The State House Gavel: SC budget 101 and tort reform tango

Welcome to Friday.

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.

We know you deserve a break after Week 8.

But, before the weekend commences, we're here to give you a Week 9 preview because the S.C. House returns Monday to start the budget debate and the tort reform debate is nowhere near over.

Notebook highlights:

• The S.C. House Ways and Means Committee previewed their $14 billion state spending plan before Monday's debate. And Chairman Bruce Bannister, R-Greenville, spoke to reporters.
• In a bit of a twist to a Thursday, the House passed its own liquor liability legislation as the Senate was still debating its tort reform proposal. What ensued next and House GOP leadership detailed new plans.
• A brief breakdown of some of the bills you might have missed this week.

SCETV

Here comes the budget

Lawmakers who are not on the House's budget-writing committee got a preview on Thursday of what they can expect to vote on next week when the chamber takes up the budget.

The House will gavel in at 1 p.m. Monday.

As is customary, the House will vote first on all of the sections of the budget that are deemed "non-controversial," meaning the sections where there are no amendments.

That will change on Tuesday and possibly Wednesday, when lawmakers debate all the amendments before approval of the bill as a whole.

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.

If you're looking for a short and sweet version, you can view here what lawmakers received Thursday.

Maayan Schechter and a few other reporters spoke to budget Chairman Bannister about his expectations for the budget.

Here are highlights:

• Bannister, citing the good relationship with Gov. Henry McMaster, said he expects the governor will see more funding for more school resource officers this year though it may not be in the House budget version advanced next week. Instead, he said, the funding could occur in either the Senate's version or what's known as "H2," when the House gets its second crack at the budget. Bannister said the committee was seeking answers about the additional schools that now need officers. "Not because we disagree with the idea" that every school needs a SRO, "but only because we didn't have the data" and felt like more information was needed, Bannister said.
• Right now, Bannister said federal funding concerns falls into the "we need to worry about it when we need to worry about it" box.
• On income tax rate cut proposals, Bannister said beyond the anticipate acceleration of what's in current statute, there is not yet a firm solution on what a deeper rate cut will look like. Conversations are still ongoing with Senate budget leaders, but Bannister said a proposal will not come before the House passes its version of the budget.

Tort reform tango

In an unexpected Thursday twist, the House unanimously passed H. 3497, also known as the liquor liability bill, an attempt to address the threat of bars and restaurants closing due to liability insurance costs.

As background: Higher liquor liability insurance premiums for bar and restaurant owners are attributed to the requirement that they have at least $1 million of liability coverage and the potential to be sued for overserving customers. The state's insurance department issued a report that found insurance companies are spending $3 in expenses for every $1 collected on premiums, which has led to major rate increases and fewer insurance companies. South Carolina is also third in the country, by capita, for drunk driving offenses. That's also led to insurance increases. The bill, sponsored by House Judiciary Chairman Weston Newton, R-Beaufort, would, among other things, seek to provide insurance premium relief of $100,000 if an establishment stops selling alcohol at midnight and could reduce premiums by that rate for every hour prior to that. Alcohol server training would also reduce premiums as well as if less than 40% of a restaurant’s total sales are alcohol. The bill would also increase DUI penalties.

House Speaker Murrell Smith, R-Sumter, Newton and Labor, Commerce and Industry Chairman Bill Herbkersman, R-Beaufort, spoke to reporters after about why they went ahead with this bill when, at literally the exact same time, the Senate was debating its tort reform proposal, S. 244.

Hear what they said below:

Speaking of S. 244, the debate over in the Senate came to a complete stop on Thursday, when a vote to table (vote down) an amendment to the bill proposed by Sen. Stephen Goldfinch, R-Georgetown, failed.

As background: Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey, R-Edgefield, is the lead sponsor of S. 244 which includes liquor liability provisions, but also measures that impact other industries, like hospitals and manufacturing.

Goldfinch's proposal would effectively gut S. 244, Massey said.

You can listen below to what happened next:

So what now?

S. 244 isn't dead just yet — but Massey's original version appears to be, even though Massey had said publicly his bill was a starting point. It might also mean that any bill that comes out of the upper chamber, if it still can, might have to include concessions.

We expect senators to be on the phone a lot this weekend to find some obtainable option.

But the House has also put the Senate in a unique spot — with now Gov. Henry McMaster, who only a day before stood with Massey and Senate President Thomas Alexander, R-Oconee, to tout tort reform, posting in support of the House vote.

In case you missed it House bills

As always, a lot of bills moved to a committee, out of a committee and off the floor in both chambers.

Here are the ICYMI highlights of some House bills that moved so you don't have to Google:

• In a unanimous 108-0 vote, the House passed H. 3021 — the so-called Small Business Regulatory Act — which, among other things, would require a thorough review of regulations every eight years, and for every new regulation proposed by an agency two old ones must be removed.
• The House passed H. 3558 in a 76-29 vote. The bill would call for a convention of states to propose a constitutional amendment to impose congressional term limits. Even if passed by the Senate, 34 states would have to do the same and 38 states would have to ratify such a change.
• The hands-free driving bill, H. 3276, was amended and moved out of the committee Tuesday after weeks of work. The law would add to the current no-texting-and-driving law to outlaw driving while holding a phone. This wouldn’t apply to using your phone if you’re stopped or parked. First offense is $100, and the second and subsequent offenses (within three years of first offense) would result in a $200 fine plus two points on your license. If signed into law, it would take effect in a year of the governor’s signature and include a 90-day warning period.  
  

  

  Gavin Jackson

Clips from around the state

• SC charter schools board sues landlord over alleged ‘excessive’ rents, breach of contract (The State)
• Trump wants to dismantle the Department of Education. What could that mean for South Carolina? (WCBD)
• Biggest ‘job creation’ in Jasper history. McMaster announces 400+ new jobs in Lowcountry (Island Packet)
• Aiken County manufacturing plant could be affected by U.S. House resolution (Aiken Standard)
• SC lawmakers say bill could help victims of prostitution (WSPA)
• Environmental programs at risk if Trump purge extends to state agencies in SC (The State)
• SC senators trying again to create vaping registry (SC Daily Gazette)