???????_Lawmakers made it through the tightest budget year in memory without raising taxes‘.‘.‘.

???????_.‘.‘. but they did raise $45 million in fees, including $25 million from a $25 fee added to all traffic tickets.

???????_A one-time congressional bailout of the states let the General Assembly put $250 million into health care and education that otherwise would have been cut.

???????_Legislators spent weeks talking about the necessity of finding a recurring source of state money for Medicaid, the health-care program for the poor, disabled and elderly. But they did not approve a 53-cent-a-pack cigarette tax, as proposed, to provide that funding source.

???????_Tax collections for this fiscal year are significantly lower than expected. That means the state could have a hard time balancing this year's fiscal year, which ends June 30.

???????_That also means that even though the ink's hardly dry on next year's $5 billion budget, legislators are already talking about cutting it.

???????_Because of budget-writing sleight-of-hand -- and the use of one-time money to pay for recurring expenses -- legislators will find themselves in an estimated $300 million hole this time next year. That means they must find that much "new" revenue just to keep existing programs operating at their existing levels.

???????_The General Assembly passed significant legislation this session: rules reforming campaign finance; limits on predatory lending; changes designed to make the Department of Motor Vehicles more efficient; tougher drunken driving standards; and stronger domestic violence penalties.

???????_Gov. Mark Sanford did not get his legislative agenda passed. He staked most of his political capital on pushing a tax swap -- raising the cigarette tax and lowering the income tax. The plan failed in the Senate and never was seriously considered in the House.

???????_The Senate and House redrew their district lines quickly and quietly, in marked contrast to last year's month-long court battle. Candidates will run in the new districts during the 2004 election cycle, barring any legal challenge.

???????_Republicans control the House, Senate and governor's office but did not act in concert. Rifts between Republicans in the Senate prevented Majority Leader Hugh Leatherman from passing measures he wanted, from the cigarette tax to eliminating the sales tax cap on cars. Sanford ruffled feathers and feelings, especially among House leaders, when he vetoed legislation unexpectedly.