THIS WEEK IN SOUTH CAROLINA
The second session of the 124th General Assembly will convene in Columbia tomorrow.
This is the second year of a two-year session which means those bills introduced in 2021 retain their places on the calendar and in committee and are carried over to this year. Each legislative session is held from the second Tuesday in January until the second Thursday in May.
The House pre-filed legislation on November 10th and 17th.
Following the passing of Senator Hugh Leatherman in November 2021, Senator Harvey Peeler (R-Cherokee) Clemson ’70 resigned from the role of Senate President and assumed the chairmanship of the Senate Finance Committee. The Senate elected Senator Thomas Alexander (R-Oconee) Clemson ’78 as its next President.
BUDGET
Executive Budget
Earlier this afternoon, Governor Henry McMaster released his Executive Budget proposal for 2022-23. Below are items in the Governor’s budget as they relate to Clemson University and higher education:
For Clemson E&G and Clemson PSA:
– Allocates $20.1 million in recurring funds for tuition mitigation at SC’s public colleges and universities if each institution agrees to no in-state tuition or mandatory fee increase for the 2022-23 academic year
o Clemson E&G: $2,836,003 in recurring funding; the funds are based on a 2.7% Higher Education Price Index and allocated based on the number of in-state students at each public institution
– The FY 2022-23 Executive Budget dedicates the entirety of the Capital Reserve Fund, $183.6 million, to capital improvement projects at South Carolina’s institutions of higher education for the second year in a row
o Clemson E&G: $19,335,094 nonrecurring funding will be distributed on a pro-rata basis, based on in-state student enrollment for deferred maintenance and *IT/technology projects only – not new construction projects. The addition of IT and technology projects is new this year.
– No base increase to Clemson PSA’s budget
For Higher Education:
– $232,953,938 in lottery dollars for LIFE scholarships, $71,474,067 in lottery dollars for Palmetto Fellows scholarships, and $10,694,895 in lottery dollars for HOPE scholarships
– $60,000,000 in lottery dollars for need-based grants at CHE
– $20,000,000 in lottery dollars for tuition grants at the Higher Education Tuition Grants Commission
– $4,377,100 in lottery dollars for scholarships for students with intellectual disabilities attending College Transition Programs. This represents an increase of $3,627,100 from last year’s recommendation of $750,000 (ClemsonLIFE was cited as an example)
– $20,000,000 in lottery dollars to address the shortage of instructors in nursing schools
The State Budget Process
Budget submissions for Clemson Education and General (E&G) and Clemson PSA were submitted to the Executive Budget Office earlier this fall. Official budget requests are in priority order below.
2022-23 State Budget Priorities
Clemson E&G
Recurring Requests
Base Appropriations Increase (In State Tuition Mitigation) $12.6 million
Rural Health $1.3 million
Nonrecurring Requests
IT Network Infrastructure Improvements $39.7 million
Advanced Materials Innovation Complex $25 million
Planned Maintenance and Renewal Projects $17 million
Clemson PSA
Recurring Requests
Rural Health Cooperative Extension & Research $2.4 million
Laboratory Services Support $1.5 million
Integrated Agriculture Technology $1 million
Nonrecurring Requests
Critical PSA Infrastructure $3.6 million
Edisto Research & Education Center Infrastructure $8.3 million
Upgrades and Expansion
Poultry Science Research Facility $4.7 million
The House Ways and Means Committee (where the appropriations bill originates) will begin agency budget subcommittee hearings this week and will continue this process through January.
President Jim Clements, along with Tony Wagner (Executive Vice President for Finance and Operations) will deliver Clemson’s Education and General (E&G) budget presentation to the Ways and Means Higher Education Subcommittee on Tuesday, January 18.
Clemson PSA’s budget hearing is also scheduled for Tuesday, January 18 before the Economic Development and Natural Resources Subcommittee. President Clements, along with Dr. George Askew (Vice President for PSA) will be presenting before the Subcommittee.
House Ways and Means Subcommittees that will hear Clemson’s budget requests
Higher Education Subcommittee:
Chairman Gary Simrill (R-York)
Representative Gilda Cobb-Hunter (D-Orangeburg)
Representative Kirkman Finlay (R-Richland)
Staff: AJ Newton
Economic Development and Natural Resources Subcommittee:
Chairman Leon Stavrinakis (D-Charleston)
Representative David Weeks (D-Sumter)
Representative Lee Hewitt (R-Georgetown)
Staff: Teesha Trapp
From a state budgeting standpoint, Clemson is considered two separate state agencies: a research university that receives an educational and general (E&G) state appropriation for teaching and student support, and a land-grant Public Service and Agriculture (PSA) division that receives a state appropriation to support agriculture, forestry and natural resource Extension, research and regulatory programs.
The university also has auxiliary operations, such as athletics, student housing and dining services, which receive no state funding and must generate all of their own revenue.
BILLS OF INTEREST
The Clemson University Governmental Affairs office is monitoring several bills that have potential impact on Clemson. A complete listing of these bills may be found here. Click on the bill number for a description of the legislation, along with the bill’s current status.
FYI
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