Maybe it’s a good thing I used Cindi’s column in my usual Sunday slot.
Today, the House took action that will at least ALLOW the provision slipping in a cost-of-living increase on lawmakers’ ridiculously generous pension plan to be removed from the larger bill. Cindi explains what happened as follows:
An explainer: For procedural reasons, it would have been all but impossible for the House to remove the legislative cola from the bill today. So its only options were to 1) give the bill 3rd reading as is; 2) kill the bill; or 3) recommit the bill to committee so that the committee could remove the legislative cola (or not, if it so chose) and send it back to the House for debate. The third option was, in my opinion, the only responsible one. And that’s what the House did.
And hey, how often does the House move to do something that will please both the newspaper AND the governor? Here’s what Mark Sanford had to say:
"I want to thank everyone in the House – and in particular Mick Mulvaney who made the recommit motion – who agreed that this issue of backdoor pay increases needed to be revisited," Gov. Sanford said. "As this bill goes back through the committee process, we believe the first order of business should be to strip out this legislative pay perk. While we still have a number of concerns about the rest of this bill as well, today’s vote showed that a majority in the House have enough respect for taxpayers to put the breaks on this terrible idea. If this provision does, however, somehow survive the committee process again, we believe that at a minimum House members need to take a recorded vote on the matter so that taxpayers can hold them accountable for their actions."
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Yes it was the correct thing to do, but I’m not going to run to the State House to start slapping these guys on the back. It’s amazing what politicians will do when it’s an election year. Had this happened last year, it would have passed without a second thought. But when their “seat” is on the line, even they realize that November isn’t all that far away.
Brad, could you guys publish the “summary control document” for the state budget? I seem to recall Cindi writing a column about this a few years ago — it’s the official unofficial document that tells you what really happened in the budget. The state budget bill itself is pretty much impossible to understand without it. If you guys don’t have it, ask a lobbyist — I guarantee they’ve got it. Thanks so much.
This was good journalism. It held daylight to something of real concern and movement in the right direction was taken. Sanford was, of course, not part of the solution.
I suggest the State Newspaper print more about the 250 million dollars hidden away at Health and Human Services and the Commerce Department. If the State would tell that story, the people would then have a say. Without bold journalism…the people have no say.
Cindy R Scoppe…what say you? Will you write that story?
This is wonderful news. Kudos to you, Cindi, and the rest of your staff.
I understand that times are tough in your bidness, particularly in your area, but success of this sort should reassure The State’s owners and directors that what you do not only makes money, but makes a difference too.
Bravo.
Now get back to work so you have a decent column for Sunday’s edition…
Good job Cindi.
This is like one, small semi-effective counterpunch in knock down drag out brawl that will continue forever unless voters get angry and tired enough to stop it.
The thieves, charlatans and arrogant elitists we have in the legislature will not be deterred by this minor setback. Again, taxpayers will be paying for this increase in their compensation and so much more unless and until said taxpayers get sick of it and resolve to stop it. Until that happens, we’ve won nothing. Get over it. David
in “A” knock down blah blah blah
sorry, dave
“Kill Bill”.
Thanks for exposing our legislators as the self-serving folks they are. I hope you continue with the good work, don’t foget some of the middle management folks at state agencies who hire their friends and the friend’s friends. It’s about time South Carolins citizens get a clue as to why they are not being served.
Who on here personally contacted their Representative to
1) Find out how they voted oringally
2) and voiced their opinion for the House to strike their pension raises?
I did both- and got good feedback from my local legislator – including several others that ended up fighting for this to be overturned.
I sent emails to both Joel Lourie and John Scott. No response from Scott. Canned “thank you for your opinion” response from Lourie.
I got a response from Sen Lourie. He opposed the pension increase.
Bill Cotty emailed me several times about it – he opposed it as well. He kept me updated as did Rep Kenny Bingham.
As always Glenn Reese and Bob Walker voted themselves a nice raise until it became public knowledge, and then “took it back”
The real test is not how much they don’t steal for themselves when the spotlight is on them, but whether they understand that the entire state pension system is wrong and bankrupt, and what will they do to phase out this entire rotten scam and convert everything into real individual retirement accounts, instead of promises to pay lavish future benefits with huge tax increases.
I did get a response from Mr. Lourie’s office today saying he was opposed to the pension increase.