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Marriage change advances in Senate
“Hopefully this year will be the year that we resolve it.”
Sen. Jim Ritchie, R-Spartanburg, discussing legislative efforts to drop recognition of common-law marriage
TODAY AT THE STATE HOUSE
For a complete list of legislative meetings, go to http://www.scstatehouse.net/ and click on the “Meetings” link.
IN THE HOUSE: Convenes at 10 a.m. A Judiciary subcommittee reviews family court rules (9 a.m., 516 Blatt Building)
IN THE SENATE: Convenes at 11 a.m. A Judiciary subcommittee discusses government rules on obtaining private property (9:30 a.m., 209 Gressette Building)
THE DAILY BUZZ
BON APPETIT
Guess who’s coming to dinner at the Governor’s Mansion?
Several people who want to be governor.
Sen. Tommy Moore, D-Aiken, Florence Mayor Frank Willis and Lake Murray physician Oscar Lovelace have been invited to dine with Gov. Mark Sanford and first lady Jenny Sanford on Sunday at the Lace House, on the mansion grounds.
No, it’s not a debate.
The strange dinner list is courtesy of Sen. Brad Hutto, D-Orangeburg, and lobbyist Dwight Drake, who teamed up together to win an auction benefiting Heathwood Hall Episcopal School. The two were the winning bidders for cocktails and dinner with the first family. And who better to invite, the two thought, than a bipartisan contingent of those who want to take Sanford’s job.
Moore and Willis are vying for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination. Lovelace is challenging on the GOP side.
Also invited, besides Hutto, Drake, Moore, Willis and Lovelace, and their respective wives, are Marie and Sen. John Land, D-Clarendon; Donna and Sen. Harvey Peeler, R-Cherokee; Doris and I.S. Leevy Johnson of Columbia; and The State’s Aaron Gould Sheinin and his wife, Tracy.
The Sanfords are paying the actual cost of the dinner. The winning auction bid was $6,600.
According to the auction program, this is the third year the Sanfords have auctioned off dinner. The program describes the evening: “Hosted by Mark and Jenny Sanford, this evening provides stimulating conversation and excellent cuisine. The Governor’s Executive Chef will prepare a seated dinner for nine couples. Cocktails at 6:30 and dinner served at 7:30.”
SCHMOOZING
Where and from whom state lawmakers will be able to get free food and drinks:
• Breakfast: 8 a.m., 221 Blatt Building, hosted by Wil Lou Gray Opportunity School
MORE ON THE WEB
What you can find online at thestate.com.
A QUICK SPIN AROUND THE STATE HOUSE
South Carolina would do away with recognizing common-law marriages under legislation that received approval in a Senate subcommittee.
Bill supporters say the law needs to be changed because of the difficulty in distributing assets when a common-law spouse dies.
Fewer than a dozen states recognize common-law marriages and some, including Oklahoma and Utah, also have been trying to end the practice.
In order for the surviving spouse to get money from the estate, they have to document the common-law marriage.
Common-law marriage can also be a problem when a worker dies on the job and the surviving partner seeks workers’ compensation benefits.
The Senate panel approved changes that would set Jan. 1, 2008, as the date to no longer recognize common-law marriages.
HONORING SOLDIERS
The Senate on March 29 will honor 39 families from South Carolina or with ties to the state who have had loved ones die in Iraq.
A resolution sponsored by Sens. Darrell Jackson, D-Richland, and Jake Knotts, R-Lexington, was approved in the Senate that posthumously awards the 39 fallen soldiers the Order of the Patriot, a special commendation creation by Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer.
The families were also invited to the Senate to be recognized and presented with the resolution and the award.
BOILED PEANUTS
The slimy, juicy boiled peanut is on its way to becoming South Carolina’s official state snack food.
A Senate committee passed a bill that would recognize “that this truly Southern delicacy is worthy of designation as the official state snack food.”
The bill defines the snack as peanuts, still in the shell, immersed in boiling water for at least an hour.
It doesn’t say whether you should open the slick shells with your hands or teeth.
The proposal, passed by the House last month, now moves to the Senate floor.
CALENDAR CHANGE
A bill meant to give parents more time with their children over the summer gained key approval on the Senate floor.
The measure, which passed the House last month, prevents schools from starting classes earlier than the third Monday in August. Schools with year-round schedules are exempt.
All but eight of the state’s 85 districts started the school year before Aug. 12. Seventeen started classes Aug. 4, meaning some teachers returned in July.
In other news:
• A bill allowing mothers to breast-feed their children in public without being ordered out of sight was advanced by a Senate subcommittee. Approved by the House last month, it allows women to breast-feed anywhere they have the right to be and exempts breast-feeding from indecent exposure laws.
• One in 12 school buses would be replaced yearly under a House bill headed to the Senate floor. The Senate Education Committee approved the replacement schedule for the nation’s only state-owned and maintained school bus fleet.
• State public school students could take American Sign Language for foreign language credit under a bill advanced by the Senate Education Committee.
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