Tracking Legislation
**Join CSWA today and SCSCSW will
refund $25 of your SCSCSW membership fee.**
Engine Bill H.R. 4593
JANUARY 13, 2012
Below is a summary of a bill that was introduced this week dealing with the Department of Labor Licensing & Regulation (LLR). This legislation
has been referred to as an "engine bill" and will affect all boards under LLR. The full bill is attached for your reference. Please review
and let us know if you have any comments.
Thanks,
The Capitol Consultants Legislative Team
H. 4593
Sponsors: Reps. Sandifer, Erickson, Brady, Gambrell and Toole
This bill would allow boards to give administrative citations for violations of their practice acts in addition to civil or criminal penalties.
Any administrative penalties assessed could be appealed within ten days. The boards would establish a schedule of fines through regulations.
The bill deletes the requirement that the LLR Director must select board personnel such as the Administrator from a list of candidates submitted
by the relevant board. Boards would be allowed to delegate any of their duties, rights, or responsibilities to the department.
The bill would require a person filing a complaint to file a motion in order to protect his or her identity from the licensee to whom the
complaint refers. The motion must set forth good cause for withholding this information. Otherwise, the name of the complainant must be
disclosed to the licensee. Under current practice, the complainant is automatically kept anonymous.
H. 4593 allows the director to appoint an impartial tribunal to make a final determination of a matter if a quorum of the board cannot be
achieved due to the recusal of board members. It further clarifies that a board member, director or employee of LLR may not be held individually
liable for damages resulting from actions taken by the board or a board member in their official capacity absent a showing of actual malice.
Boards would be allowed to impose a fine for the unauthorized practice of a profession or occupation on an applicants seeking initial licensure
or renewal. Presently, boards' jurisdiction extends only to current licensees.
Persons connected with a complaint, investigation, or other board proceeding are placed under strict confidentiality. Investigative files are to
be kept confidential with limited exceptions. All board hearings and proceedings related to a complaint are to be kept confidential unless the
respondent requests otherwise. Once a board authorizes a complaint, it is available for public inspection for a limited time. The final order of
the board becomes public unless otherwise ordered by the board.
The boards are given authority to provide appropriate information from complaints to a substance abuse treatment program, although this
information must continue to be kept otherwise confidential.
Download Bill (pdf)
The House Health Care Reform bill HR
3500
July 25, 2009
Dear Affiliated Society Members,
I wanted to let you know about a helpful document on HR 3200, the
House health care reform bill, prepared by the House Energy and
Commerce Committee.
Health care reform legislation continues to be complicated and hard
to integrate. This District by District Analysis for each Federal
district of all House members shows the ways each district would
be impacted, were HR 3200, the House bill working its way through
three House Committees, to pass. It is a useful way to look more
closely at how the bill would impact small businesses, seniors in
Medicare, health care providers, and the uninsured. This Analysis
also includes an estimate of the impacts of the surtax that is used
to pay for the legislation. HR 3200 will also eliminate the 24%
cut to Medicare providers, including LCSWs who are Medicare providers,
currently set to take effect on December 31, 2009. You can find
the Analysis on the House Energy and Commerce Committee website
at
http://energycommerce.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1717:hr-3200-americas-affordable-health-choices-act-of-2009-markup-district-by-district&catid=156:reports&Itemid=55
While much work remains to be done before a viable health care reform
bill is created, this may be helpful to you in understanding how
the House bill would specifically address some of the problems we
are trying to fix in our health care system. CSWA is working vigorously
to insure a strong mental health benefit as part of the final health
care reform bill.
Let me know if you have any questions about this document or the
health care reform process at this point. I will continue to try
to provide information and materials on the legislative process
of health care reform and how it will affect clinical social workers.
Laura Groshong, LICSW, Director, Government Relations
Clinical Social Work Association
lwgroshong@clinicalsocialworkassociation.org
Federal Stimulus Plan, Act of 2009 Mandates Changes to
HIPAA:
April 2, 2009
We, psychotherapists and counselors, are already highly attentive
to privacy issues and set high standards in regard to confidentiality
and disclosures. As a result, our existing standards often exceed
the minimum standards mandated by HIPAA. It is, however, critically
important to stay abreast of changes in the law requiring increased
vigilance in protecting our patients' right to privacy.
The different provisions of the new Federal American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act of 2009 have different effective dates. Some provisions
take immediate effect, while others will not go into effect until
2010.
Summary of some of the new Act's provisions relevant to psychotherapists:
Expansion of individual rights: When patients, according to the
new law, pay 100% out of pocket, they can direct their therapists
to limit disclosure and specify that information cannot be provided
to their health insurer (or others). As psychotherapists we are
already required to obtain clients' disclosure in such situations.
"Minimum necessary" rule: Previously, under HIPAA, the
"minimum necessary" rule instructed covered entities to
keep disclosures to the minimum amount necessary to accomplish the
intended purpose. Therapists must always keep the "minimum
necessary" rule in mind and reveal only what is truly necessary
when communicating (always with clients' permissions) with medicating
psychiatrists, GP's, etc. The new Act intends to tighten up what
information may be disclosed.
State attorneys general are now allowed to bring HIPAA enforcement
actions.
Electronic Medical Records concerns
March 9, 2009
Dear Affiliated Society Members,
CSWA has been tracking the move toward electronic medical records
in a careful, concerned way. Aside from the major privacy concerns
electronic records raise, the question of whether the use of electronic
records will really save money in health care has been debatable.
Though the recently passed Economic Stimulus Bill (see CSWA post
on ARRA, 2/19/09) had a strong privacy component for electronic
medical records, the risks to privacy are still possible. As clinicians,
we need to continue to monitor the impact of electronic health records
on privacy.
This article in TIME magazine, March 5, "Electronic Medical
Records: Will They Really Cut Costs?" by Scott Haig, MD, suggests
that the push to electronic records, will not only lead to less
privacy, but will ultimately increase the cost of health care. While
this may not have a major effect on psychotherapy codes (because
the code options we have are limited and not generally connected
to inpatient care), I thought you might like to read this excellent
'big picture' article, which can be found at http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1883002,00.html
.
I hope this article useful in thinking about the issue of electronic
health records, a topic which will directly affect the practices
of clinical social workers who use third party payers, in the near
future.
Laura Groshong, LICSW, Director, Government Relations
Clinical Social Work Association
lwgroshong@clinicalsocialworkassociation.org
CSWA has a new look on our website - be sure to check it out at
www.clinicalsocialworkassociation.org.
ARRA/HITECH Act Signed by President
February 17, 2009
The President has signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment
Act (H.R. 1), which includes the HITECH Act on rules for the use
of electronic health information. There are some important elements
that affect clinical social workers.
The bill contains the Health Information Technology for Economic
and Clinical Health or "HITECH Act" (at Title XIII), about
which I have sent several alerts. I am happy to report that this
form of the HITECH Act is much better than any of the previous bills
regarding privacy and privilege,including the original HITECH Act.
There was a last minute consideration of the removal of the patient-psychotherapist
privilege, granted by the Supreme Court (1996)in Jaffee v. Redmond.
This would have been a terrible blow to the cornerstone of our clinical
work. Due to much work by mental health associations, the bill instead
has a protection of privilege, stating that nothing in the Subtitle
on privacy will constitute a waiver of "any privilege otherwise
applicable to an individual with respect to the protected health
information of such individual." Section 13421(c).
Additionally the bill includes the following protections of health
care information:
· Patient notification of all disclosures without consent, or "breaches",
of protected health information;
· Creation of an Health Information Technology Policy Commission
charged, among other things, with creating electronic records which
will "segment" or separate mental health information (and
other sensitive information) from the general record with greater
privacy protection;
· Encryption of patient information when sent outside a health care
network;
· Audit trails to determine who has accessed health care information
and for what purpose;
· The right of the provider to determine what "minimum necessary"
information is for disclosures (the Secretary may issue guidelines
later); and
· Opt-in requirements for sale of patient information, i.e., patients
must consent in writing to the sale of their health care information.
Finally, there will be grant money available for providers who need
financial assistance for building an electronic health care record.
I will let you know as I learn more about the details of this option.
Thanks to all of you who responded to alerts on health information
technology. You contributed to making privacy protection of health
care records much stronger.
Laura Groshong, LICSW, Director, Government Relations
Clinical Social Work Association
lwgroshong@clinicalsocialworkassociation.org
Fair Pay Act and S-CHIP
February 2009
Dear Affiliated Society Member,
I thought you would like to see this good news.
President Obama signed the S-CHIP legislation into law this afternoon
after the House re-passed the Senate version of the bill. The major
difference in the Senate bill was that physicians cannot self-refer
to hospitals in which they have part ownership.
The mental health parity requirement now included is critical because
although low-income children have much higher rates of mental health
conditions, only about 40 percent of states offer full coverage
of necessary services for children with complex mental health needs.
The bill aims to cover at least 4.1 million additional children,
funded primarily by a 62-cent increase in the federal tax on cigarettes,
with proportional increases for other tobacco products. Some legislators
see this as an important step toward achieving universal health
coverage.
I know some people have had trouble with the President's email address,
especially those on AOL. I recommend trying www.whitehouse.gov and
then go to "Contact Us".
Please send the following message: "Dear President Obama, I
am a member of the Clinical Social Work Association. On behalf of
all our nation's children, I applaud your signing the S-CHIP bill
which will benefit us all. Sincerely, __________LCSW [or MSW]
Thanks for your help. As always let me know when you have sent your
messages and any responses you receive.
Laura Groshong, LICSW
CSWA Director, Government Relations
lwgroshong@clinicalsocialworkassociation.org
January 29, 2009
Dear Affiliated Society Members,
The SCHIP Bill, which will provide health care for 4 million more
children and was vetoed twice by President Bush, has passed the
House and Senate tonight - again - and is poised to be signed into
law by President Obama. This is a tangible sign that the needs of
children are finally being taken into account.
The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act (S. 181), reversing the Supreme
Court decision that limited women and other workers' ability to
sue for wage discrimination, was signed into law today by President
Obama. This bill was named after the Goodyear Tire employee who
sued when she found she was being paid $6000 less than any employee
at her level, some with less seniority. She was present at the signing.
The goals and values of the Clinical Social Work Association are
being implemented. Please send your thanks to President Obama for
his recognition of equal pay for equal work and encourage him to
sign the S-CHIP bill when it reaches his desk.
Please send President Obama the following message at www.whitehouse.gov/contact:
"Dear President Obama, I am a member of the Clinical Social
Work Association. Thank you for supporting clinical social work
goals in signing the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act into law. I hope
you will also sign the S-CHIP bill into law when it reaches your
desk. I am proud to have a community organizer as our President.
Sincerely, ___________, LCSW/LICSW"
Thanks for your help. As always let me know when you have sent your
messages and any responses you receive.
Laura Groshong, LICSW
CSWA Director, Government Relations
lwgroshong@clinicalsocialworkassociation.org.
CSWA has a new look on our website - be sure to check it out at
www.clinicalsocialworkassociation.org .
Mental Health Parity
October 6, 2008
Dear Affiliated Society Members,
I've received some questions about the Act which contains mental
health and substance abuse parity that I will try to answer here.
Here is what the Act contains.
The Act requires parity between mental health/substance abuse services
and medical/surgical services, i.e., if a mental health/substance
abuse benefit is offered, it must be at parity with medical surgical
benefits in the following areas: 1) co-pays; 2) coinsurance; 3)
deductibles; 4) out-of-pocket expenses; and 5) out-of-network coverage.
Here is what the Act does not contain.
First, the Act does not contain a mental health mandate; it contains
a mental health offering, meaning that any insurance plan covering
large businesses, whether it is a self-insured plan (with Federal
oversight) or a state regulated plan, must offer mental health benefits
AT PARITY with medical/surgical benefits in IF mental health benefits
are offered. There is no requirement that a mental health benefit
or substance abuse benefit be offered. This mainly covers about
82 million enrollees in ERISA plans who had no protection in the
plans that were exempt from state parity laws.
Second, there are several major groups that are not included in
this Act. They are Medicare (which has a recently mandated mental
health co-pay at parity with medical/surgical co-pays which will
be phased in over the next 6 years, passed in separate legislation);
Medicaid; small business plans; and individual health
plans.
Third, there is no mention in the Act of the mental health/substance
abuse diagnostic categories which must be covered if a mental health/substance
abuse benefit is offered, or the length of treatment that must be
provided. 'Medical necessity' can still be determined by public
or private insurers in these areas, though it is likely that attempts
to limit parity to certain diagnostic categories will be under more
scrutiny.
This Act must be implemented by the Departments of Labor, Health
and Human Services, and the Treasury by October 3, 2009.
Many thanks once again to all of you who responded to the legislative
alerts I and others sent requesting your help in contacting members
of Congress. Your actions contributed to this achievement.
Laura Groshong, LICSW
Laura W. Groshong, Director, Government Relations
Clinical Social Work Association
lwgroshong@clinicalsocialworkassociation.org
October 3, 2008
Dear Affiliated Society Members,
The House passed the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act today,
which included the mental health parity bill, on a vote of 263-171.
You can find how your Representative voted by going to:
http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2008/roll681.xml.
Please thank your Representative for passing this legislation with
the following message: "Thank for supporting the Emergency
Economic Stabilization Act and giving our citizens better access
to mental health services."
As always, please let me know when you have sent your message.
Regards,
Laura Groshong, LICSW
CSWA Director, Government Relations
lwgroshong@clinicalsocialworkassociation.org
October 3, 2008
Dear Affiliated Society Members,
I just wanted to respond to some concerns which have been raised
about the fact that mental health parity has been rolled into the
economic bailout bill and give you the CSWA Government Relations
Committee's thinking about it.
Those who object to the connecting of parity and the financial bailout
have a good point. This is not a perfect bill, or an ideal legislative
situation. And reasonable people can disagree, especially in a situation
like this.
Politics in my experience is the art of compromise. There is rarely
a perfect bill, and as the old saying goes, politics makes strange
bedfellows. This occurs in bills as well. We would rather have seen
mental health parity pass as a free standing bill, but would rather
have it pass as part of a bill that is unrelated, than not pass
at all.
Some people may object to the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act
on its merits. We haven't heard from anyone who objects to the mental
health parity on its merits. We do understand the problem with having
a good bill connected to a less good bill. But this is a major part
of legislative success.
Pragmatism is also crucial in legislative success. The CSWA Government
Relations Committee pays close attention to the line where political
collaboration undermines our ethical standards while meeting our
legislative goals, and when political collaboration, while not a
'natural' fit, is congruent with our ethical standards and meets
our legislative priorities.
I hope this helps explain the reasoning the CSWA Government Relations
Committee went through to reach the decision to support the linking
of mental health parity and the Emergency Economic Stabilization
Act.
Laura Groshong, LICSW
Director, Government Relations
Clinical Social Work Association
4026 NE 55th Street
Suite C
Seattle, Washington 98105
206-524-3690
lwgroshong@comcast.net
October 2, 2008
Dear Affiliated Society Members,
I need your help immediately to pass mental health parity in the
House.
As you know, the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act passed the
Senate yesterday 74-25, with the mental health parity bill (HR 1424)
that we have been fighting for.
The bill will go to the House tomorrow for their vote. call their
U.S. Representative by using the toll-free Parity Hotline: 1-866-parity4
(1-866-727-4894). (The Parity Hotline reaches the U.S. Capitol switchboard,
which can connect callers to the offices of their members.)
PLEASE CALL your Representative IMMEDIATELY with the following message:"I
am a member of the Clinical Social Work Association [or your Society]
and a constituent. Please have Representative _______ vote for the
Emergency Economic Stabilization Act that includes needed mental
health and addiction parity legislation."
With any luck, we will be watching the President sign this bill
shortly!
As always, please let me know if you send any messages or receive
any responses from your Representatives.
Laura Groshong, LICSW
CSWA Director, Government Relations
lwgroshong@clinicalsocialworkassociation.org
September 29, 2008
Dear Affiliated Society Members,
The Social Work Revitalization Act needs your attention!
This Act (S. 2858/H.R. 5447) is currently in Congress and being
supported by CSWA and NASW. To see the CSWA Position Paper on SWRA,
go to http://www.clinicalsocialworkassociation.org/policy-paper-letters.
This Act will create a Commission to review the work being done
by social workers and clinical social workers of all kinds in all
settings;compare the educational debt taken on by social workers
in pursuing their education to the anticipated income of social
workers and clinical social workers; and consider ways to defray
educational costs for social workers.
Please go to http://www.visi.com/juan/congress/ to access the email
address of your representative and send the following message to
your members of Congress: "I am a member of the Clinical Social
Work Association and a constituent. Please support the Social Work
Revitalization. This Act will help determine all the crucial roles
being filled by social workers and clinical social workers and how
to support social work education."
As always, please let me know when you have sent your messages and
if your receive responses from your members of Congress. Many thanks
for your help on this important issue.
Laura Groshong, LICSW
CSWA Director, Government Relations
lwgroshong@clinicalsocialworkassociation.org
September 23, 2008
Dear Affiliated Society Members,
The saga of Federal mental health parity continues. Today the Senate
and House each passed parity legislation by strong vote margins.
The Senate vote of 83 to 12 is posted as vote #204 at:
http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/vote_menu_110_2.htm
This was the Floor vote to pass the Baucus/Grassley amendment #5635,
which combined the House/Senate agreement on parity (the Paul Wellstone
and Pete Domenici MH Parity & Addiction Equity Act of 2008)
with tax extenders, AMT and disaster relief.
The House vote of 376 to 47 is posted at http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2008/index.asp,
H.R. 6983, the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici MH Parity &
Addiction Equity Act of 2008.
These bills need to be consolidated, because they are different
bills, to be sent to the President. This is our next goal.
Please check the roll calls and thank any of your legislators who
voted in favor of the bills, especially ones you contacted with
the following message: "I am a member of the Clinical Social Work
Association and a constituent. Thank you for voting in favor of
mental health parity today. I hope you will continue to work for
a bill that can be sent to the President." Use the Parity Hotline:
1-866-parity4 (1-866-727-4894). The Parity Hotline reaches the U.S.
Capitol switchboard; ask for the offices of your members of Congress.
As always, please let me know if you receive messages from your
members of Congress and/or have sent your messages. Many thanks
to all of you who participated in getting the bills this far.
Best regards,
Laura Groshong, LICSW
CSWA Director, Government Relations
lwgroshong@clinicalsocialworkassociation.org
Some members have requested clarification on the URLs for the votes
listed below. Here are the direct links.
Senate: http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=110&session=2&vote=00204
House: http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2008/roll625.xml
Not a CSWA Member? The Clinical Social Work Association is an independent
membership organization, affiliated with your state society, but
requiring separate membership. Please consider joining CSWA today
and keeping the voice of clinical social work strong at the national
level. Online applications are available at www.clinicalsocialworkassociation.org.
**Join CSWA today and SCSCSW will
give you $25 back from your membership fee.
September 22, 2008
Dear Affiliated Society Members,
I wanted to give you an update on the mental health parity bills
winding through Congress. The situation is very fluid and will no
doubt change between now and the eventual passage of the compromise
bill, if it occurs, by the end of the week.
No action is needed at this time UNLESS you have not contacted your
Senators and Representative in response to the three previous emails
that I have sent requesting action on mental health parity. If that
is the case, please refer to yesterday's email on contacting your
Representative, and include your Senators as well.
Here's the story. House leadership today decided not to act on its
own mental health parity bill. Instead, they will wait to see whether
the Senate parity bill passes tomorrow.
The Senate is planning to make the parity bill part of an energy
tax bill, H.R. 6049, which would offer funding for a variety of
areas, including disaster relief and alternative minimum taxes.
If this bill, with parity included, passes the Senate tomorrow,
it will be sent to the House where it will be acted upon quickly.
Both Houses of Congress have strong support of the mental health
parity offering (remember, it is not a parity mandate, but a parity
offering, i.e., if mental health benefits are included in an insurance
plan, they must be at parity with medical benefits). The highly
charged economic and political environment in Congress right now
is affecting the process, i.e., the 'horse trading' that occurs
as the deadline for passing any bill comes into play.
The wish to honor Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and have passage of
parity as part of his legacy is an important component of the situation
and will influence the process in both Houses.
Sorry for the many emails on this. It is a very important and complex
process.
Regards,
Laura Groshong, LISCW, Director, Government Relations
Clinical Social Work Association
lwgroshong@clinicalsocialworkassociation.org
September 18, 2008
Dear Affiliated Society Members,
Many thanks to all the CSWA and affiliated society members who contacted
their members of Congress to request that a Federal mental health
parity bill be passed this past week. CSWA and affiliated society
members also attended the Mental Health Parity Rally held yesterday
in Washington D.C. to pass the bill.
Funding in the Senate has been achieved for the parity bill through
the inclusion of the bill in a bipartisan tax package, which includes
many crucial pieces of legislation. The Senate will be taking up
the legislation shortly. The House leadership is meeting this afternoon
to determine how to address the Senate bill and/or parity separately.
I will keep you posted on developments. No action is needed at this
time. The possibility of mental health parity passing this year
is looking more positive.
Regards,
Laura Groshong, LICSW, CSWA Director, Government Relations
lwgroshong@clinicalsocialworkassociation.org
Legislative Reports from Capitol Consultants
Weekly Legislative Update
February 20, 2009
This Week in Review
The State House Quote of the Week
"Ya'll know Mr. Kirsh is a DINO. Not only because he is old, but
he is also a Democrat In Name Only."
- Rep. Gilda Cobb-Hunter was making jest of the fact that Rep. Herb
Kirsh (D-Clover) voted for a dramatic cut to local funding. In Thursday
evening's full Ways and Means budget hearing, all of the other Democrats
on the committee voted against this measure leaving Rep. Kirsh as
the only Democrat to side with the Republicans. Rep. Kirsh is the
oldest and longest serving member of the House of Representatives.
During the sixth week of the first session of the 118th General
Assembly, House Ways and Means members passed their version of the
state appropriations bill and Senators finally finished up the State
Ports Authority reform bill.
Cigarette Tax Bill: A long-awaited cigarette tax bill was introduced
this week by House Speaker, Bobby Harrell. Under Harrell's plan,
the state's cigarette tax would increase to 57 cents, an increase
of 50 cents. The additional funds that could be generated by the
tax increase would be going to help small businesses and low-income
workers to buy health insurance. Last year, Governor Sanford vetoed
the cigarette tax bill because he wants the additional revenue to
help pay for the elimination of corporate income taxes.
Dollars and Cents: Members of the House Ways and Means committee
passed their version of the State Appropriations bill a few minutes
before 10:00 PM on Thursday night. Members acknowledged that state
tax revenues will not begin to increase at a self sustaining level
until FY 2011-2012 when the stimulus money runs out. However, they
said that the choice to decline federal money would have meant $700
million in cuts from this year's budget.
Word of the Week: "Audit": During the Ways and Means budget deliberations,
Representative Brian White (R-Anderson) noticed that there was more
than $250,000 missing from the Office of Veteran's Affairs. To his
surprise, he discovered the Governor's staff had spent the money
on a new facility and on the Governor's security detail. White's
suggestion? Maybe it is time the Governor's office was paid a visit
from the Legislative Audit Council.
Dropping the Hammer on State Agencies: The SC Legislative Audit
Council (LAC) is the state agency that performs independent audits
of state operations. They are governed by a Board made up of five
public members and four legislative members. Most recently, the
LAC uncovered that the Department of Disabilities and Special Needs
(DDSN) allowed $9 million that was originally allocated for the
autism program had been rerouted to the agencies general fund instead.
Governor Sanford used his executive power to remove four Commissioners
at DDSN. Commissioners John Vaughn of Greenville, Edythe Dove of
North Charleston, John Powell of Walhalla, and William F. Bishop
of Leesville were asked to resign from the Board earlier in the
week.
State Ports Authority: Senators finally passed a bill Tuesday that
would restructure the State Ports Authority. The Senate passed the
bill by a vote of 28 – 15 after they agreed to an amendment that
would limit Governor Mark Sanford's power over the authority's board.
Another amendment to the bill by Sen. Greg Ryberg (R-Aiken) shortens
the terms of Ports Authority board members from seven years to five.
Local Governments Take A Hit: In the Ways and Means committee hearing
on Thursday night, the Local Aid to Subdivisions Fund was cut by
$122 million. What makes this even more troubling is the maneuvering
that took place to carve out a law that prohibits such a cut. Just
before budget debate resumed, committee members voted to pass a
bill that removes the prohibition against cutting local aid to subdivisions
more than the level at which it was funded in the previous fiscal
year. The fund would go from $48.1 million to $27.7 million. The
Local Aid to Subdivisions fund was established in the early 90's
to give local governments a stable funding mechanism so these governments
would not be solely reliant on property taxes and other fees.
This publication is produced for you by the legislative team at Capitol Consultants, Inc. If you would like further information, please contact Ashley Smith Hunter at Ahunter@capconsc.com or at 803-252-1087.
Weekly Legislative Update- 3rd week
February 5, 2009
This Week in Review
State House Quote of the Week
"Like my momma always said, growing old is mandatory. Growing up
is optional. Bet you can't guess which one applies to me."
- Senator Harvey Peeler (R-Gaffney) teased Senator Nikki Setzler
(D-West Columbia) when they
were having a discussion on how the current state tax structure
affects the aging population. Senate Finance Committee members were
discussing the Tax Realignment Commission (Senate Bill 12) in a
hearing on Tuesday afternoon. During the third week of the first
session of the 118th General Assembly, House members discussed pay
day lending reform and Senators were in Perfunctory Session on Tuesday
and Wednesday. Payday Lending Update: The House Labor Commerce and
Industry Committee passed the payday lending bill this week. The
bill extends the payment period for borrowers who are unable to
pay back their loans on time. The bill will be taken up on the House
floor Tuesday, February 10.
Gilda Takes Democrats to Task: In Tuesday's meeting of the House
Minority Caucus, Rep. Gilda Cobb-Hunter (D-Orangeburg) admonished
members of the caucus who are supporting the bill that were debated
in House Judiciary this week regarding the abortion laws. She said
"If men could have babies we wouldn't be having this debate!"
She urged the caucus members to stop being afraid to speak up and
take sides on the issues. One bill, dealing with a mandatory 24
hour wait period before an ultrasound passed the full Judiciary
committee and was sent to the House floor. The other, dealing with
life saving techniques performed on an aborted fetus, passed the
House Judiciary subcommittee and will be heard in the full House
Judiciary committee next week.
Confederate Memorial Day: Senator Robert Ford (D-Charleston) is
the sponsor of a bill that would force counties and municipalities
to give employees paid leave for Confederate Memorial Day (May 10th)
Currently, only 10 of the state's 46 counties now recognize Confederate
Memorial Day and allow employees to take paid leave. The bill passed
the Senate Judiciary subcommittee on Tuesday. Many questioned Senator
Ford, an African American, about this legislation because they see
this as a bill honoring those who wanted to keep slavery intact.
Word of the Week: "Restructuring": This week, the Senate Transportation
committee gave approval to a bill that would restructure the make
up of the State Ports Authority Board. This is just the latest in
a slew of restructuring bills being taken up by the members of the
General Assembly. Speaker Bobby Harrell and Rep. Kenny Bingham also
introduced a bill on Wednesday that would restructure and reform
the Employment Security Commission. Restructuring has been a top
agenda item for Governor Mark Sanford for the last six years. There
have been more than a dozen restructuring bills introduced in the
House and Senate this year.
SCENE AND HEARD
A glimpse of what is happening on the political scene and what the
Cap Con legislative team is hearing behind the scenes.
The Sale of SC2: At a reception for the Myrtle Beach Chamber of
Commerce on Wednesday night at the Clarion Hotel, Lt. Governor Andre
Bauer was talking about the lack of privacy an elected offical has.
The latest proof of this was numerous blog reports on the sale of
Bauer's Smart Car. (Also known as "SC2" because of the Lt. Governor's
license plate.) The car is for sale and parked outside of Bauer's
Blossom Street home.
This publication is produced for you by the legislative team at
Capitol Consultants, Inc.
If you would like further information, please contact Ashley Smith
Hunter at Ahunter@capconsc.com or at 803-252-1087.
Weekly Legislative
Update - second week
January 30, 2009
This Week in Review
State House Quote of the Week
"No sir! I just put mine out on the back porch with my beer in it."
- On Tuesday's meeting of the Senate Judiciary Committee, the members
discussed Senate Bill 8
that provides financial assistance to low income citizens as an
incentive for them to use energy efficient products in their home.
This was the response that Dukes Scott, with the State Office on
Regulatory Staff, gave to Senator Jake Knotts when he asked him
if he had ever tried to take his refrigerator to the dump. During
the second week of the first session of the 118th General Assembly,
House members listened to state agencies present their budget requests
and discussed payday lending. Senators spent a lot of time discussing
the state tax systems in their subcommittees.
DSS Embezzlement: On Tuesday, during the Department of Social Services
budget hearings, DSS Director Kathleen Hayes answered a lot of questions
about the former DSS Finance Director that has been charged with
embezzling $5.5 million from the agency. The members of the subcommittee
asked questions about how the money was stolen. Most poignantly
were the questions asked about when the Secret Service and SLED
informed the Governor's office about the investigation. The members
also asked who the independent firm was that audited the agency.
Director Hayes informed the members of the subcommittee that she
was very angry about the fraud- especially in such tight budget
times. She also stated that she was working with SLED to develop
new fraud prevention measures.
Word of the Week: "Stimulus" On Wednesday, the US House of Representatives
passed an $819 billion economic stimulus plan. South Carolina stands
to receive $3.2 billion. $480 million in the stimulus plan would
go to roads and infrastructure. United States Senator Jim Clyburn
inserted an amendment to the stimulus plan that would give the state
legislative leaders to accept the stimulus money if Sanford did
not act on it in 45 days. Governor Sanford is opposed to the stimulus
package because he views it as using more federal deficit spending
that will ultimately come back to cost the tax payers money.
Furlough: The members of the South Carolina House and Senate are
taking furloughs in the coming weeks of the legislative Session
to try to ease the burden of the state budget crisis. Each day that
the legislature does not convene saves the taxpayers approximately
$55,000.
Payday Lending: Speaker Bobby Harrell introduced a bill that would
raise the minimum amount that payday lenders could lend to $600/
On Tuesday, this bill passed the House subcommittee. Proponents
of the legislation say that in these difficult financial times,
some people have no other means when they are faced with immediate
financial crises. The legislation is co-sponsored by 75 House members
and will be heard in the full House Labor Commerce and Industry
Committee on next Tuesday.
Steele'n the Show: The race for the Republican National Committee
Chairman was decided at 3:30 this afternoon. After the six rounds
of voting, former Maryland Lieutenant Governor Michael Steele defeated
South Carolina Republican Party Chair, Katon Dawson, by a vote of
91 to 77. Steele will be the first African American to lead the
Republican Party. Governor of Virginia, Tim Kaine, took over the
position of Democratic National Committee Chairman when Howard Dean
stepped down earlier this month. SCENE AND HEARD
A glimpse of what is happening on the political scene and what the
Cap Con legislative team is hearing behind the scenes.
A Warm Welcome Home: Former Canadian Ambassador and Speaker of the
SC House of Representatives David Wilkins showed up at the House
Republican Caucus's annual event on Tuesday night. At the event,
several members of the General Assembly were thrilled to have Wilkins
back from the cold. The Former Speaker was not the only surprise
guest, many members of the Senate such as Speaker Pro Tempore Glenn
McConnell, Lt. Governor Andre Bauer and Senator Mick Mulvaney surprised
the House members by attending the event.
This publication is produced for you by the legislative team at Capitol Consultants, Inc. If you would like further information, please contact Ashley Smith Hunter at Ahunter@capconsc.com or at 803-252-1087
