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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: Week 5 agenda features charter school debate and hearings on alcohol, NIL bills

South Carolina Public Radio | By Maayan Schechter,
Gavin Jackson
Published February 10, 2026 at 6:01 AM EST
The S.C. Statehouse in Columbia, S.C.
MAAYAN SCHECHTER
The S.C. Statehouse in Columbia, S.C.

Statehouse reporters Gavin Jackson 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.

It's Tuesday, Feb. 10.

This is Week 5 of the 2026 legislative session.

There are 14 weeks and 42 days left until sine die (the last day of session) on May 14.

For your consideration: For political wonks and court junkies, on Wednesday the state Supreme Court will hear arguments from convicted double-murderer Alex Murdaugh's attorneys (who include former Sen. Dick Harpootlian) as he appeals his convictions and sentences. SCETV will carry that broadcast live at 9:30 a.m. here.

Notebook highlights:

  • SC senator says he plans to resign — in November
  • What's on tap for Week 5 of session
  • Congressman Jim Clyburn talks about his new book
Reporters Maayan Schechter and Gavin Jackson, host of This Week in South Carolina and the SC Lede podcast.
Andre Bellamy/SCETV
Reporters Maayan Schechter and Gavin Jackson, host of This Week in South Carolina and the SC Lede podcast.

Wes Climer sets up Senate exit strategy plan

South Carolina Sen. Wes Climer says he plans to resign his York County Senate seat in November as the Republican runs this year for an open seat in Congress.

Last week, we reported the Senate unanimously passed a resolution — S. 880 — that says if a legislator "submits an irrevocable resignation" on or before March 1 this year, then the timeline to fill that seat will follow the candidate filing, primary and general election schedule of all 124 House districts.

At the time of the resolution's passage, it was a bit of a mystery — though not a hard guess — to figure out just who was the target of this resolution.

Over the weekend, Climer on X raised his hand as the resolution recipient, saying that changing the schedule this way will keep the district voters with representation while saving them between $150,000 to $270,000.

Climer is running to succeed 5th District Congressman Ralph Norman, who is one of five Republicans running for governor.

The senator says he plans to officially step down Nov. 2, a day before the general election.

Though the candidate with the highest name ID and the most money in the GOP-leaning race, Climer still must clear a June 9 primary and a Nov. 3 general before he claims the seat in Congress.

"I think my principled conservatism stands pretty good odds and I’m deeply grateful for the outpouring of support I’ve received so far, but I might not be the one they ultimately choose to represent them in Congress," Climer wrote. "Nevertheless, resigning under the terms of this resolution is the only path I could find that would satisfy my responsibility to act in my constituents’ best interest, regardless of how the Congressional election goes or how it might affect me personally."

To keep this exit plan, he will need the blessing of both the S.C. House and the governor.

House Speaker Murrell Smith, R-Sumter, told the SC Daily Gazette over the weekend that he expected the chamber to move quickly on the resolution and avoid the cost of a special election.

South Carolina Sen. Wes Climer, R-Rock Hill, speaks in favor of a bill to change how judges are brought up for election on Thursday, March 14, 2024, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Collins)
Jeffrey Collins/AP
/
AP
South Carolina Sen. Wes Climer, R-Rock Hill, speaks in favor of a bill to change how judges are brought up for election on Thursday, March 14, 2024, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Collins)

What's on the Week 5 agenda?

Both the House and Senate gavel in at noon.

What's on tap for Week 5?

Let's start with the Senate, which, as we reported in Friday's Gavel, will start the real debate over Senate Education Chairman Greg Hembree's S. 454, legislation that in large part takes on charter school authorizers.

Charter school enrollment has grown considerably in recent years.

And this year, after years of effort by the Horry County Republican senator, the Legislature may finally be poised to pass legislation that tackles issues of transparency, conflict of interest and "authorizer shopping" that lawmakers say have lingered for far too long in the charter school program.

In case you missed Hembree's remarks last week:

S.C. Senate Education Chairman Greg Hembree on charter school legislation, S. 454, on 2.5.2026

What else is the Senate doing this week? Here are other chamber highlights.

Now onto to the House.

The House calendar is full, but we're told the lower chamber plans to focus on bills this week out of the Ways and Means budget-writing and tax policy committee. That includes:

  • H. 3477: Filed by Rep. Micah Caskey, R-Lexington, the bill would change the max amount beneficiaries can get through unemployment insurance benefits.
  • H. 5006: Filed by Rep. Brandon Newton, R-Lancaster, the bill would offer small businesses a tax break, and exempt the first $10,000 from business personal property taxes.

What else is the House doing? Here are some highlights:

  • Tuesday
    • Budget-related hearings continue in Ways and Means this week, starting at 10 a.m. with the governor's office and the Department of Administration. Later, a subcommittee will revisit its hearing with the Charter Institute at Erskine.
    • A panel of the House Agriculture, Natural Resources and and Environmental Committee meets at 10 a.m. to in part discuss S. 383, designating the Prothonotary Warbler as the state's official migratory bird, and H. 5095 that requires the Department of Environmental Services to test wastewater treatment facilities for certain "urinary metabolites."
    • A Judiciary subcommittee will meet at 10:30 a.m. in part to discuss H. 4270, legislation that would remove evictions from public indexes and other public files if the eviction did not result in an eviction order or a court order removing tenants from their home.
    • The K-12 subcommittee of the House Education and Public Works Committee meets at 11 a.m. to in part debate H. 5073, which includes setting standards for public school grading requirements.
    • The Judiciary subcommittee handling alcohol-related legislation will meet again in the afternoon to debate three bills that include H. 3857, which would allow for curbside alcohol pickup and allow a retailer to deliver or hire a service to deliver alcohol to a customer.
    • An Education and Public Works higher education subcommittee meets in the afternoon to discuss two bills, H. 4761 and H. 4738. The first requires colleges and universities to create a yearly performance evaluation policy for faculty, and would require schools to undergo a post-tenure review process for tenured faculty no less than once every six years. The latter repeals or tweaks sections in the law dealing with the Commission on Higher Education.
  • Wednesday
    • A Ways and Means subcommittee will meet at 9 a.m. again on H. 5071, the House's version of legislation to modernize the state transportation department, ease congestion and identify new potential revenue sources. The bill would also make the DOT a Cabinet agency under the governor.
    • A House Judiciary subcommittee will meet on a handful of juvenile crime-related legislation, including H. 5121 that would create a juvenile crime prevention program.
  • Thursday
    • A subcommittee of the Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environmental Affairs will meet at 9 a.m. on three bills that include H. 5096, a proposal that outlaws the manufacture, sale, or distribution of artificial or cell-cultivated food items.
    • A Ways and Means subcommittee will meet in the afternoon on all of the proposed provisos, or one-year laws attached to the budget.

In addition to all of these meetings, the State Fiscal Accountability Authority, or SFAA, meets at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday.
You can find that broadcast on SCETV here.

The S.C. House of Representatives inside the Statehouse in Columbia, S.C.
MAAYAN SCHECHTER
/
SCETV
The S.C. House of Representatives inside the Statehouse in Columbia, S.C.

ICYMI: Clyburn sits down with TWISC

On This Week in South Carolina's Friday episode, host Gavin Jackson interviewed Congressman Jim Clyburn about his new book, "The First Eight," which details the first eight Black members of Congress.

You can catch that interview below.

And you can always catch TWISC every Friday at 7:30 p.m. on SCETV.

Daily Statehouse planner (2/10)

SC House

SC Senate

SC governor

  • 8:30 a.m. — Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette to participate in Operation Palmetto Shield: Lowcountry Cyber Tabletop Exercise in Hilton Head
  • 9:30 a.m. — Gov. Henry McMaster to oversee State Fiscal Accountability Authority meeting in Columbia

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Maayan Schechter
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.
See stories by Maayan Schechter
Gavin Jackson
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.
See stories by Gavin Jackson