The 14th week of the legislative session:

INCOME TAX: Gov. Mark Sanford signed a tax break into law for small businesses Thursday. Sanford called the legislation, which was shaped by Senate defiance of his income tax reduction plan, "a third of a loaf." It lowers taxes on small business profits to 5 percent from 7 percent and will cost $129 million when fully implemented in four years. He immediately renewed a campaign to cut state's top income tax rate from 7 percent to 4.8 percent during the next decade. The proposal, tied to economic growth, would mean $1 billion less in tax collections.

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SCHOOL CHOICE: A study from the state's chief economist says proposed tax breaks for parents who send their children to private school would cost the state as much as $231 million in revenue in five years. Supporters of the Put Parents in Charge Act had said the schools and the state would save money. "Unless we can see on the other side where there's going to be a savings, that's going to be a problem," said Rep. Shirley Hinson, R-Goose Creek.

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GAY MARRIAGE: The Senate approved its version of a constitutional amendment that would bar recognition of same-sex marriages with a 37-1 vote Wednesday. The House will have to decide whether to accept those changes. If it doesn't, the differences would have to be worked out before voters would see the issue on 2006 ballots.

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COMMON LAW MARRIAGES: New common law marriages would no longer be recognized in South Carolina under a bill that cleared the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday. Those unions entered after Dec. 31 would no longer be recognized without a marriage license. Common law marriages "cause a lot of litigation," said Rep. Phil Sinclair, R-Spartanburg.

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HEALTHY CHILDREN: South Carolina schoolchildren would be required to exercise for a couple hours each week and could only get healthy snacks from vending machines under a bill that passed the House Thursday. The Students Health and Fitness Act takes aim at reducing growing obesity rates and other health problems among children. Schools would have three years to fully implement the bill.

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MENTAL HEALTH: Companies would be required to provide some mental health insurance coverage for their employees under a Senate bill the House passed Wednesday. The bill would require coverage for nine mental disabilities including major depression and bipolar disorder. The Senate will have to decide whether to accept the House changes.

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SMOKING BANS: Local governments would have the authority to ban smoking in public places under a bill that narrowly cleared the Senate Judiciary Committee Tuesday. Existing state law doesn't let local governments regulate smoking. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Glenn McConnell, R-Charleston, says the legislation amounts to repealing private property rights.

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UNBORN VICTIMS: Criminals who harm pregnant women could face charges for hurting the fetus under a bill the House passed Thursday. Supporters of the bill say it gives the unborn the same protection under the law as people, but opponents say protecting fetuses from the moment of conception could threaten abortion rights.

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MINIBOTTLES: The Senate approved a bill Thursday that would let bars and restaurants dump minibottles and serve liquor from full-sized bottles. That legislation clashes with some details in the version approved Tuesday by the House Ways and Means Committee. It's unclear whether the differences will delay efforts to move bars and restaurants to free-poured drinks by this fall.

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BOILER REGULATIONS: The House Labor, Commerce and Industry subcommittee approved a Senate bill regulating boilers after a man was killed in a March 30 explosion at Intertape Polymer Group in Columbia. Members of his family were at the hearing. South Carolina is the only state in the nation that does not require inspection and maintenance on boilers.

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STALKING BILL: The House approved a bill that could strengthen anti-stalking laws. It was dubbed "Mary Lynn's Law" after a Charleston woman was strangled in her home in November 2003 by a man who had been sent to jail five months earlier for breaking in her laundry room.

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COCKFIGHTING PENALTY: Cockfighting would bring a criminal penalty under bill a House subcommittee passed. People convicted of cockfighting would face up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine and forfeiture of property used in connection with animal fighting. Currently, cockfighting is a misdemeanor punishable by 30 days in jail or a $100 fine.

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ENVIRONMENTAL CRIMES: The House approved a Senate bill Thursday that would allow the state grand jury to investigate some environmental crimes. South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster said the bill will give his agency better methods to investigate such crimes by forcing companies who harm the environment to open records and their managers to testify. The Senate will have to decide whether to accept the changes the House made. A similar House bill already is in the Senate.

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SANTEE COOPER: Governors would need strong reasons for removing members from Santee Cooper's board under a bill now on the Senate floor. The legislation adds the state-owned utility to a list of agencies that governors could replace board members only for specific reasons, including incompetence, absenteeism and misconduct. It also sets professional standards for the utility's board.

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CRACK COCAINE: People convicted of possession or distribution of powder and crack cocaine would draw the same penalties under a bill that cleared the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday. The legislation would ends years of stiffer penalties for the potent but less expensive rock form of cocaine. People arrested on cocaine charges, however, would face more prison time.

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TOAL TALKS: Chief Justice Jean Toal made a rare appearance before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday to tell members two bills being considered would create problems in the state's judiciary. One bill would have allowed drivers to avoid point penalties on their license and the other would have opened prospective jurors to questioning by lawyers. Only judges ask questions of potential jurors in all but death penalty cases. The panel sidelined one bill and killed the other.