(Columbia-AP) Feb. 13, 2003 - A House subcommittee approved a bill Thursday that would require all 46 South Carolina counties to observe Martin Luther King Junior Day each January.

The bill by Greenville Representative Fletcher Smith now moves to the full Judiciary Committee for debate. Smith says he has support for the bill and expects it to be on the fast track.

Chief Justice Jean Toal also issued a memo this week that sets Martin Luther King Day as one of the holidays that will be observed by the state's courts.

A federal holiday to recognize King's birthday was first celebrated in 1986. South Carolina did not celebrate it as a state holiday until 2001.

A bitter fight in the Legislature led to a compromise to create Confederate Memorial Day on as an official state holiday on May 10th along with Martin Luther King Day on January 21st.

posted 12:16pm by Chris Rees