It was another busy week in the legislature. It started on Monday with Legislative Oversight Committee hearings on the Dept. of Corrections and Aeronautical Commission.
On Tuesday, I had three bills, H. 3698, 3699, and 3700, before the Environmental Affairs Subcommittee, concerning docks and sea walls, that required compromise between environmental groups and regulated property owners to move forward. My thanks to both groups for working to achieve a needed consensus on these bills.
On Wednesday, a bill I sponsored to eliminate the conflict between realtors and homeowners association over realtor for-sale signs, H. 3203, got a hearing before the Judiciary Committee. The bill would prohibit HOAs from prohibiting or dictating the content of realtor for-sale signs as the S.C. Dept. of Labor, Licensing and Regulation has jurisdiction over the display and content of these signs.
Also, on Wednesday the first public hearing for the comprehensive education reform bill, H. 3759, was held. House Speaker Jay Lucas began the hearing by explaining that the bill is a starting point and asked for the public’s input to fine-tune this important legislation. The K-12 education subcommittee listened to compelling testimony from county officials, teachers and parents from across the state to find ways to incorporate their ideas into the bill.
Speaker Lucas is requesting public input on the education reform bill, with a hearing on February 12th at 5 pm, so teachers and the public can attend after work. If you cannot attend, please click here and provide input via the online survey or contact me directly.
Rep. Nancy Mace, R-Charleston, and I are working to get our anti-child luring bill, H. 3064, before the Judiciary Committee for a hearing soon. You may recall that this bill was introduced in response to multiple attempts in Mt. Pleasant and Charleston to lure children into vehicles using puppies and candy.
And finally, in an effort to attract more military retirees to South Carolina, the Ways and Means Committee proposed a bill that exempts retirement income for more than 38,000 retired veterans from being taxed.
It’s a privilege to serve District 108 in the House of Representatives! Please let me know if I can be of any assistance.
Rep. Lee Hewitt