South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford said Monday (6/9) that he has no plans to bring state lawmakers back for a special session to deal with budget vetoes.

That means if the Governor vetoes part of the budget, the objections will be dealt with when the General Assembly convenes again in January.

The following is from a news release from the Governor's office: Article IV, Section 19 of the State Constitution allows the governor to "on extraordinary occasions convene the General Assembly in extra session," but he currently has no powers to set the agenda or limit the timetable for debate. The General Assembly did not adopt a sine die resolution for convening a special session prior to adjournment last week, meaning the governor's vetoes on legislation and the budget will stand unchallenged until January, 2004.

Calling legislators back into session would cost South Carolina taxpayers roughly $75,000 per day according to the Budget & Control Board.

"Any governor's primary impact on the budget process is going to be on the front end, in what he proposes," Gov. Sanford said. "That's where our focus will be over the next few months as we start holding budget hearings and talking with folks from all over the state about the budget process. We're also going to be taking a detailed look at the way government works - or doesn't work - with our Governor's Commission on Management, Accountability and Performance. Given the cost to the taxpayers, I don't think calling the General Assembly back into special session is the route we're going to take, but clearly the dialogue we have with individual legislators over the next few months will be critical to the upcoming budget discussion we're going to have - as well as the discussion on restructuring and other key legislative priorities."