Your General Assembly today, Feb. 15

Primary dates could change

There are 47 days left in the current session.

“If the governor says it will happen, I know it will happen.”

Sen. Clementa Pinckney, D-Jasper, who wants Gov. Mark Sanford to strongly advocate a plan for a public-private port development in Jasper County.

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.; 1½ hours after House adjourns, 521 Blatt Building, a House Ways and Means subcommittee reviews provisions for the next state budget.

IN THE SENATE: Convenes at 11 a.m. 10 a.m., 307 Gressette Building, an Education subcommittee considers a bill allowing the University of South Carolina-Sumter to offer four-year degrees.

THE DAILY BUZZ

For a few minutes last week, The Buzz thought it was going to get buzzed.

Responding to a story in Thursday’s State, Rep. Chip Limehouse, R-Charleston, strongly insisted there was nothing “illegal” about his subcommittee’s Feb. 7 meeting. House leaders and the House’s attorney also say the meeting, held without public notice, was not illegal.

Other attorneys, including academics and The State newspaper’s, say the meeting did not follow state law.

The House Ways and Means subcommittee met twice last week, voting both times to limit college tuition increases.

No public notice was required for the Feb. 7 meeting, Limehouse said, because the subcommittee “receded at the call of the chair” from its prior meeting on Feb. 2.

Limehouse’s panel met again on Feb. 9. That meeting was held after at least one college lobbyist and others objected they hadn’t known of the Feb. 7 meeting.

The redo wasn’t necessary, according to Mikell Harper, general counsel to House Speaker Bobby Harrell, R-Charleston.

House Rule 8.7 allows the House, its committees and its subcommittees to meet anytime if the previous meeting — regardless of when it was held — was recessed subject to the call of the chair, Harper said.

State law, however, says subcommittees must give public notice of their meetings “only if it is practicable to do so.”

In this case, given a five-day gap, there was plenty of time for notice, meaning the session was not lawful, says Jay Bender, a Columbia media attorney who represents the S.C. Press Association and The State.

Harper said state law does not override the House rule.

A QUICK SPIN AROUND THE STATE HOUSE

The state’s June primary election schedule might change.

The U.S. Justice Department is challenging the way South Carolina and other states conduct primaries. That could push back the June 27 runoff.

The second race, which pairs the top two vote-getters in a race when a single candidate fails to get at least half the vote, comes two weeks after June 13 primary. The federal government is questioning whether that’s enough time for people living overseas or serving in the military abroad to have the same opportunity to vote as those living here.

State election officials have made some changes, such as setting up systems that let voters return ballots by fax, to address the matter. It’s not clear if that’s enough. Meanwhile, a bill introduced by Sen. Larry Martin, R-Pickens, would delay the runoff until July 11.

TALK ON CHARTER

Proposed changes to the state’s charter school law are headed to a House-Senate conference committee.

The state Senate did not agree to House amendments on a bill creating a first-in-the-nation statewide charter school district. The move sends the measure to conference.

Members of that group could be appointed this week.

TAX ISSUE SLOWS

The Senate moved ahead with a piece of its property tax reform plan, but leaders said it might be awhile before proposals head back to the House.

Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell, R-Charleston, said the Senate might hold onto tax reform bills for a few weeks, giving the Finance Committee time to complete work on all aspects of the proposed changes.

The Senate advanced a bill capping growth in home values for tax purposes and could take up on Thursday a bill to cap local government spending.

BREAST-FEEDING BILL ADVANCES

The South Carolina House gave key approval to a bill that gives women the right to breast-feed their children in public without fear of being ordered out of sight.

The bill, likely to be advanced to the Senate this week, would require business owners to allow women to discreetly breast-feed children. Mothers would not have to move to another area to do so.