STATEHOUSE REPORT | ISSUE 22.52 | Dec. 29, 2023
BIG STORY: Hate crimes, education on top of 2024 agenda
MORE NEWS: Christmas tragedy highlights year of traffic deaths
LOWCOUNTRY, Ariail: New year, new look
COMMENTARY, Brack: Might be time for Haley to unleash the dragons
SPOTLIGHT: SC Clips
MY TURN, Sutton: We’ve had a week of infrastructure woes
MYSTERY PHOTO: Clue
FEEDBACK: Send us your thoughts
With this issue, we complete our 22nd year of providing insights and information about what happens at the South Carolina Statehouse — and we’re looking forward to our 23rd year! If you want to help, consider a donation to keep Statehouse Report strong. Thank you.
Hate crimes, education on top of 2024 agenda
By Lily Levin | South Carolina legislators have hate crimes, education and judicial reform on their minds as they prepare to head into the 2024 session after a year marked by some bipartisan agreement and a lot of polarization.
Hate crimes on tap — again
Lawmakers again will try to pass a hate crimes bill in South Carolina, the only state other than Wyoming without the law. While the S.C. House passed the bill last year, it’s on the docket in the state Senate and is expected to get scrutiny in 2024.
House Bill 3014 calls for “an enhanced penalty of certain violent crimes when the offender intentionally selects a victim due to the offender’s belief or perception regarding the victim’s race, color, religion, sex, gender, national origin, sexual orientation, or physical or mental disability.”
S.C. Rep. Wendell Gilliard, D-Charleston, who has been a staunch advocate for the bill, earlier this year praised bipartisan collaboration among House representatives. “This is a great way not only to honor the nine lives that we lost on June 17, 2015, but to all victims that have fallen because of a hate crime.”
S.C. Rep. Jordan Pace, R-Berkeley, said he didn’t think the bill would pass the Senate. He added that he personally voted against the bill because he disagreed with its listing of sex and gender as “separate” — and how this might make room for lawsuits against religious organizations. He told the Charleston City Paper that though he supports harsh penalties for violent crime, he questions why some groups, such as the LGBTQ community or anyone harmed by institutional racism — should “get more protection from the law.”
School choice, tax incentives
Some lawmakers emphasized the need to support public schools — in particular, by increasing pay for teachers and school personnel such as cafeteria staff. Rep. Chandra Dillard, D-Greenville, said the state must “continue to support public education, specifically the recruitment and retention of teachers.”
State Sen. Larry Grooms, R-Berkeley, said a priority of his will be a bill currently sitting in the House. It’s called a “Parental Bill of Rights,” and it would require school officials to tell parents if their student has switched pronouns or is using a different bathroom. Moreover, it would necessitate parental permission for gender-affirming care for minors.
In South Carolina, conservatives are also using “parental rights” to censor education materials: A Berkeley County chapter of Moms for Liberty made headlines this year after releasing a proposal to ban 93 books. Rep. J.A. Moore, D-Berkeley, however, said education improvements would not occur as a result of policies targeting a “culturally diverse education.”
A new way to pick judges?
Lawmakers from both parties said judicial reform is a top issue in 2024 — and a bill has already been prefiled to enact various measures. It would, among other things, ensure that two members of the Judicial Merit Selection Committee must be appointed by the South Carolina Bar and that a judicial candidate can’t withdraw their name after the committee has started its investigation.
Abortion may take a back seat in 2024
Despite a six-week abortion ban being passed after a lot of time spent on the issue in 2023, S.C. Sen. Katrina Shealy, R-Lexington, who voted against the bill, and Pace, who voted for it, said they weren’t confident abortion would be a priority during the 2024 session. Pace, however, noted that “as long as babies are getting killed in the womb, it’s going to be a big deal to me.”
Other issues expected in 2024
Other issues expected to be discussed in 2024 include the following:
Affordable housing. Dillard said lawmakers will “continue to work on tools that advance affordable housing in our cities and towns, like inclusionary zoning,” and Moore echoed that sentiment, speaking of the lack of affordable housing — in particular, in Goose Creek and North Charleston.
Drug-induced homicide. One bill currently in the House Judiciary Committee proposes a penalty for “drug-based homicide,” which would allow the state to consider a homicide charge for people who, knowingly or not, supply fentanyl or a schedule one substance used in an overdose. Though the bill passed the Senate nearly unanimously, public health and harm reduction advocates have noted that it does not decrease overdose deaths and is an “inhumane” method of confronting the opioid epidemic.
Mental health. Rep. Spencer Wetmore, D-Charleston, explained that mental health for children would be an important personal priority: “Our teachers want to teach, which means we must fund more support and services for students who need them.” She said the state could accomplish this task through grant funding from accredited nonprofits, which would keep costs conservative and reasonable. Dillard also expressed the need for the state to solicit more 988 suicide and crisis lifeline funding from the federal government.
Constitutional carry. Grooms said in the new year, he’ll work toward striking the permit requirement to carry a weapon on public premises. Current law mandates a permit based on the owner’s age, training and background check status. According to Grooms, removal of this requirement to enact what’s known as constitutional carry would “restrict governmental interference on an individual’s right to self-defense.”
Economic development. Sen. Sean Bennett, R-Dorchester, told the City Paper that one of his priorities would be to “continue to improve workforce development with a focus on increasing the labor participation rate. … While enjoying a very low unemployment rate, more and more citizens are either choosing not to enter the workforce or are unable.”
Infrastructure. Given the amount of growth that South Carolina — and in particular, the Lowcountry — is experiencing, Charleston-area legislators also say they are looking to invest more in funding roads and projects to confront increased flooding.
Medical marijuana. According to Shealy, medical marijuana will be a top priority of the session, but Pace said it depends on whether Sen. Tom Davis, R-Beaufort, who has been the main champion of the legislation, continues to push it. Pace noted that it was a “pretty conservative bill” with a variety of stipulations he felt were reasonable.
Artificial intelligence (AI). Moore said AI will take the driver’s seat of his agenda, especially because it doesn’t seem to be a top priority for his coworkers. He expressed the importance of monitoring AI given its rapid, unprecedented acceleration, noting his perspective as a board member of a tech nonprofit. “We need a better understanding of where artificial intelligence is going.”
Lily Levin is a reporter with the Charleston City Paper, where this story first appeared. Have a comment? Send to: feedback@statehousereport.com.
Christmas tragedy highlights year of traffic deaths
By Andy Brack | A Christmas Day traffic tragedy in Goose Creek prevented a 33-year-old Berkeley County woman from celebrating her 34th birthday the next day.
Danubia Gisselia Sevilla of Goose Creek was one of 159 pedestrians killed this year in traffic accidents across the state, officials said. While the number of people who died in all types of traffic accidents dropped about 20% statewide over the last two years, Berkeley County has one of the highest county fatality rates in the state, Coroner Darnell Hartwell said Dec. 27. This year, 55 people have died in traffic accidents in the county, compared to 38 people last year, he said.
“More people are rushing,” he said. “We’ve got people standing up in the middle of Interstate 26 trying to stop traffic. Pedestrians are walking in unlit areas. Multiple fatalities are happening in wrecks.”
Woman, child struck on roadway
At 6:55 p.m. on Dec. 25, a vehicle apparently got stuck in a ditch along Howe Hall Road at Addison Drive, according to Hartwell and the S.C. Department of Public Safety (DPS). Sevilla and a child were standing by the disabled vehicle when both were struck, the coroner said. The sun set at 5:20 p.m.
“There were several people who stopped to assist when the fatality occurred,” Hartwell said. “The young lady’s car got struck accidentally. It was very tragic on Christmas. Matter of a fact — her birthday was the day after Christmas.”
According to DPS, 954 people died from Jan. 1 through Dec. 29. That’s a 13% drop from the previous full year when 1,093 people died. In 2021, 1,195 people died in traffic accidents, according to state data.
So far this year, 159 pedestrians have died in accidents, compared to 194 in 2021. Motorcycle-related deaths also have dropped, from 194 in 2021 to 140 this year through Dec. 25. Only bike-related deaths are the same — 23 this year and for 2021.
The Berkeley County Coroner’s Office and the South Carolina Highway Patrol are investigating the Goose Creek accident.
Boosting safety
Last year, Ginny T. Jones, director of strategic communications at the S.C. Department of Transportation (SCDOT), highlighted the agency’s emphasis on boosting safety that’s part of its 10-year plan.
“SCDOT has increased funding to our Highway Safety Program by almost 35% from $98 million per year in 2018 to $132 million in 2023,” she said. “Our safety program aims to make improvements based on a systematic, data-driven approach.
“Based on analysis performed by our traffic engineers, we put in proven safety measures on a case-by-case basis. These safety improvements include a variety of countermeasures including alternative intersection designs, traffic signals or signs, pavement markings, removing roadside obstacles and more.”
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New year, new look
Award-winning cartoonist Robert Ariail generally has a biting or funny comment about the great state of South Carolina in his weekly cartoon. This week, he takes a look at what’s ahead – kind of.
- Love the cartoon? Hate it? What do you think: feedback@statehousereport.com.
Might be time for Haley to unleash the dragons
By Andy Brack | Former Gov. Nikki Haley has a timing problem in her bid to win the 2024 Republican nomination for president.
She can either keep playing it safe, hoping frontrunner and former President Donald Trump stumbles into a conviction and out of real contention. Or she can start hammering him hard now just weeks away from January’s Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primary before the Feb. 24 GOP primary in South Carolina. To date, she’s mostly given him a pass.
“She needs a strong finish in Iowa, at least a near win or better in New Hampshire to make South Carolina a legit battleground,” said Greenville Republican analyst Chip Felkel. “She needs to show he is really vulnerable, to crack the inevitability of Trump winning the nomination, and she’s not going to by playing nice.
“There is way too much she’s not been using. If she doesn’t unleash the dragons, she’s not running for anything but vice president, or 2028.”
College of Charleston political scientist Gibbs Knotts said he thought Haley needed to beat Trump in her home state – or get very close. According to a November Winthrop Poll, Trump was way ahead among Republican and GOP-leaning independent voters – with 48% of voter support, compared to Haley’s 19%.
“She would need to exceed expectations in Iowa (maybe get second) and exceed expectations in New Hampshire (continue to close the gap with Trump),” Knotts said. “She would also need other candidates to drop out, particularly Christie and DeSantis.”
But the race is like no other presidential race ever. It’s tough to figure because of all of Trump’s legal woes. He faces 91 indictments in four cases in federal and state courts. If Haley is seen as the main challenger after the early primaries, then she might benefit, especially if Trump becomes the first former president to be convicted of a crime. About 45% of Republican voters say they won’t vote for Trump if he is convicted of a felony before the election, according to a recent poll.
But one longtime political observer, who asked not to be named, didn’t see Haley winning the South Carolina primary.
“She is playing for the long haul and playing safe for the general election. I think she is counting on two scenarios – one that Trump is in jail before the election and she can win the primary. The other is that if he wins, she can still be vice president. The first fits with her penchant for going to long-term strategies which includes 2028.”
Furman University political scientist Danielle Vinson said Haley’s play-it-safe strategy isn’t a recipe to beat Trump. Rather, it’s a way to be in the right place if he fails.
“If she wants to win and not just be the last person standing if something happens to Trump to take him out of the race, she needs to start giving Trump supporters a reason to vote for her rather than him,” Vinson said. “The only message that might work is to focus on Trump’s vulnerability in the general election, which ironically doesn’t actually require her to criticize Trump.
“He just needs to get voters to play the long game rather than the primary game. She can win independent voters in a general election; it’s not clear Trump can. She has not really been willing to do that thus far, and I don’t know if it would work.”
In the South Carolina primary, Haley’s success may end up depending on an unlikely source of voters – Democrats who want Trump defeated. Because Democrats have a Feb. 3 primary and their only real choice is President Joe Biden, many may figure he will win and may opt out to play political ball in the Republican primary on Feb. 24.
There’s not been a lot of visible appeal to Democrats, but who knows what’s really happening on the darker side of the Internet?
Andy Brack is editor and publisher of Statehouse Report and the Charleston City Paper. Have a comment? Send to: feedback@statehousereport.com.
SC Clips
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Sutton: We’ve had a week of infrastructure woes
Editor’s Note: State Senate candidate Ed Sutton of Charleston wrote this piece Dec. 24 for the Charleston City Paper. We republish it here to illustrate infrastructure woes in Charleston, which many local governments across the state also face.
By Ed Sutton, Dec. 24, 2023 | A Nor’easter slammed our region last Sunday (Dec. 17) setting a new tidal record in Charleston.
The outlook doesn’t look rosy as weather experts predict these types of storms are expected to increase in frequency while the sea level continues to rise.
To state the obvious, we are far behind on flood prevention and we’re falling further behind the curve due to unnecessary political squabbling.
In 2023, there was no shortage of election-year politics surrounding the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers’ proposed seawall, including an attempted referendum designed to kill the project entirely.
Going into 2024, these games must end. The Dec. 17 storm was a stark reminder that we do not have time to waste. The seawall project must be led by experts, not political egos and I firmly believe the Army Corp of Engineers can deliver a project that protects us from flooding and is aesthetically pleasing.
We must also realize a sea wall is one of many solutions we must pursue to protect ourselves from increased flooding events. Some others include marsh restoration, backflow drainage valves and buying back properties that repeatedly find themselves under water. There is no silver bullet to this problem, and we must pursue a well-rounded approach.
If downtown ceases to function as the center of commerce due to flooding, we lose our economic engine that provides the tax revenue to pay for the above-mentioned projects downtown and beyond. The downtown versus suburbs divide will always persist but in terms of flooding, we are all in the same boat.
That does not mean the concerns in West Ashley and James Island regarding flood water displacement due to the sea wall should be ignored. There is a real fear the sea wall will push the flooding problem to the other side of the Ashley River. The Army Corp of Engineers has ensured the public displacement will not impact West Ashley and James Island and the Corp/City would be wise to step up their public outreach on the sea wall to an audience outside of the peninsula.
Other problems
Another pedestrian was struck in recent days by a vehicle on King Street. We keep hearing this story over and over, yet little is done to make King Street safer for pedestrians. The latest victim is a mother of four whose body traveled more than 80 feet after the collision. She was last listed in critical condition.
Just a few blocks away at Meeting and Cypress streets, the city and Charleston Moves designed a modern intersection around pedestrian and cyclist safety. Yet the location of Saturday’s collision on King by the Crosstown overpass remains a frequent site of vehicle and pedestrian collisions.
We can learn from the success of Meeting and Cypress and apply several low-hanging fruit measures to make King Street safer near the Crosstown, such as narrowing the lanes, lowering the speed limit and adding a lighted pedestrian crossing.
This is a problem we have solved before and there is no shortage of community nonprofits, such as Charleston Moves, that have given us the roadmap to safer streets.
As we grapple with a week marked by debilitating infrastructure challenges, it is abundantly clear that our region stands at a critical juncture. We can continue with business as usual or get serious about playing catch up on our infrastructure woes.
No one wants a future where flooding constantly forces us out of our homes and businesses. Nor should we accept roads with unsafe designs that repeatedly lead to pedestrian collisions. These are daunting tasks, but they are not unsolvable problems.
Let us not be paralyzed by indecision and political wrangling. The time for action is now. Our collective future depends on the choices we make today.
Ed Sutton, a commercial Realtor and Air Force Reserve pilot, is on the Board of Directors of CARTA and a candidate for state Senate District 20.
Clue
Here’s a photo with a big, fat clue somewhere in it. But is it really a clue? Where is this place and what can you tell us about it? Send us your guess of what this photo shows – as well as your name and hometown – to feedback@statehousereport.com.
Last week’s mystery photo, “Big cross” shows, well, a big 110-foot cross on U.S. Highway 52 in Lake City, S.C. The photo was sent to us by longtime reader Barry Wingard of Florence. Several of you identified it, including Elizabeth Jones of Columbia, who wrote:
“A.Q. Lee of Lee’s Construction said he erected the steel-core cross for a group known as ‘At the Foot of the Cross.’ The massive cross weighs more than 100,000 pounds and is engineered to withstand winds of145 mph. It stands on an acre of land that is leased for 100 years. Lee says the purpose of the cross is to help people better understand the Christian faith. It can be seen for about two miles either way.” Allan Peel of San Antonio, Texas, led us to this Wikipedia post that shows it’s tied for 25th tallest in the U.S. of its type of cross.
Others who identified the cross were Bill Segars of Hartsville; Will Bradley of Las Vegas, Nevada; Vickie P. Snyder of Aiken; David Taylor of Darlington; Rick Jolley of Spartanburg; Dale Branham of Elgin; David Lupo of Mount Pleasant; Rebecca Hall of Kingstree; Pat Keadle of Wagener; Amy C. Neeley of Lexington; Frank Bouknight of Summerville; Jay Altman of Columbia; Pamela Garrett of Graniteville; Marylou Rodriguez and Paulette Leroy.
- Send us a mystery picture. If you have a photo that you believe will stump readers, send it along (but make sure to tell us what it is because it may stump us too!) Send to: feedback@statehousereport.com and mark it as a photo submission. Thanks.
Send us your thoughts
We encourage you to send in your thoughts about policy and politics impacting South Carolina. We’ve gotten some letters in the last few weeks – some positive, others nasty. We print non-defamatory comments, but unless you provide your contact information – name and hometown, plus a phone number used only by us for verification – we can’t publish your thoughts.
- Have a comment? Send your letters or comments to: feedback@statehousereport.com. Make sure to provide your contact details (name, hometown and phone number for verification. Letters are limited to 150 words.
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