email this
print this.gif){kind=spacer}
No deal reached on charter schools
There are 41 days left in the session.
“Usually, when y’all start shifting, I know who gets shafted.”
Rep. Gilda Cobb-Hunter, R-Orangeburg, replying to House Ways and Means Committee chairman Dan Cooper, R-Anderson, saying he preferred the term “shift” to “cut” when referring to potential changes in the committee’s budget draft.
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. At 9 a.m., 516 Blatt Building, a Judiciary subcommittee considers a bill banning smoking in restaurants.
IN THE SENATE: Convenes at 11:45 a.m. At 11 a.m., 307 Gressette Building, an Education subcommittee discusses creating a state school bus replacement cycle.
THE DAILY BUZZ
It was a somber day for a group of House good-ol’-boys, who mourned the death of actor Don Knotts.
A handful of lawmakers, most of them part of the lunch bunch “House Eatin’ Caucus,” donned black ribbons on their lapels for the departed Deputy Barney Fife.
Rep. Michael Thompson, R-Anderson, said Fife embodied their ethos.
“He certainly is the underdog,” he said. “You’re always kind of pulling for him.”
Thompson said his favorite Fife moment was the episode where Barney seeks to draw on the magical powers of one Count Iz Van Tileckie. The ritual involved rubbing the hair of a redhead.
No word on the magical powers of the Eatin’ Caucus.
SCHMOOZING
Where and from whom state lawmakers will be able to get free food and drinks:
• Breakfast: 8:30 a.m., 221 Blatt Building, hosted by Mental Illness Recovery Center Inc.
• Lunch: Noon, Murray Studio of the S.C. ETV Telecommunications Center, hosted by the ETV Endowment of South Carolina.
• Evening receptions: 6 p.m., Clarion Town House, hosted by S.C. Hospital Association.
MORE ON THE WEB
What you can find online
• YGA Today, a midday look inside the State House, will be posted on http://www.thestate.com/ in the early afternoon each legislative day.
• Go to http://www.thestate.com/ for a searchable list of state employee salaries for workers earning more than $50,000 a year.
A QUICK SPIN AROUND THE STATE HOUSE
Members of a joint House and Senate conference committee said deciding who will oversee a proposed statewide charter school district could trip up negotiations on the legislation.
The House wants to maintain an existing review panel to consider the merits of charter school applications and create a new board to be in charge of the statewide charter school district. The Senate wants the review committee to do both.
In a conference committee meeting, Sen. Wes Hayes, R-York, said the Senate would not be able to break a filibuster if the final measure were to call for two committees. Rep. Bob Walker, R-Spartanburg, said it might be acceptable to merge the committees into one, but he is concerned about what effect that might have on local boards’ willingness to approve charters.
Hayes said conferees were “making progress” but another meeting has not been scheduled.
MONEY FOR BUSES
Senators agreed to the House version of a bill that would plug a deficit from previous budget years and designate more than $13 million in leftover money for school buses.
The amount would cover the department’s projected $5 million deficit this school year. It could carry over the additional $8 million to the 2006-07 school year for fuel and bus parts.
Sen. Hugh Leatherman, R-Florence, agreed to designate the excess money to buses if the House decreases the amount it plans to give the education department in the 2006-07 budget by the same $8 million.
HODGES JOINS SANFORD
Former Gov. Jim Hodges will be present today when Gov. Mark Sanford holds a bill-signing ceremony for a measure extending the First Steps program through July 2013.
The school readiness program was created under Hodges, who made it a signature of his administration. The program was set to end in 2007 without reauthorization.
Sanford signed the bill on Feb. 21. The ceremonial signing will be at the Arthurtown Child Development Center on Riley Street in Columbia.
In other news:
• House debate on a bill that would restrict governments’ ability to convert private property to public use likely will be delayed until next week. The move clears time for members to work on a state budget draft.
• A House subcommittee advanced a bill that would create “Parrot Head” license plates. Tags would cost $34, with $10 for the Palmetto Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association or the Upstate South Carolina Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association.
• A budget plan is likely to clear the House the week of March 27, Ways and Means Committee chairman Dan Cooper, R-Anderson, said. The committee is likely to finish its work on a draft spending plan next week.
.gif){kind=spacer}
