Power-ful debateEnergy plan to be unveiled in Columbia, WashingtonBy Bill Davis, senior editor JAN. 30, 2009 -- Come Wednesday, South Carolina will have the beginnings of a brand new statewide energy plan.
 Again.
In 2007, Gov. Mark Sanford commissioned a blue-ribbon panel to address global climate change and what South Carolina could, and should, do to combat it. The commission, made up of a broad group that included power company representatives and conservationists, met extensively and last year released its recommendations.
And, just like it seems to do every year with the executive budget Sanford proffers, legislators largely ignored the recommendations and went about their way drafting their own plan, which included a statewide energy inventory.
But that’s not a completely fair statement, as Senate President Pro Tempore Glenn McConnell (R-Charleston) helped clear the way for the legislative commission -- made up of staffers from his office, three senators, three representatives and quartet of lawyers from outside the Statehouse -- to begin work on a plan in 2004 when the state Public Service Commission was restructured. The legislative effort didn’t include any conservation leaders, critics decried.
Report's findings held close to vest
Few know for sure what the Public Utilities Review Committee report will say when it is issued next week. Legislators serving on the committee approached for this story refused to release even a draft copy.
 But a couple of themes will likely emerge, according to sources familiar with the report. The biggest theme will do little to thrill conservationists: the state will continue to follow a “dual track” in the short term to cover South Carolina’s looming energy deficit.
What that means is that the state will continue to lean on coal until more nuclear power plants are online.
House Minority Leader Harry Ott (D-St. Matthews), who served on the PURC, said the proposed Florence-area coal-fired plant may be the last one ever built in the state.
“I hope it is, but all the conservation and wind power and alternative fuels combined will not make up for the shortages we face,” said Ott, who feared rolling blackouts could start hitting the state in summer months in as soon as a year.
Ott said that he and others on the committee and in the legislature would continue to fight for conservation measures to be placed alongside a new coal plant as equally important in the near future. But first things being first, it appears South Carolina has an unavoidable date with a new coal plant, he said.
Concern over federal carbon tax
One of the major concerns fueling the release of the PURC plan has been President Barack Obama’s comments about pushing for federal carbon footprint taxes and similar items. Such a tax could levy additional costs to the state, which would likely be handed down to consumers, to offset the amount of energy a state consumes and how much pollution its power generation creates.
 Greg Foster, House Speaker Bobby Harrell’s press officer, said that could negatively impact working-class families, already stretched to their financial limits by a sagging economy and layoffs.
There was also a larger concern, one that transcended all classes. It was that Obama’s proposed energy taxes would hit South Carolina later this year -- just when its dormant economy is expected to emerge from its sluggish cocoon.
To that end, a member of the commission, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed this week that the plan won’t just be released to the public and the General Assembly. There is a plan afoot for McConnell and Harrell to travel to Washington, D.C., to present PURC’s findings to the state’s congressional delegation in a sit-down meeting.
While legislators race to get the word out, some in the conservation and environmentalist community would like to see exactly what is going to be disseminated before it hits the road.
John Hartz, a retired Wisconsin bureaucrat who now volunteers for the state chapter of the Sierra Club, worried that the plan had been “crafted behind closed doors, in a black box” for a reason.
Crystal ball: The devil will be in the details, of course. One person with access to the state energy inventory portion of the report said 61 percent of energy consumed in South Carolina comes from coal. That’s quite a departure from past industry reports that 51 percent comes from nuclear. If the legislative study isn’t a big departure from the governor’s plan, then there’s a better chance some significant policy retooling will happen. If the two plans are as far apart as the governor’s GEAR commission and legislators’ budget solutions, then the PURC plan could become another example of a legislature and a governor unable to get along. And with industry reporting that 70 percent of energy consumed in South Carolina is by private residences, that could lead to a lot of hot, sweaty and angry voters just in time for the 2010 elections.
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Machinations continueThe first month of any new legislative year is largely mechanical with bills winding their way through committee while state offices plead for their fiscal life in front of Ways and Means subcommittees in the House.
In the House:
- Judiciary. The full committee will meet on Tuesday, Feb. 3, at 2:30 p.m. or an hour and a half after adjournment in 516 Blatt to discuss a host of bills submitted from subcommittees, from ones concerning ultrasounds and abortions to stopping multiple political parties endorsing a single candidate. More.
- Ways and Means. The proviso subcommittee will begin a two-day session beginning Tuesday one hour after adjournment in 521 Blatt.
- Judiciary. The special laws subcommittee will meet to discuss supporting the state’s military infrastructure Wednesday at 9 a.m. in 516 Blatt.
- Education. The K-12 subcommittee will meet Wednesday one hour after adjournment in 433 Blatt to discuss several bills, including one that would legislate snacks and school cafeteria food fat content. More.
- Judiciary. The constitutional laws subcommittee will meet Thursday at 9 a.m. in 516 Blatt to discuss bill that would alter all state laws to say “person” instead of “party,” and further define that person as a “born living. More.
Other governmental meetings:
- EOC. Education Oversight Committee will meet Monday at 1 p.m. in 433 Blatt. More.
- Environment. The Natural Gas Feasibility Committee public hearing has been rescheduled to Thursday at 7 p.m. in the Trident Technical College Nursing Auditorium in North Charleston.
- $$$. Members from both the House and the Senate will meet for the Joint Bond Review Committee on Wednesday, Feb. 18. in 105 Gressette.
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New wrinkle at ESC
Statehouse patience is running thin on Gov. Mark Sanford’s war on the Employment Security Commission, the state unemployment office.
With the ESC approaching the governor seemingly every month to sign-off on another $100 million-plus unemployment loan from the feds, Sanford has called for audits, investigations and everything short of beheadings. Yet.
 But while Sanford may be scoring points with the public for upbraiding the under-funded agency, he’s not gaining any popularity in some corners of the Statehouse. Critics in the legislature have been quick to slam the Department of Commerce, and by extension the governor, for not having done enough over the years in terms of job development. Now, Statehouse grumbling has become that maybe the governor should think twice before he points the finger of blame.
“The governor and Commerce are always touting all the business and jobs they’ve brought into the state,” groused one legislator, begging anonymity. “Where are all those jobs? If they’ve done such a good job, why is our unemployment over 9 percent? Their numbers don’t jibe with reality.”
Lesson: when you point a finger at someone, make sure the other four are pointing back at you.
Hey, brother, can you spare 391 percent?
Payday lending legislation, one of the issues almost handled in last year’s session, will hit the floor of the House next week.
This week, a proposed payday lending bill backed by House Speaker Bobby Harrell cleared the Labor, Commerce and Industry Committee. The bill (H. 3301) would require the payday lending industry to create a statewide database that would limit individuals from having more than one payday loan out at a time, limit lenders to charging $15 per $100 lent in fees, and cap the loan amount at $600.
Some Democrats in the House were already complaining that the bill was too industry-friendly, because the $15 fee can, over time, pack a 391-percent punch. Others, like Rep. Harry Ott (D-St. Matthews), minority leader in the House, defend the bill, saying the 391 percent is an overstatement. Ott added that debate will probably focus on lowering the fee to $10.
Harrell’s office said it was important to protect payday lending up to a point, “so that working people won’t have to turn to loan sharks who come and hurt you when you can’t pay, or the Internet, which is totally unregulated.” Ott said he hoped that a “cooling off period” would be included in the final bill, forcing consumers to take off a paycheck every now and again to make sure they don’t get trapped in cyclical debt.
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Fear and loathing in Ways and Means“There’s not been a lot of good news,” said Ways and Means chair Dan Cooper (R-Piedmont), when asked what has been emerging from the first few weeks of subcommittee meetings to craft the 2009-10 state budget.
 Cooper said needs and requests continued to outweigh funding. Furthermore, Cooper said that Gov. Mark Sanford’s executive budget, which called for cutting everything from several USC satellite schools to the state museum, did not address completely the situation the state finds itself in.
“If we were to close all the cultural offerings, like the state museum, which I’m not espousing, then it would save $10 million,” said Cooper. “That’s great, but it still leaves me with $290 million more I have to cut. We’d close some vital offerings and still not have gotten anywhere.”
Cooper said that in most years, K-12 education and state health care took up roughly one-third of the state budget, at approximately $2 billion and $1 billion respectively. But with cuts in tax revenues shaping the budget in the $6 billion range, education and health now make up roughly half of the state budget.
Have gun, will travel (newly added, 3:43 p.m. Friday)
Rep. Bakari Sellers (D-Denmark) has sponsored a bill that would allow motorists with a gun permit to carry their weapons beneath the seat of their car while driving.
While some see this as a recipe for disaster, especially for law enforcement officers making routine traffic stops, Sellers, usually a by-the-book Democratic team player, said it was a First Amendment issue of freedom.
“If we’re going to trust someone to carry a gun, then we should trust them to carry a gun,” said Sellers, who has graduated from the USC School of Law and is serving in the legislature and studying for his bar exam.
Sellers argued that a driver could just as easily carry the gun in the glove compartment, directly beneath the registration, making it even more dangerous for law enforcement.
“When a motorist reaches into their glove compartment, it’s vague what he’s reaching for; but if they reach under the seat, officers know how to respond,” said Sellers.
Spending cap bills not capped
Two more spending cap bills were introduce in the House this week. One, the aptly named Spending Limit Bill, would cap state expenditures at the current budget plus (or minus) the growth rate of population plus inflation. The second, the Reserve Fund Bill, would have the state keep 5 percent of its current budget in reserves, up from 3 percent.
While not completely in line with plans emanating from the Senate and governor’s mansion, these two bills showed interest remained strong for tax reform in the legislature. What remains to be seen is whether the current fiscal problems will be enough to leverage a comprehensive tax reform, or a series of partial solutions, or “Band-aids.”
Well-dressed man
Rep. Dan Cooper (R-Piedmont) is many things. As chairman of the powerful Ways and Means Committee in the House, he is one of the major architects every year of the state budget. He also knows how to tie a bowtie.
This week, Statehouse Report editor Bill Davis went to Columbia with perhaps the worst-tied bowtie around his neck in history. It looked like something a 7-year-old put a shoelace knot on. Cooper, taking a break from busy schedule, cornered Davis, and with the help of Rep. Chip Limehouse (R-Charleston), re-tied the thing properly. As the two grown, large men nattered beneath Davis’ upturned double chin, the ladies working in Cooper’s office tittered and gawked. The only thing missing from the spectacle was a camera-phone picture. We hope.
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Senate smackdown: Whales vs. dolphinsBy Andy Brack, editor and publisher JAN. 30, 2009 - - Instead of the Statehouse’s political foes having land mammals as mascots - - donkeys for Democrats and elephants for Republicans - - a marine mammal realignment might be in the works.
 State Sen. Phil Leventis, D-Sumter, wants the endangered northern right whale to become the state’s official marine mammal. State Sen. Chip Campsen, R-Charleston, wants that honor to go to the more common bottlenose dolphin.
So it’s a smackdown that pits the Whales against the Dolphins.
On Jan. 14, Leventis introduced the right whale bill. Not to outdone, Campsen introduced his dolphin bill two weeks later.
 Leventis filed his measure at the urging of students at Alice Drive Elementary School in Sumter where students have been learning about the northern right whale. Once the animals filled the ocean; now there are fewer than 400 left, Leventis said. (NOTE: We originally reported a middle school was pushing the right whale measure; if you click on the link above, you can see a video of elementary students working to make the right whale become the state marine mammal. We apologize for the error.)
“They calve off the coast of South Carolina and they’re definitely endangered,” he said, nothing that man’s overharvesting had diminished their numbers. “Man has been the undoing of the right whale.
“There are some things we need to do to protect the whale, not the least of which is slow the ships down coming into port [in Charleston] so they don’t run over the doggone things.”
Leventis was surprised this week that Campsen had introduced a competing bill to make the bottlenose dolphin become the state’s official marine mammal.
“I don’t doubt the idea of the bottlenose dolphin came about because somebody at the Ports Authority said we didn’t want to do that,” Leventis said.
Why would the Ports Authority care? Because giving recognition to the right whale might give a boost to efforts to change shipping channels or container ship patterns of entry into the port, which might hurt business.
When asked about Leventis’ bill or whether it could impact commerce, State Ports Authority spokesman Byron Miller dodged questions. Instead, he pointed to the $1 million that the SPA is spending over five years to do aerial surveys of whale calving grounds. Later when notified that we had spoken to Campsen, Miller said the SPA supported the dolphin bill.
“There has been concern expressed by them,” Campsen noted. “I think that concern may be a little overblown.”
 He said he introduced the dolphin measure because it was a common mammal that state residents actually have a chance of seeing frequently.
“If we’re going to have a state mammal, I don’t think it ought to be something that’s an interloper,” said Campsen, an avid seaman who added he’d only seen one pod of whales in his life. “I don’t think the northern right whale, which is not endemic to South Carolina and almost no one will ever see, … is an appropriate state mammal.”
For Kevin Mills, head of the S.C. Aquarium in Charleston, having one official state mammal - - or even two - - would be great because it would help educate people about the sea.
In fact, he said the Aquarium would love to facilitate a statewide vote among school children to help them recommend the official state marine mammal to legislators.
“May every flipper be counted in the vote!” he joked.
For now, Campsen said his measure appeared to have bipartisan support. A Senate subcommittee this week delayed a decision on whether to move forward with Leventis’ bill.
Leventis seems encouraged that a debate on the issue is ensuing. While not the most important legislation in Columbia today, it does matter, he said.
“So much of what we do in Columbia is substantive, but we also do symbolic things. The northern right whale is a symbol of the past that we have changed. Symbols are important too.”
Donkeys and elephants: beware.
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Strom Thurmond Institute The public spiritedness of our underwriters allows us to bring SC Statehouse Report to you at no cost. This week's spotlighted underwriter is the Strom Thurmond Institute of Government and Public Affairs, a Public Service Activity (PSA) of Clemson University. Established in 1981, the Institute conducts applied research and service in public policy areas at the local, regional, state and national levels. The Institute draws upon the expertise of Clemson University faculty, staff and students and has an established record of collaborative partnerships with academic, governmental and private sector scholars throughout the world. The Institute also enhances awareness of current public policy issues throughout the state and region through informal and formal educational programs. The Institute sponsors research and public service programs to enhance civic awareness of public policy issues and to improve the quality of national, state and local government. The Institute is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, tax-exempt public policy research organization. For additional information, go to http://www.strom.clemson.edu.
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Steps needed to fix state unemployment fundBy FRANK KNAPP JR.
S.C. Small Business Chamber of Commerce
JAN. 30, 2009 -- The current crisis over the insolvancy of our state’s Unemployment Fund has largely been addressed in the media either as a political hot potato or solely an inadequate funding issue.
 Gov. Mark Sanford berates the Employment Security Commission for alleged mismanagement and threatens to fire the commissioners for not providing certain data to his office and the Department of Commerce. The commission provides information that indicates elected officials were warned of the impending finanacial crisis. And the media wants everyone to say yea or nay to the idea of raising the unemployment tax that businesses pay.
None of this is the appropriate way to resolve this problem for the long-term. We will get by with federal loans but we must take a more logical, problem-solving approach to achieve a resolution that will make everyone happy, especially the business community.
The S.C. Small Business Chamber of Commerce proposes the following steps to address the insolvency of the state’s Unemployment Fund. This isn’t a quick fix, but it is the way it should be done:
1. Determine if all who are receiving unemployment benefits deserve to receive the benefits.
Reasonable people can disagree on eligibility for unemployment benefits. An audit will be necessary to determine in general who is receiving unemployment benefits and the criteria used to determine eligibility.
Concerns have been raised about eligibility. Some workers and businesses may be gaming the system. We must have agreement on when workers are eligible to receive unemployment benefits as a prerequisite for solving this problem.
2. Determine if current rules regarding amount and length of unemployment payments are being followed and if changes are needed.
An audit will be necessary to determine if the amount and length of unemployment payments have been in compliance with existing guidelines. Then the state must decide if adjustments to the unemployment benefit schedules are needed.
3. Determine if an adjustment in the unemployment tax paid by employers is necessary.
Only after steps one and two are complete should the state consider raising the unemployment tax if necessary. A fiscally sound Unemployment Fund is important for the state. Businesses deserve to know that the fund is being administered in accordance with agreed upon rules and regulations. If this is the case, businesses are not opposed to supporting the Fund with adequate taxes.
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1/29: Hoping science will lead to cures
To Statehouse Report:
In his Inaugural Address, President Barack Obama told us that chief among his objectives is to "restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost."
As the President of the Palmetto Chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, I couldn't be more thrilled, and eagerly anticipate the new administration moving forward to explore areas of science that will lead to cures for diseases such as type 1 diabetes (also known as juvenile diabetes).
Type 1 diabetes strikes more than 30,000 Americans each year, more than half of them kids. Until a cure is found, people with type 1 must test their blood sugar and inject themselves with insulin (or use a pump) multiple times each day, every day of their lives. Insulin is not a cure for type 1, and it doesn't prevent complications like blindness, kidney disease, heart disease, or nerve damage. Research to find a cure is the only course of action - a course that can only be accelerated by an Administration committed to using science to raise the quality and affordability of health care.
The mission of JDRF is to support research leading to a cure for type 1 diabetes and its complications. Since 1970, JDRF has spent $1.3 billion to uncover ways to fund science to reverse the immune system attack that causes diabetes, restore normal blood sugars, prevent or reverse the devastating complications the disease can cause, and - until a cure is found -- help people better control their diabetes, lead longer lives, and lower the risk of complications.
The new President said, "There is work to be done." On behalf of the JDRF community, we hope that much of that work is focused on using science to bring cures for disease and a better life for Americans. We look forward to a time when diabetes no longer threatens the lives of millions of Americans - and costs literally hundreds of billions of dollars in health care expenses each and every year. And we're ready to work hand-in-hand with the administration to speed the pace of research leading to a cure.
-- Tom Siler, Columbia, SC
1/28: Keep telling the truth
To Statehouse Report:
I read your piece in the Morning News on Jan 4, 2009, and I enjoyed it. No, I really said YES!! It's as if I wrote it, especially the part about apologizing. You were much kinder than I would've been. I said, “How Dare He or any Politician Play Politics with Our Lives!”
This is real life. This isn't a child playing a game and who doesn’t like what happens and now wants a DO OVER. Unemployment was and still is a huge crisis.
I should've told you how much I like the story sooner but please keep telling the truth.
-- Name withheld upon request, Florence, SC
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Up, down and in-between
 Uninsured motorists. The percentage of uninsured drivers on state roads has dropped by over two-thirds since 1999 -- 28 to 9 percent -- according to a recent insurance group report More: Charleston Regional Business Journal.
$3.2 billion. The only downside to the state getting a huge federal recession bailout check that Gov. Mark Sanford can‘t block -- other than the insanity of attacking debt with more debt -- is the number of new buildings that will be named after Congressman Jim Clyburn. More: The State.
 Payday lending. It’s great that working-class families will soon be able to get payday loans cheaper than paying off bad-check fees; but current legislation being considered must drop fees to $10 per hundred borrowed to better protect consumers.
 Unemployment. 9.5 percent? Really?! Tied for fastest increase in the country? Oooooh, boy. More: Associated Press.
‘Sound’ thinking? A bill that received preliminary approval in the House would force a woman to wait 24 hours to have an abortion after she first viewed an ultrasound of the fetus. What’s next, doctors getting church approval before dispensing AZT? Way to keep pushing the culture wars, guys. More: The State.
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