechter that will preview and capture what goes on at the South Carolina Statehouse while lawmakers are in session.

See something? Hear something? Have a question about a legislative procedure, or whether your preferred issue will become law this year? Let us know.

Notebook highlights:

  • SC Senate begins debate over using state Education Lottery dollars to fund private school vouchers
  • Lawmakers anticipate outside audit detailing the mysterious $1.8 billion accounting issue in the Treasurer's Office
  • House Education Chair Shannon Erickson talks committee priorities
The 126th General Assembly of South Carolina gavels into session on Jan. 14, 2025.
Gavin Jackson
/
SCETV
The 126th General Assembly of South Carolina gavels into session on Jan. 14, 2025.

School choice No. 1 on Senate agenda

Senators took the rare step Tuesday (the very first day of session) and pulled a bill that would pay for private school tuition grants with Education Lottery dollars right out of committee and put it on the Senate calendar.

That means no public testimony.

The debate over the school choice expansion bill officially starts today, but a final vote isn't expected this week. Senate Republican Leader Shane Massey, R-Edgefield, says he hopes to see passage of the measure within the next two weeks.

Republican leaders are especially antsy to pass a bill quickly so that it can go back to the state Supreme Court, which already deemed a previous version using tax dollars unconstitutional.

With supermajorities in both chambers, Republicans will pass a school choice bill and it will be signed into law by McMaster.

But whether it uses Lottery money is another question.

House Education Chairwoman Shannon Erickson, R-Beaufort, isn't committing to the Senate version.

We get asked this all the time: Why won't the Legislature put the question on the ballot so voters can decide?

Lawmakers usually try to avoid doing that.

For starters, you never know how voters are going to vote and public voucher laws in other states have been voted down.

Here's what Erickson said: “Everything's on the table at this particular moment. The Senate is a ... brand new entity, and I would be crazy to tell you what's going to happen over there.”

Republican state Sens. Roger Nutt of Moore, left, Everett Stubbs of Rock Hill, center, and JD Chaplin of Darlington, right, chat on their first day in the Senate, Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Collins)
Jeffrey Collins/AP
/
AP
Republican state Sens. Roger Nutt of Moore, left, Everett Stubbs of Rock Hill, center, and JD Chaplin of Darlington, right, chat on their first day in the Senate, Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Collins)

Ten Commandments in schools floated

A decent-sized bloc of some of the House chamber's most conservative members — known as the Family Caucus — unveiled their top priorities Tuesday.

They include further restricting abortions, stopping DEI and requiring the Ten Commandments in every school.

Member Rep. Thomas Beach, R-Anderson, filed a bill that's similar to a law struck down in Louisiana. He said Tuesday that the Christian doctrine is the “foundation of all Western law” and that not to learn about them would mean students’ understanding of civics wouldn’t be complete.  

Behind the scenes: House Education Chair Erickson told reporters Tuesday, “It’s not on my Top 10 to get done” — no pun intended. “The largest piece right now is to look to that choice issue to restore those services that were ripped away from some children this past year.”  

Erickson, who is Catholic, clarified that, “It's not that I’m against that, there are some really time sensitive issues. I have a lot of work to do in a very short time.” 

In the off-season, Erickson's been working on a bill that died last sessionH. 3196, the “Educator Assistance Act" — which would amend laws dealing with professional certificates issued by the State Board of Education, teachers’ contracts, professional development days, salaries and benefits.  

S.C. Rep. John McCravy on Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025, at the Statehouse unveils the Family Caucus's 2025 legislative priorities.
MAAYAN SCHECHTER
S.C. Rep. John McCravy on Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025, at the Statehouse unveils the Family Caucus's 2025 legislative priorities.

Lawmakers await $1.8B audit

Editor's Note: This section has been updated to clarify remarks made Tuesday about the $1.8 billion.

State Treasurer Curtis Loftis was asked yesterday about the much publicized $1.8 billion that state auditors haven’t been able to account for.

“No mystery bank account ever existed,” Loftis told members of the Legislative Black Caucus Tuesday.

For two years, state officials have been trying to get to the bottom of a so-called accounting error that state Comptroller General Brian Gaines says showed that $1.8 billion in state funds had not been spent or properly accounted for.

Loftis told members of the Black Caucus that “every dime is accounted for.”

State leaders are expecting the results of an outside, forensic audit of the matter today (some have already seen the report). Loftis said Tuesday that he hasn’t seen the report.

House Speaker Murrell Smith told reporters Tuesday that he was getting briefed the same day on the report, and, regardless of what it finds, he will work to protect the state from a similar situation happening again.

“There’s an SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) investigation that is bearing down, and we need to make sure we cooperate and let them know that this was not intentional, we’re not trying to misstate anything and continue to work to try and get this resolved and find ways to prevent this from happening again in the future,” Smith said.

You can find the full gaggle with the Speaker and committee chairs below.

Daily planner (1/15)

SC House

SC Senate

SC governor

  • 3 p.m. — Gov. McMaster will hold a press event in honor of BMW at the Statehouse
    South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster speaks at a news conference revealing his proposal for the state budget on Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Collins)
    Jeffrey Collins/AP
    /
    AP
    South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster speaks at a news conference revealing his proposal for the state budget on Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Collins)

Clips from around the state

Russ McKinney, Maayan Schechter and Gavin Jackson
SCETV
Russ McKinney, Maayan Schechter and Gavin Jackson

Maayan Schechter (My-yahn Schek-ter) is a news reporter with South Carolina Public Radio and ETV. She worked at South Carolina newspapers for a decade, previously working as a reporter and then editor of The State’s S.C. State House and politics team, and as a reporter at the Aiken Standard and the Greenville News. She grew up in Atlanta, Georgia, and graduated from the University of North Carolina-Asheville in 2013.
Gavin Jackson graduated with a visual journalism degree from Kent State University in 2008 and has been in the news industry ever since. He has worked at newspapers in Ohio, Louisiana and most recently in South Carolina at the Florence Morning News and Charleston Post and Courier.
Russ McKinney has 30 years of experience in radio news and public affairs. He is a former broadcast news reporter in Spartanburg, Columbia and Atlanta. He served as Press Secretary to former S.C. Governor Dick Riley for two terms, and for 20 years was the chief public affairs officer for the University of South Carolina.