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Article published: Jan 6, 2005
Governor unveils proposed budget
Sanford calls for collaboration between USC Sumter, Central Carolina

Gov. Mark Sanford is taking another stab at restructuring state government with the proposed budget for the 2005-06 fiscal year he presented Wednesday.

Many of the themes from last year reappear this year, including his effort to persuade the University of South Carolina Sumter and Central Carolina Technical College to collaborate by reducing funding. Much of the governor's proposed cost savings throughout the budget rely on restructuring and consolidating departments and activities.

The governor presented his budget to legislators in advance of their first session Tuesday. Legislators might adopt some of the governor's ideas or none.

The budget process was different this year, Sanford said, because he and his staff concentrated on activities rather than agencies. For example, they held budget hearings with all health agencies at once to find out if any of their services overlapped. If there was overlap, the staff examined how the agencies could be restructured or consolidated to save money.

Taxpayers don't particularly care which agency provides a service, he said. They just want to know they will receive services.

"This is a budget that I think moves us toward getting our fiscal house in order," Sanford said.

Despite the apparent upswing in the state's overall economy, he cautioned he doesn't want legislators to leap into spending all the additional revenues starting to appear.

"I think there are frightening gray clouds out there with regard to the national economy," Sanford said.

The national economy isn't out of the woods, he said, because of the weak dollar and the war in Iraq, so the state should be careful about committing to new spending.

Sanford highlighted his budget's education component, saying his budget gives $100 million more in new money to education and gives local school districts more discretion over how to use an additional $200 million.

He proposed a base rate of per-pupil spending of $2,213, which would rise to $9,826 when local, state and federal dollars are included.

Local school districts know best how to spend money on their students, Sanford said. However, since the state is footing part of the bill, the state should require small districts to consolidate. The budget includes a proviso requiring all school districts to have at least 2,500 students by July 1, 2006.

Though small districts might complain about this mandate from above, Sanford said the historical origins of school district lines have nothing to do with local control over education.

"It's more than a control issue. ... It's out of a past that probably has less to do with education than a racially divided South of the 1950s," he said.

Sumter School Districts 2 and 17 educate well more than 2,500 students each, but the Lee County School District just squeaks past the mark with 2,595 students. Clarendon School District 2 also clears the bar with 3,378 students, but Clarendon 1 and 3 educate 1,190 and 1,301 students, respectively.

The budget still underfunds education, state Sen. Phil Leventis, D-Sumter, said.

"You can talk about efficiencies all you want," he said, but the reality is "we've got larger class sizes than we've had in years (and) we've done away with extracurricular activities that enhance education."

He pointed to a girls' soccer team in Sumter School District 2, which had to raise $4,500 just to continue playing.

However, Leventis praised the money set aside to increase manpower on the state's highways and in the prisons.

"I'm excited about the new class of state troopers and more guards at state prisons," he said. "I have not found in the budget where they intend to get the money for that."

In higher education, the executive budget shows savings of $110,622 if USC Sumter and Central Carolina collaborate, although the budget doesn't elaborate on how they should work together.

"This represents a 3 percent reduction in the state funding for USC Sumter," the budget states.

Just as in last year's executive budget, this year's states that "these two schools are literally only separated by a fence," yet each has its own bookstore, library and information technology system.

Sanford also argues for a stronger Commission on Higher Education that could oversee the state's public colleges and universities.

"During the past year, we saw several examples of a weak CHE. USC Sumter was authorized to move from two-year to four-year status," the budget states.

Once again, the governor is proposing reducing the top rate of personal income tax from 7 percent to 4.75 percent over six years. He argues that a reduced income tax rate will make the state more attractive to affluent retirees who might otherwise move to Florida, which has no income tax, as well as to startup businesses.

Sanford would also like to reduce the commission the state pays to retailers who sell lottery tickets from 7 percent to 6 percent, which he said would be more in line with the national average.

Cutting those commissions affects local businesses, though, Leventis said. The average retailer sells 300,000 lottery tickets each year.

"You have to have at least one additional person there to sell those tickets," Leventis said.

Cutting the average retailers' commission would mean reducing the money available to pay that additional worker from $21,000 to $18,000, he said.

"It's an interesting exercise, but I think the House will build the budget differently," Leventis said.

Contact Staff Writer Leslie Cantu at lesliec@theitem.com or 803-774-1250.