The House of Representatives met in regular session this week and senators met on Tuesday and Wednesday only. Both chambers spent time on the floor debating bills on the calendar. The House and Senate will not meet in session next week; however, the Senate Finance Committee along with other Senate committees will still meet next week.

There are six weeks left in the second year of the 2025 – 2026 legislative session. Elections are set for the South Carolina House, the U.S. House, U.S. Senate and state constitutional officers.

S508, a bill relating to monuments, remains on special order in the Senate. The bill was given second reading with an agreement that allows amendments on third reading.

This bill

• Prohibits local governments from relocating, removing, disturbing or altering historic monuments or memorials erected on public property. This prohibition applies to plaques, markers and other messages, including those accessible by a QR code or similar barcodes related to historical monuments and memorials. 
• Prohibits installations and nameplates dedicated in memory of, or named for, historic figures or events from being renamed or rededicated. 
• Allows any person or group to bring civil action against a local government without having to demonstrate injury and may recover damages, attorney fees and court costs.
• Requires local governments to relocate monuments and memorials to public areas of equal prominence or visibility if movement is necessary because of utility-related infrastructure improvements, or the erection of new government structures.  The monument or memorial must be moved back to its original location upon project completion. 

Action Needed

In addition to limiting local governments of their ability to manage community assets, this bill exposes cities and towns to costly lawsuits. Members are encouraged to contact their senators to ask that local decisions remain in the hands of local leaders. For questions about the bill, contact Erica Wright (ewright@masc.sc) at 803.354.4793.
 

S866, a bill that allows cities located in counties who have not passed a 1-cent sales tax for certain projects, was given second reading by the Senate by a vote of 32 to nine. 

S227, the concurrency bill, remains on the Senate’s contested calendar until the bill sponsor, Sen. Tom Davis (R-Beaufort), and stakeholders work on amendments to the bill. 

H4764, the bill that requires municipalities and counties to enforce federal immigration laws, was given a third and final reading by the House of Representatives and sent to the Senate. The Municipal Association worked with the sponsor of the bill to provide an option for cities and towns to be excused from this mandate if compliance would cause a fiscal or administrative burden. This language was amended on the House floor during debate to require the Attorney General’s Office to determine whether a municipality’s fiscal or administrative burden is sufficient to allow the excusal. 
 

Transportation bills moving to the House floor  

Both of the SC Department of Transportation modernization bills were passed by the House Ways and Means Committee on Wednesday and sent to the House floor for debate. S831, the Senate version of the SC Department of Transportation modernization bill, passed the Senate and was amended to mirror the language in H5071, the House version of the bill. The committee also gave a favorable report to H5071 as amended by the subcommittee. Now, both bills have the same language that includes these points:

• Strikes the Coordinating Council for Transportation and Mobility.
• Removes at-large members from the SCDOT Commission.
• Clarifies that municipalities that accept roads from SCDOT's inventory may impose an additional millage to meet the funding requirements of maintaining the roads.
• Requires all members of a county transportation committee to reside in the county.
• Subjects officials or employees of a county transportation committee to the State Ethics Act.
• Makes it a felony for anyone working with a county transportation committee to take or ask for money, jobs, favors or anything of value in exchange for influencing their decisions.

Both bills include language — at the request of the Municipal Association of SC — that prohibits a county council from serving as the county transportation committee. 

For questions about both versions of the SCDOT modernization bill, contact Erica Wright (ewright@masc.sc) at 803.354.4793.
 

Property tax cut bills update

S768, an increase in the property tax homestead exemption to $150,000 for South Carolina resident homeowners 65 years old and older, was passed by the Senate and sent to the House for debate. This bill includes a local government reimbursement with the increase in the exemption for local governments. The bill is currently in the House Ways and Means Committee.

H5006, a bill that exempts $10,000 from business personal property taxes for small businesses, unanimously passed the House of Representatives and is now in the Senate Finance Committee for consideration. 

For questions about these tax bills, contact Webster Hall (whall@masc.sc) at 803.933.1232.
 

From the Dome to Your Home podcast 
Don’t forget to listen to the From the Dome to Your Home podcast every Friday for a recap of the week’s legislative issues and a look to the week ahead at the State House.