Gov. Nikki Haley Announces Executive Budget FY 2015-16

COLUMBIA, SC – Governor Nikki Haley today announced her FY 2015-2016 Executive Budget, a budget that stays within a spending cap and pays down debt while investing in education, the Department of Social Services, the safety of South Carolinians, and the delivery of effective and sustainable health services to those in need.

Superintendent of Education-elect Molly Spearman said, “Last year, when Governor Haley celebrated historic education reform with teachers, students, lawmakers and business leaders, she promised that it was just the beginning – and we couldn’t be more excited that the governor’s executive budget invests even more in South Carolina’s schools, especially in the recruitment and retention of teachers in rural districts. I look forward to working with the governor over the next four years  to make sure our students, who are our future workforce, have the resources they need to achieve their hopes and dreams.”

 

To watch video of the governor’s press conference, click here: http://goo.gl/EFfTh5

 

[youtube url=”http://youtu.be/gR7azMqZR4o”]

 

 

 

Topline Budget Highlights:

 

Creating Success in South Carolina Schools

Building on the success of the 2014 K-12 Education Reform Initiative, which was fully-funded by the General Assembly, Governor Haley continued meeting with education stakeholders around the state in order to identify and address the needs facing South Carolina’s education system.

 

Teacher Quality and Recruitment Initiative –

• Charges South Carolina’s Center for Educator Recruitment, Retention, and Advancement (CERRA) with working with the Department of Education, the Commission on Higher Education, and the Education Oversight Committee in order to develop a rural teacher recruitment initiative focused on the following five core incentives:
  • Homegrown Teacher Initiative – This incentive offers high-school students who graduate from an eligible district four years of subsidized tuition at any public college or university in the state in exchange for not less than two years of teaching in their home district or another eligible district.
  • Enhanced Student Loan Repayment – Eligible teachers receive up to $7,500 per year in direct student loan repayment in exchange for one year of teaching in an eligible district for up to 5 years.
  • Rural Educator Salary Supplement – Educators with less than five years’ experience who have not yet secured employment or who choose to relocate from an ineligible district may receive a stipend sufficient to increase their salary an equivalent of five years additional experience on their district salary schedule, up to the ten year experience pay scale.  Educators are eligible to continue to receive this supplement until their tenth year of teaching experience.
  • Graduate Degrees for Career Educators – Educators with more than five, but less than ten years teaching experience may receive up to two full years of tuition in support of a graduate degree at any public college or university in the state in exchange for a two year teaching commitment for each year of graduate education subsidized.
  • Teaching Mentors – CERRA may fund the recruitment and training of teaching mentors with at least eight years classroom experience to provide mentorship, support, and training for newer teachers in eligible districts.  During the first five years of service, mentors in eligible districts may also receive a salary stipend of $5,000 to compensate for the extra time and effort that goes into mentoring colleagues.

 

Fair and Simple Education Funding –

• The Executive Budget proposes to further simplify funding to districts by eliminating two lottery funding streams – the K-5 and 6-8 math, science, and social studies programs – and instead distribute funding for this basic curriculum through the EFA
• This will result in an additional $79 million in General Funds and an increase in base student cost from $2,120 to $2,200.

 

Reinforcing Reading Coach Program –

• $6.4 million to double the state’s reading coach investment in elementary schools with greater than 30 students who score “not met” on the state’s most recent reading assessments.
• Up to $3.5 million in dedicated professional development funding for the training and certification of reading coaches.
• Nearly $1 million to support the state’s Read to Succeed office that provides professional development, program coordination, and technical assistance to districts.

 

Technology and Vocational Education –

• $29.3 million for distribution to school districts for technology initiatives.

 

High Quality Public School Choice –

• $11.8 million to fully fund the Public Charter District Supplement.

 

Social Services Reform

In 2014, Governor Haley unveiled a reform plan for child protective services at the Department of Social Services (DSS). Governor Haley’s Executive Budget addresses those needs specified in her plan by introducing reforms and investments that will bring stability and predictability to the system, and will support the agency’s initiative to support uniform statewide workloads.

 

Caseworker Recruiting and Retention –

• Provides funding for over 200 child protective caseworkers and over 60 caseworker assistants to reduce caseloads statewide.
• Recommends sufficient funding for a 10% increase in base pay for human service professionals.

 

Child Service Accountability –

• Proposes to fund staff through DSS in support of the Statewide Child Fatality Advisory Committee and the establishment of  local multidisciplinary review and advisory committees in communities across the state.

 

Information Technology and Data-driven Risk Assessments –

• $350,000 in recurring funds to re-engineer and improve the Children and Adults Protective Service System (CAPSSS).
• $290,875 in funds to develop and implement a comprehensive risk analysis tool for human service workers evaluating the child abuse and neglect reports.

 

Adult Protection Enhancements –

• $405,000 in funds to improve Adult Protective Services at DSS.
• $135,000 to restore two ombudsmen personnel within the Lieutenant Governor’s Office on Aging.
• $529,827 in order to fully fund the Vulnerable Adult Guardian ad Litem program signed into law by Governor Haley on May 16, 2014.

 

Making South Carolina Safer

The Executive Budget further reinforces the Haley administration’s commitment to making South Carolina a safer place to live and work by building upon the substantial new investments in law enforcement and public safety that have been made since 2011.

 

Improving Child Advocacy –

• Proposes $2.2 million in recurring funds for the Guardian ad Litem program to increase the number of state volunteer trainers and recruiters.

 

Sustained Commitments to Law Enforcement and Prosecution –

• Proposes funding for 44 probation and parole agents to reduce caseloads statewide and improve accountability of known offenders.
• $1.6 million for additional prosecuting capacity in South Carolina’s 16 judicial circuits.
• Proposes funding for 11 additional agents for the State Law Enforcement Division – including 1 in the Special Victim’s Unit, 2 vulnerable adult investigators, and 2 forensic criminalists.
• Proposes funding for 4 additional attorneys in the Attorney General’s Office – including 1 violent crime prosecutor and 2 sex crimes prosecutors.
• $4 million in recurring support to expand the Department of Corrections’ internal capacity to diagnose and treat inmates with mental illness, provide onsite medical services, and establish remote supervision of inmate areas to enhance officer safety and improve accountability for both inmates and officers.

 

Delivering Effective and Sustainable Health Services to South Carolinians

In order to continue providing sustainable health services to South Carolina’s citizens, the Executive Budget proposes funding for the state’s health agencies that broadly fits into two categories: ensuring program sustainability and meeting our commitments to the most vulnerable.

 

Meeting Our Commitments to the Most Vulnerable –

• $6.9 million for 1,600 slots under various Medicaid waiver programs and to begin implementation of expanded coverage for all individuals with autism spectrum disorder.
• $4.8 million for Autism Spectrum Disorder services.
• $7.8 million for services related to children’s mental health.
• $3.2 million to the Department of Mental Health for forensic inpatient services.

 

 

 

 

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