Latest Updates

  • House follows Senate in earmark money grab

    By RICK BRUNDRETT Like the 46-member S.C. Senate, the 124-member S.C. House apparently can’t resist spending hundreds of millions in state surplus dollars – mainly on lawmakers’ favored local projects. Bolstered by a rosy prediction last week by official revenue forecasters that the state’s general fund surplus for this fiscal year...
    Rick Brundrett

    Written by
    May 16, 2023

  • Senators feast on taxpayer-funded earmarks for pricey projects

    By RICK BRUNDRETT Through largely hidden budget earmarks, S.C. senators have proposed a total of more than $314 million for projects next fiscal year mainly in their respective legislative districts – including dozens of $1 million-plus requests, a review by The Nerve found. The 46-member Senate two years ago changed...
    Rick Brundrett

    Written by
    May 09, 2023

  • Policy Council advocating title insurance reform

    By Dallas Woodhouse Bills under consideration in the S.C. Legislature would remove a quirk in state law that unnecessarily regulates the relationship between title insurance agencies and their underwriters. A recently filed state House bill along with its Senate counterpart would embrace the free-market system and allow the two parties to negotiate commission payments...
    Rick Brundrett

    Written by
    April 22, 2023

  • ESG battles heating up over state pension plan

    By RICK BRUNDRETT Update: 1/17/24 - The S.C. Senate unanimously passed House bill 3690, which was cited in this story. The bill, which is expected to be signed into law by Gov. Henry McMaster, would require that state pension investments be made based on "pecuniary," or financial, factors, which, as...
    Rick Brundrett

    Written by
    April 13, 2023

  • Sweeping transparency reforms proposed in House bill

    By RICK BRUNDRETT Citizens would have far easier access to state and local government records and meetings in South Carolina under a wide-ranging S.C. House bill introduced Thursday. The legislation was  based largely on transparency recommendations released in December by the South Carolina Policy Council – The Nerve’s parent organization, said the...
    Rick Brundrett

    Written by
    February 10, 2023

  • Senator plans bill to ban ESG factors in private loans, state pension

    Update 2/22/23: Sen. Josh Kimbrell, R-Spartanburg, introduced a bill (S. 559) today that would ban banks and credit unions from using “social,” or ESG-based, credit scores in deciding whether to make loans to individuals or businesses. The bill, which is co-sponsored by seven other Republicans, was referred to the Senate Banking and...
    Rick Brundrett

    Written by
    February 09, 2023

  • S.C. Senate expands school choice options for parents

    By RICK BRUNDRETT Update: 5/4/23 – Gov. Henry McMaster signed S.39 into law. The House last week approved the Senate bill by a vote of 79-35 on a key second reading. The S.C. Senate on Tuesday gave key approval to a bill that would provide $6,000 scholarships to low- and...
    Rick Brundrett

    Written by
    February 01, 2023

  • Small business owner wins zoning battle, but legal issues still loom

    By RICK BRUNDRETT Jeremy Sark says he’s no longer worried about Mauldin officials closing his longtime U-Haul dealership, though the Upstate city hasn’t abandoned a controversial zoning practice at the center of his case. The Mauldin City Council without comment during a meeting last month reversed a zoning change that...
    Rick Brundrett

    Written by
    January 10, 2023

  • Lawmaker wants ESG factors banned in state pension investments

    By RICK BRUNDRETT State retirement funds could not be invested based on controversial environmental, social or governance (ESG) factors, under a House bill filed for the new legislative session that starts next week. The Nerve in May revealed that two major investment firms that manage a substantial share of South Carolina’s pension...
    Rick Brundrett

    Written by
    January 05, 2023

  • House bill would protect short-term rentals in SC

    By RICK BRUNDRETT S.C. municipalities and counties that ban short-term rentals would face the loss of state aid and property taxes under a House bill filed for the second time since last year. Contacted this week by The Nerve, Rep. Lee Hewitt, R-Georgetown, who is the bill’s main sponsor, said his...
    Rick Brundrett

    Written by
    December 15, 2022