Copper Dome Chronicle: 2024 Session Week 16 & Senate Budget Week
Welcome to this week’s edition of the Copper Dome Chronicle, sponsored by Advocatus. We strive for substantive writing with brevity, inspired by the book Smart Brevity.
This week’s edition, covering April 16-18, 2024, is 1,579 words or a 6 minute read. There are 9 legislative days remaining in the 2024 regular session. Thanks for reading and sharing; we welcome your feedback and commentary!
Resources
SC Election Commission Candidate Filing Tracker
Week 16 Preview
This is budget week in the Senate. The first floor session will begin on Tuesday at 12pm with additional floor sessions expected on Wednesday and Thursday. The budget bill and provisos are available online, and the Senate Finance Committee posted a summary document.
With the exception of a perfunctory third reading, the Senate will spend nearly all of its floor time on H.5100 (FY25 budget) and H.5101 (capital reserve bill). The Senate has 66 bills, six concurrent resolutions, 11 joint resolutions, and one Senate resolution on its calendar to begin the week; there are 42 bills and resolutions without a printed objection.
The House has one bill on its calendar eligible for debate to begin the week. Several full committees will meet this week and on Thursday the House could consider some bills reported favorably by committees. Also, motions to recall noncontroversial bills from committee and placed on the calendar are likely to be made this week.
Senate Rules Review
“The young man knows the rules, but the old man knows the exceptions.” - quote attributed to Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr.; American physician, poet, and polymath.
The rules of legislative chambers are critical to success as an advocate. One can use them to clear a path to passage or build a blockade to stop a bill in its tracks. Our House Budget Week post pointed out several House Rules to remember.
One key difference between the House and Senate Rules concerns amendments to the budget that shift dollars between budget lines. The House has a fairly restrictive rule, House Rule 5.3.B.3, which requires amendments increasing or decreasing spending by more than $1M must have an offset. So if a House member proposed an amendment to increase education funding by $5M, the member must propose an decrease of $5M from somewhere else in the budget.
The Senate Rules have no such requirement, though generally speaking amendments proposed without offsets are highly scrutinized. But the Senate has considered and adopted the “balancing amendment,” which does exactly what it says: it balances the budget because it is constitutionally required in Article X, Section 7(a).
This week the phrase “masthead” will be used in accordance with Senate Rule 10. The rule states in part “Notwithstanding the provisions of Rule 33 and unless otherwise ordered by the Senate, when the annual General Appropriation Bill or a Capital Reserve Fund Resolution or any reapportionment bill or any Resolution affecting the sine die adjournment date is received by the Senate to be placed on the calendar, it shall be placed in a position under the masthead of the calendar as the first order of business to be taken up each day immediately following the conclusion of the call of the Uncontested Local Calendar.” The order of business is established by Senate Rule 32A and here are the first ten items:
1. Called to Order by the President
2. Prayer by the Chaplain
3. Pledge of Allegiance
4. Receipt of Communications
5. Introduction and reference of new Bills and Resolutions
6. Call of the Uncontested local Third Reading Calendar
7. Call of the Uncontested local Second Reading Calendar
Masthead Status: General Appropriations Act
8. Call of the Uncontested Statewide Third Reading Calendar
9. Call of the Uncontested Statewide Second Reading Calendar
10. Motion Period
Past practice in the Senate has been to work on the budget bill until it has received its required readings, then if there are statewide session days remaining to work the rest of the calendar.
While the House votes on sections of budget during the debate, the Senate must comply with Senate Rule 16, which states in part “Prior to third reading of the annual general appropriations bill, each section of Part IA with the corresponding provisos must be considered individually and receive a roll call vote.” The Senate practice has been to call the roll of the Senate with each Senator announcing their votes on each section and final passage at the conclusion of the budget debate. Depending on the speed of the roll call, this can take up to 45 minutes and is dubbed “vote-a-rama.”
Week 15 Review
The election of judges is, second to the annual appropriations act, the most important and consequential event under the copper dome each session. This year’s elections did not disappoint in the political drama department with a three-ballot court of appeals race and an uncontested circuit court seat race recommitted to committee. There will be another high-stakes judicial election this year as the General Assembly will elect a state Supreme Court justice on June 5; six candidates are vying for the seat.
The Senate started off the week with some fireworks as Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey took to the Senate floor to raise concerns about H.5118 (comprehensive energy bill) and strongly suggested it should be studied for another year and considered during the next session. Some senators echoed Sen. Massey’s call for a year of study, while Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Luke Rankin argued the issue had been studied for nearly two years and Senator Tom Davis floated the idea of a “skinny” energy bill if common ground could not be reached on H.5118.
Excluding the joint assembly, House floor sessions consumed 3 hours, 48 minutes and passed five bills and resolutions.
Excluding the joint assembly, Senate floor sessions consumed 9 hours, 49 minutes and passed three bills and resolutions.
Committee Schedule Week 16
Some committee meetings that will generate some debate and news. If a live stream link is not provided with a committee meeting that means no live stream is available. Additional meetings may be added during the week and while 24 hours notice is generally given, it is not always possible to provide such notice.
Senate LCI Labor and Employment Subcommittee; April 23 at 10am; Agenda
Summary: There are two bills on the agenda: H.4710 (unemployment benefits) and S.151 (unemployment benefits).
Senate Banking and Insurance Committee; April 24 at 9am; Agenda
Summary: There are three bills on the agenda: H.4189 (captive insurance companies); H.4832 (family leave insurance); H.4869 (Department of Insurance investigations).
Senate Family & Veterans’ Services Committee; April 24 at 9am; Agenda; Live Stream
Summary: There are two bills on the agenda: H.4642 (Code of Military Justice) and H.4953 (delete state veterans' cemeteries residency requirement).
Senate LCI Professions and Occupations Subcommittee; April 24 at 9am; Agenda
Summary: There are three bills on the agenda: H.3278 (real estate appraisers); H.4086 (residential builders); H.4754 (comprehensive real estate agent bill).
Senate Education Committee; April 24 at 9am; Agenda
Summary: There are four bills on the agenda: S.1173 (high school athletics associations); S.1160 (school mapping); H.3501 (Uniform Athlete Agents Act); H.5245 (military child enrollment preference).
Senate Labor, Commerce and Industry Committee; April 25 at 10am; Agenda; Live Stream
Summary: There are five bills on the agenda (pending subcommittee action): H.4710 (unemployment benefits) and S.151 (unemployment benefits); H.3278 (real estate appraisers); H.4086 (residential builders); H.4754 (comprehensive real estate agent bill).
House Legislative Oversight Education and Cultural Affairs Subcommittee; April 23 at 10am; Agenda; Live Stream
Summary: The subcommittee will discuss the draft study report about the Commission on Higher Education.
House Judiciary Committee; April 23 at 10am; Agenda; Live Stream
Summary: There are five bills on the agenda: S.845 (claims related to the Honoring our PACT Act of 2022); S.142 (safe harbor for exploited minors); S.915 (Executive Office of Health and Policy); S.1126 (constitutional amendment regarding eligible voters); S.1 (drug-induced homicide).
House Medical Cannabis Ad Hoc Committee; April 23 immediately upon adjournment; Agenda; Live Stream
Summary: The committee will receive testimony from the law enforcement and medical communities regarding S.423 (medical cannabis). No action on the bill will be taken.
House W&M Property Tax Subcommittee; April 23 immediately upon adjournment; Agenda; Live Stream
Summary: There is one bill on the agenda: S.1017 (low income housing property tax exemption).
House LCI Administration and Regulations Subcommittee; April 23 one hour upon adjournment; Agenda
Summary: There is one bill on the agenda: S.610 (professional counseling interstate compact).
House Labor, Commerce and Industry Committee; April 23 one-and-one-half hours upon adjournment; Agenda; Live Stream
Summary: There are four bills on the agenda: S.408 (suicide prevention training for professional counselors); S.728 (firefighter cancer health care benefit plan residency requirement); S.962 (pharmacy service administrative organizations); S.1031 (Uniform Money Services Act). More bills could be added depending on subcommittee activity.
House Regulations and Administrative Procedures Committee; April 23 two hours upon adjournment; Agenda; Live Stream
Summary: There are two regulations and two joint resolutions on the agenda: H.5438 (school and library classroom materials) and S.1266 (workers’ compensation payments) would be vehicles for legislative approval of these regulations. If these joint resolutions are not approved before May 9 they must be resubmitted next year.
House W&M Higher Education Subcommittee; April 24 at 9am; Agenda; Live Stream
Summary: There is one bill on the agenda: S.314 (higher ed permanent improvement projects).
House Committee on Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity and Cyber Crimes; April 23 at 9am; Agenda; Live Stream
Summary: The committee will receive a presentation regarding “AI in the Public Sector.”
House Judiciary Constitutional Laws Subcommittee; April 24 immediately upon adjournment; Agenda; Live Stream
Summary: There is one bill on the agenda: S.1046 (judicial merit selection commission reform).
House Ways and Means Committee; April 25 at 9am; Agenda; Live Stream
Summary: There are six bills on the agenda: S.314 (higher ed permanent improvement projects); S.557 (income tax technical correction); S.621 (South Carolina-Ireland Trade Commission); S.969 (income tax deduction for law enforcement and firefighters); S.1017 (low income housing property tax exemption); S.1021 (abandoned buildings tax credit).
House Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environmental Affairs Committee; April 25 immediately upon adjournment; Agenda; Live Stream
Summary: There are three bills on the agenda: S.903 (flounder catch limit sunset clause); S.1005 (Lake Bowen motor restrictions); S.1051 (waterfowl hunting on Lake Blalock).
Key Dates
January 9: Session Convenes
January 16: Judicial Merit Selection Commission final report published
January 24: State of the State
February 7: Judicial elections (subject to change)
February 15: Board of Economic Advisors (BEA) February revenue estimate
February 20-22: House Ways & Means Committee budget deliberations
March 6: Election of the Chief Justice of the State Supreme Court
March 11-14: House floor budget deliberations
March 16: Candidate filing opens for all House and Senate seats at 12pm
April 1: Candidate filing closes for all House and Senate seats at 12pm
April 1-5: House furlough week
April 9-11: Senate Finance Committee budget deliberations
April 10: Crossover Day
April 17: Judicial Elections
April 23-25: Senate floor budget deliberations
May 9: Session Adjourns
June 5: Election of an Associate Justice of the State Supreme Court (tentative)
June 11: Nominating Primary Elections
June 12: Senate budget conference report vote (tentative)
June 18-20: House budget conference report vote (tentative)
June 25: Nominating Primary Runoff Elections
June 26-28: Budget vetoes session (tentative)
July 1: Fiscal Year 2024-2025 begins
October 6: Last day to register to vote
October 21: Early voting opens
November 2: Early voting closes
November 5: General Election Day
