Top Three Things You Need to Know
March 9, 2015
By Ashley Hunter
Compromise Reached on Local Government Fund Bill, State Budget Includes $497 Million State Capital Improvements Bond Bill and Debate Continues Over SC State
1. After several months of debate and discussion, the members of the House of Representatives along with various stakeholders such as the Municipal Association of South Carolina, reached a compromise on 3374. This bill changes the calculation for the Local Government Fund (LGF). Originally, the bill calculated the increase in the base funding that cities and counties receive from the state at a 2% increase after the growth in the state general fund revenues reach 4%. The compromise bill changes the LGF calculation to an annual percentage increase in the base funding equal to the percentage increase in the general fund estimate. Also included is a 5% cap on the increase. The LGF was started in 1991, but saw deep cuts from 2008-2013. Next the bill goes to a Senate Finance subcommittee for further debate on the compromise bill.
2. Today the full House of Representatives will begin debate on the State Appropriations Bill and the Capital Reserve Fund Bill. Part 1A of the state budget is known as the line items or the “dollars,” Part 1B is known as the “provisos” (directives on how the money is spent) and Part II is usually a separate bill known as the Capital Reserve Fund Bill. This year, the state budget has a Part III – the Capital Improvements Bond Bill. If adopted, this will be the first time in fifteen years that the state has included a Bond Bill in the state budget. The $497 million bond bill will not require any additional debt service as the state debit service is currently at 2.1%; less than half of the state’s Constitutional limit. The majority of the proposed allocations would focus on economic development and infrastructure projects. Click here to follow along as House members debate the State Budget this week.
3. House and Senate members are both debating different pieces of legislation that would deal with the $11 million budgetary shortfall at SC State University. Last Tuesday, the SC Senate set 475 to Special Order. (Only three bills at any one time can be placed on the Special Order calendar.) After debating the bill on Tuesday and Wednesday, the bill was adopted in the Senate and sent to the House. S. 475 would fire the school’s President and Board of Trustees. In the House, members of a Ways and Means subcommittee adopted H. 3663. The House version would remove the current Board members and turn the fiscal responsibilities of the school over to the South Carolina Budget and Control Board. SC State will hold a Town Hall Meeting on March 9 and debate is set to continue on the various pieces of legislation that would overhaul the management of the University.
For more information about these legislative issues, you can contact Ashley Hunter, Vice President of McKay Public Affairs (MPA) at [email protected]. MPA also publishes a one-of-a-kind monthly publication, The SC Purchasing & Procurement Digest, geared towards locating project funding from federal, state, and corporate resources. MPA’s latest endeavor, Peplum & Politics, is a blog focused on SC fashion and political happenings.
