COLUMBIA - The Terry Schiavo controversy jump-started a bill that would make it easier for people to declare how they want to be cared for in their last days.

State Rep. Vida Miller, D-
Pawleys Island, filed the bill in December at the request of Tidelands Hospice. The measure received no attention until the Schiavo situation pointed out the need for people to state their wishes while they are able.

The program is called Five Wishes and is sponsored by Aging With Dignity, http://www.agingwithdignity.org/.

Miller said hospice workers told her they see the same situations as Schiavo's quietly happening locally when people who cannot communicate have left no directions and their relatives cannot agree on how long to prolong their lives.

The hospice workers say the Five Wishes program could help "because it's available for $5" and does not require a lawyer. It also is simple to fill out, she said.

Her bill seeks to recognize Five Wishes as one of the legal methods in the state's existing 1992 Death with Dignity Act.

The existing law allows people to specify that - if they are in a persistent vegetative state, as Schiavo was - they do not want feeding tubes such as the one inserted in Schiavo's stomach.

Sister Connie Fahey, director of Mercy Hospice of Horry County, said she is familiar with Five Wishes and thinks it is a good thing.

"I think the Five Wishes are very appropriate," Fahey said. "It makes it much easier for people to understand what advance directives are about."

Fahey said the program also gives people a way to talk about what they want at the end of their lives. Everyone should have such a directive, she said, no matter their age.

Miller's bill was approved by a House subcommittee last week and is on the House Judiciary Committee agenda for 2:30 p.m. Tuesday in Room 516 of the Blatt House Office Building.

If the committee approves, the bill could be debated Thursday by the full House.

Minibottles

A House subcommittee approved a free-pour bill drastically different from one awaiting action on the Senate floor. By week's end, it had not been scheduled for action in the full Ways and Means Committee. The panel may announce its schedule Monday.

The Ways and Means Committee also will have to deal with the Put Parents in Charge bill. The measure, which grants families tax credits for home schooling or for sending children to private schools, also passed a subcommittee last week.

The Senate free-pour bill still is stalled by objections from three senators. Sen. Kent Williams, D-Marion, removed his objection last week.

The objections mean the bill will have to be scheduled for forced debate by a special vote, which could come this week.

City election protests

The House passed and sent to the Senate a bill that allows city council members to take office after an election has been certified, even if an election protest is filed.

The measure is intended to prevent what happened in Atlantic Beach, when unsuccessful candidates kept the winners out of office for 16 months while they protested.

All other elected officials take office after certification of the election, so the proposal would make city officials the same as the others.

The bill passed on a voice vote with no opposition.

Also next week

A House subcommittee will consider the Senate bill designating a Francis Marion Heritage Trail in the Pee Dee, including Horry and Georgetown counties.

The bill was put off a month ago for an economic-impact study. Public comment will be taken on the bill. The meeting is at 2:30 p.m. Tuesday in Room 410 Blatt.

At 11 a.m. Wednesday in Room 407 of the Gressette Senate Office Building, a subcommitee will hold hearings on the proposal to adopt a college regents system. Regents would take most of the powers of the existing college trustee boards.

The plan is supported by Gov. Mark Sanford, who says it would save money and prevent repetition and overlapping of programs.

The Senate will debate the House bill calling for a constitutional referendum banning same-sex marriages, even though law already bans them.

The bill was moved ahead of the free-pour bill, even though there is no election until 2006.