Here are the highlights from the third week of 2016 legislative session in the Senate –
ROADS AND BRIDGES – The Senate’s Transportation and Finance Committees met several times last week to discuss roads and bridges. The Transportation Committee focused on reforming the governance at SCDOT while the Finance Committee discussed funding and tax relief proposals. I expect some of that committee work to continue on Tuesday, and I hope the full Senate will begin the debate on Wednesday.
CHRISTY HALL – SECRETARY OF SCDOT – On Thursday, the Senate confirmed Christy Hall to be the new Secretary of the South Carolina Department of Transportation. Christy did an outstanding job as Interim Secretary since last summer. I think Christy will be a great leader for SCDOT. In fact, as I said after her confirmation, I believe this was the first step toward reforming SCDOT. As an added benefit, Christy is a resident of our Senate district!
REFUGEE RESETTLEMENT – The Senate General Committee approved S. 997, a bill designed to restrict state participation in the federal refugee resettlement program and to provide SLED with information to monitor refugees placed in South Carolina. I will let you know when the full Senate takes up the legislation.
A SHORTER LEGISLATIVE SESSION? – South Carolina has one of the longest, part-time legislative sessions in the country at nearly six months each year. There have been several attempts to shorten the session over the past several years. Last Tuesday the Senate Judiciary Committee forwarded S. 267 to the full Senate. The bill would shorten the legislative session by a month every year. I will keep you updated.
CONCEALED WEAPONS PERMIT RECIPROCITY – One of the issues I hear about frequently, especially from those who live and work near the Georgia border, is the inability of South Carolina CWP holders to carry their weapons in Georgia. South Carolina grants reciprocity to states that have CWP laws that are roughly equivalent to ours. Since Georgia does not require a training class, South Carolina does not recognize Georgia CWPs. Consequently, Georgia does not recognize SC permits.
Last year the House of Representatives passed H. 3025, a bill designed to recognize Georgia permits. However, prior to passing the bill, the House changed the language so as to eliminate the requirement for a CWP when carrying a concealed weapon. That change has caused concern among some senators and has stalled the bill in subcommittee. I support reciprocity with Georgia, and I hope we can fix the language and move forward with the bill.
Last Week’s Meetings
On Tuesday night, I attended the McCormick Lions Club meeting. I enjoyed talking with the Lions about issues facing South Carolina.
On Wednesday morning, I attended a meeting of the McCormick County Legislative Delegation. We met to consider applications for the county election commission and forwarded the following names to Governor Haley for appointment: Martha Brown, Rita Smith, Vernell Moss, and Larry Baker. Suffie Jennings has already been appointed to the commission.
On Thursday morning, I sat in on a discussion on the “State of Nuclear in South Carolina.” South Carolina is heavily reliant on nuclear power, and thousands of our citizens are employed in the nuclear industry. Roughly one-half of the workforce at the Savannah River Site will be eligible for retirement in the next 5 years, which means SRS contractors will be hiring more than 2,000 skilled workers in the next few years. Most of those positions will require just a two-year technical college degree with starting salaries in the mid-$40,000.00 range, a 401k, and health insurance benefits.
On Thursday night, I attended Edgefield’s annual Intergovernmental meeting. It was a good opportunity to catch up on what’s going on in local government.
Constituent Interests
TOWN HALL MEETINGS – I have held around 120 town hall meetings throughout our district over the past 8 years, and I really appreciate the hundreds of folks who have participated. These town hall meetings give me a chance to keep you updated about what’s going on in Columbia and, more importantly, allow me to hear what’s on your mind. I’m already working on the next round of meetings, which I hope to schedule for February. I’ll get the schedule out soon.
Savannah Lakes Village
Recreation Center – McCormick Room
Monday 2/1/2016
6:00 – 7:30
Merriwether Middle School
Cafeteria
Monday 2/15/2016
6:00 – 7:30
Circle Fire Department (Saluda)
Tuesday, 2/16/2016
6:30-8:00
Edgefield County Council Chambers
Thursday 2/25/2016
6:00 – 7:30
Midland Valley High School
Auditorium
Monday, 2/29/2015
6:00 – 7:30
I am still working to schedule meetings in Lexington County and probably another meeting in Aiken County. I will get those dates to you as soon as I can.
VETERANS AFFAIRS OFFICERS – Each county has a Veterans Affairs Officer whose purpose is to assist veterans and their families with filing, presenting, and prosecuting all claims which they have for money compensation, hospitalization, training, and insurance benefits under federal law. If you have questions about veterans’ benefits or the services these officers provide, you can contact the officers at:
Aiken County
Dwight Bradham
1930 University Parkway
Suite 2300
Aiken, SC 29801
(803) 642-1545
Edgefield County
Michael Washington
304 Gray Street
PO Box 236
Edgefield, SC 29824
(803) 637-4012
mwashington@edgefieldcounty.sc.gov
Lexington County
Ed Lundeen
605 West Main Street
Lexington, SC 29072
Phone: (803) 785-8400
Fax: (803) 785-0115
McCormick County
Donald D. Moss
610 South Mine Street
P.O. Box 276
McCormick, SC 29835
(864) 852-2212
Saluda County
Bill Perkins
108 South Rudolph Street
Saluda, SC 29138
Phone: (864) 445-4500 Ext. 2268
Fax: (864) 445-2808
WANT TO SEE THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY IN ACTION? – The Senate meets in statewide session on Tuesdays at 12:00, Wednesdays at 2:00, and Thursdays at 11:00. Committees and subcommittees meet Tuesday afternoons, Wednesday mornings, and Thursday mornings. You can watch live coverage of the Senate, House of Representatives, and committees here.
OUR SENATE DISTRICT – Senate district 25 consists of all of Edgefield County and parts of Aiken, Lexington, McCormick, and Saluda Counties. If you’d like to see the district map, go here.
VOTING RECORD – If you’d like to see how I’ve voted on issues, go here. You can always check to see how I vote by going to my website, www.senatormassey.com, and clicking on the “Voting Record” tab.
SPEAKING WITH GROUPS – Several groups, clubs, and classes around our Senate district have invited me to attend their meetings and provide legislative updates. If you would like for me to come speak with your group, please let me know.
EMAIL UPDATES – If you know of people in or around District 25 who do not receive my updates but would like to get them, please email their names and email addresses to me. You can also forward this email to them and encourage them to sign up for the updates at www.senatormassey.com.