| THIS WEEK IN SOUTH CAROLINA The House and Senate will meet in perfunctory session this week. The first regular session of the 126th South Carolina General Assembly convened at noon on Tuesday, January 14. This is the first year of a two year session which means those bills introduced during this legislative session will carry over until next year as well. Each regular legislative session is held from the second Tuesday in January until the second Thursday in May. The House of Representatives held its organizational session December 3-4. 2024. During that session, Rep. Murrell Smith (R-Sumter) was formally re-elected Speaker of the House. The House also received committee assignments and met as standing committees to elect officers. The House pre-filed legislation on December 5 and 12. The Senate held an organizational session on December 4 and pre-filed legislation on December 11. All 170 seats in the South Carolina General Assembly were on the ballot in 2024. Five incumbents were defeated in the general election in November, including Senators Gerald Malloy (D-Darlington), Kevin Johnson (D-Clarendon), Mike Fanning (D-Fairfield), Vernon Stephens (D-Orangeburg), and Representative Joe Jefferson (D-Berkeley). Seven incumbents were previously defeated in the Primary Elections in June, including Senators Penry Gustafason (R- Kershaw), Dick Harpootlian (D- Richland), Sandy Senn (R-Charleston), Katrina Shealy (R-Lexington) and Representatives Jerry Carter (R-Clemson), Bill Sandifer (R-Seneca), and Jay West (R-Belton). Several other legislators voluntarily chose not to seek another term in the South Carolina General Assembly. In the South Carolina Senate, Republicans gained four seats, giving them a supermajority. There are 13 new Senators. Included in those new Senate members are the following Clemson University graduates: Senator Jason Elliott (R-Greenville), Senator Carlisle Kennedy (R-Lexington), Senator Russell Ott (D-Calhoun), and Senator Allen Blackmon (R-Lancaster). Senator Elliott and Senator-Elect Kennedy both served as Student Body President during their undergraduate studies at Clemson University. Eight other Clemson University graduates were also re-elected to the South Carolina Senate: Senator Thomas Alexander (R-Oconee) who also serves as President of the Senate, Senator Mike Gambrell (R-Anderson), Senator Tom Corbin (R-Greenville), Senator Ross Turner (R-Greenville), Senator Shane Martin (R-Spartanburg), Senator Harvey Peeler (R-Cherokee) who also serves as Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, Senator Shane Massey (R-Edgefield) who also serves as the Senate Majority Leader, and Senator Larry Grooms (R-Berkeley) who also serves as Chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee. There are 19 new House members. Included in those new House members are the following Clemson University graduates: Representative Phillip Bowers (R-Pickens), Representative Blake Sanders (R-Pickens) who is also a Clemson lecturer, and Representative Lee Gilreath (R-Anderson). Two other Clemson University graduates, Representative Lucas Atkinson (D-Marion) and Representative John McCravy (R-Greenwood), also won re-election to the SC House of Representatives. There are now two vacant seats in the House. Former Representative Marvin Pendarvis (D-Charleston) resigned in the fall and former Representative Will Wheeler (D-Lee) resigned on Thursday, January 16. Special elections will be held to fill the unexpired terms for these seats. be considered by the other chamber for the session that is set to end on May 11. THE STATE BUDGET PROCESS Executive Budget On Monday, January 13, 2025, Governor Henry McMaster released his Executive Budget proposal for 2025-26. Below are items in the Governor’s budget proposal as they relate to Clemson University, Clemson PSA and higher education: C Clemson E&G $7,290,172 in recurring funding for tuition mitigation $20 million in nonrecurring funding for the Center for Human Genetics $1.9 million in EIA funds for Call Me MISTER As recommended by Education Oversight Committee, Proviso 1A.60 is deleted and funds from the Rural Teacher Recruitment program are reallocated to the Call Me MISTER program, which has more documented success in recruiting minority students into the teaching profession. $20 million in nonrecurring general funds for the Battelle Alliance, a research partnership between Clemson University, the University of South Carolina and SC State University. Clemson PSA $1 million nonrecurring funds for critical infrastructure. $511,251 in EIA funds for Clemson Agriculture Education Teachers For Higher Education: $2 million to fund a systemic review of the state’s 33 public institutions of higher education $10 million lottery dollars for Nursing Initiative $3.5 million lottery dollars for College Transition Program scholarships for students with special needs (like ClemsonLIFE).s and Means Committee (where the appropriations bill originates) began agency budget subcommittee hearings last week and will continue this process through January. President Jim Clements, along with Tony Wagner (Executive Vice President for Finance and Operations) will give Clemson’s Education and General (E&G) budget presentation to the Ways and Means Higher Education Subcommittee on Tuesday, January 28. Clemson PSA’s budget hearing is also scheduled for Tuesday, January 28 before the Economic Development and Natural Resources Subcommittee. House Ways and Means Subcommittees that will hear Clemson’s budget requests: Higher Education Subcommittee: Chairman Nathan Ballentine (R-Lexington) Representative Gilda Cobb-Hunter (D-Orangeburg) Representative Bill Taylor (R-Aiken) Economic Development and Natural Resources Subcommittee: Chairman Leon Stavrinakis (D-Charleston) Representative David Weeks (D-Sumter) Representative Kevin Hardee (R-Horry) 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. Clemson’s state legislative and budget priorities for FY 2025-26: Education & General – Recurring Tuition Mitigation – $23.1M Student Experiential Learning – $4.5M Clemson Institute for the Study of Capitalism (CISC) – $4M Clemson Energy Center – $4M Cybersecurity Research Compliance – $3M Education & General – Nonrecurring NextGen Computing Complex – $40M Center for Human Genetics – $20M Science Lab Building – $35M Public Service Activities – Recurring Food Safety and Nutrition Agents – Operational & Programmatic Support – $1.5M Regulatory, Cooperative Extension, and Experiment Station Operational & Programmatic Support - $760K Critical Vehicles & Equipment – $1M Public Service Activities – Nonrecurring PSA Planned Maintenance & Critical Infrastructure – $7.36M Baruch Institute Research Support Facility – $9.9M BILLS OF INTEREST The Clemson University Governmental Affairs office is monitoring several bills that have a potential impact on Clemson. A complete listing of these bills may be found here: VIEW BILLS. NEWS & FYI Please follow ClemsonGovAff on Twitter. Current news coverage of interest may be found here. |
