State House Investigation
Dear Friends:
This is a big-time life lesson – don’t spend what you don’t have.
Remember the breathless reports two years ago when the state controller reported he had found an account containing $1.8 billion? No one knew what state agency or agencies it belonged to, and no state agency reported missing that mound of money. Taxpayers clamored to return the money to them immediately.
It turns out the money never existed. The General Assembly authorized independent forensic auditors to investigate the state’s financial reporting system. Their just-released report confirmed that the $1.8 billion in contested funds never actually existed. The report shows bad accounting when the state’s old accounting system was switched over to the new one. All the finances are accounted for, and no money was found or missing.
According to the report, the $1.8 billion “represents the net cash balance of thousands of journal entries” made to allow State Treasurer Curtis Loftis to “balance the bank general ledger accounts” with separate balances held “in the individual bank accounts.
House Speaker Murrell Smith told reporters, “I think it’s important to note, this is not fraud, this is not a misrepresentation, this is just incompetence, in errors that have occurred over a period of time,”
The House of Representatives views this issue seriously and immediately launched its inquiry to determine who knew what, when they knew it, and why the accounting error wasn’t corrected in 2018 when it was first recognized. A Ways & Means subcommittee took testimony virtually Thursday from the forensic auditors.
These findings show that under-equipped parties made unintentional mistakes while converting the old accounting program to a new one. The good news is that there do not appear to be any intentional misrepresentations.

However, the report’s authors could not verify Treasurer Loftis’ claims last year that he had generated nearly $200 million in investment income from that money. Clearly, we need to hear from everyone involved in this unnecessary fiasco, and our House subcommittee will be taking their testimony, including Treasurer Loftis, in the weeks ahead.
Two Democrat legislators quickly announced they intend to bring articles of impeachment against Loftis, whom they accused of a “dereliction of duty and breach of the public trust.”
The forensic accounts offered numerous recommendations to ensure this type of thing never happens again, and we are prepared to act on them.
Meanwhile, the Federal Security and Exchange Commission has launched its investigation into the financial fiasco.
LEGISLATIVE BRIEFS
The General Assembly ramped up the 126th Legislative Session gaveled in Tuesday, and Representatives from the Aiken County Legislative Delegation got off to a fast start.
Pictured (L-R) Rep. Melissa Oremus, Rep. Bill Hixon, Rep. Bill Clyburn, Rep. Bill Taylor, and our newest member, Rep. Charlie Hartz.
The first three weeks of the legislative session are spent in committee hearings working on bills that will be sent to the House floor for debate and a vote.
First Up: ENERGY!
A top legislative priority is to create a sweeping state plan to ensure we have the energy we need for the future — and we will need a lot more energy. Last year, the House passed a comprehensive energy bill, but it was stalled in the Senate. The House revived the previous year’s bill, backed by the state’s major utilities: Dominion Energy, Santee Cooper, and Duke Energy. The power companies say South Carolina desperately needs additional energy sources to meet growing demand, recruit industry, and supply power on extremely cold days.
On Wednesday, a House subcommittee heard many hours of testimony on H.3309. They heard from those who worried about another fiasco like the failed V.C. Summer project. Advocates of the legislation say energy reform is needed to encourage new power production as energy demand increases in high-growth South Carolina.
Among other strategies, the legislation authorizes state-owned Santee Cooper to partner with Dominion Energy on a large new natural gas plant in the Canadys community of rural Colleton County. The plant would be constructed at the site of a closed coal plant.
Fast Tracking School Choice
The Senate is swiftly moving to pass school choice legislation after the S.C. Supreme Court nixed the legislation passed last session on the grounds that its funding was unconstitutional. The Senate bill would rely on lottery funding for its version of the trust fund scholarship program. The program is aimed at helping those who cannot afford alternatives to public schools that do not meet their learning needs. Senators are fast-tracking the bill.
Protecting Girls
Protecting the safety and privacy of students and women is a top priority of common sense legislators. Men and boys should not be in female bathrooms or locker rooms. I was proud to join State Attorney General Alan Wilson at a State House news conference in support of legislation that would make permanent our temporary law that ensures single-sex spaces remain designated for biological sex. Grassroots groups, including Moms for Liberty, the SC Federation of Republican Women, along with ADF, joined in supporting S.199 introduced by Senators Wes Climer and Josh Kimbrell.
Governor’s Budget Wishes
Each year, the House of Representatives creates a state budget. SC’s booming economy has once again created a large budget surplus, totaling over $1.8 billion in unexpected revenue this year.
Before the budget process, the Governor makes his requests known, hoping to influence the legislative decisions. This week, Gov. McMaster asked the Legislature to finance nearly a quarter-billion dollars in disaster relief after a devastating 2024 storm season that left dozens of SC residents dead and millions of dollars in property damage. The $240 million hurricane relief request represents one of the largest single line items in the budget.
Gov. McMaster’s key budget recommendations:
$193 million in savings to taxpayers by continuing to reduce the state’s top income rate from 6.2% to 6%. (A few years ago, it was 7%.
$50,000 annual salary for first-time public-school teachers. Eight years ago, that salary was just over $30,000.
$21 million to assign trained school resource officers at each of the 177 schools statewide that currently lack one.
$14.5 million for pay raises and the hiring of new law enforcement officers.
$30 million to continue to freeze college tuition for in-state students by providing public colleges and universities nearly $30 million to offset raising tuition.
$30 million for the Education Scholarship Trust Fund in anticipation of the General Assembly quickly passing legislation to allow low-income parents to choose the type of education environment and instruction that best suits their child’s unique needs.
$100 million to repair, rehabilitate, and rebuild many of the nearly 9,000 bridges on primary and secondary roads.
$43.2 million to the state’s 21 prisons to expand cell phone and contraband interdiction efforts, hire new corrections officers, increase medical and mental health services, and pay for deferred maintenance at all 21 prisons.
$13.7 million to hire and train the additional personnel necessary to reduce the current backlog of existing environmental permit applications.
$95 million in lottery funds workforce scholarships (SC WINS) through the SC Technical College System to address the high demand for skills, training, and knowledge.
$20 million in funding for the Battelle Alliance, a collaborative nuclear sciences research partnership between the USC, Clemson, and SC State at the Savannah River National Laboratory, here in Aiken County. The alliance will develop workforce training programs to fill engineering, science, research, and management positions for nuclear facilities operated by the Department of Energy and other such enterprises.
$100 million for constructing a new neurological hospital with an 80-bed critical care unit and a 32-bed neurological rehabilitation unit, operated by the University of South Carolina.
$15.5 million for flooding mitigation by identifying and preserving culturally or environmentally significant properties and for flooding mitigation efforts.
$2.8 million to further expand the full-day four-year-old kindergarten program (4K) to increase the number of children from low-income households able to enroll in the program.
$112 million to offset healthcare provider cost increases to maintain existing insurance benefits for 543,579 SC public employees, of which school district teachers and employees make up 41%, government retirees 37%, and state agency employees (including higher education) 21%.
From SC State School Superintendent Ellen Weaver
Aiken County School Superintendent told the Aiken Standard that student compliance with the district’s new phone ban has been “fantastic.” Superintendent Dr. Corey Murphy. He reported that there have been only a few infractions and those students were just given warnings. The intent of the ban is focus on learning rather than personal electronics.
Inauguration Duty
The many South Carolinians in our nation’s capitol for the Presidential Inauguration should feel comforted knowing that 220 SC National Guard will be there with them. Our soldiers are joining 8,000 National Guardsmen from 40 other states in crowd management, traffic control, and parade security.
Flag to Fly at Full-Staff on Inauguration Day
Gov. Henry McMaster has ordered the raising of flags to full-staff for President Donald Trump’s inauguration Monday despite President Joe Biden’s order that U.S flags be flown at half-staff for 30 days to honor the late President Jimmy Carter. McMaster said he would re-lower the flags to half-staff after Monday to continue to honor the late president who died Dec. 29. McMaster said inauguration day is a special day where you fly the flag high.
Great Grassroots!
I love it when the State House is “invaded” by American patriots. Convention of States (CoS) grassroots from across SC participated in their annual ‘surge day’ Wednesday. They are welcomed with open arms by most legislators. They have been familiar faces at the State House since 2013 when I first filed the Article V CoS Resolution that was finally passed in 2022 thanks to their perseverance. The CoS grassroots leaders continue to push for smart liberty-driven legislation each session. One of the bills on their agenda is pressing for passage of my FORUM bill that guarantees free speech on college campuses.
HOUSE DISTRICT 86
Last Call for Debris Pick-Up
SCDOT asks the community members in Aiken, Greenville, Laurens, Pickens and Spartanburg counties to continue piling debris on the side of the road, safely out of the roadway. Moving all remaining debris to the right of way by January 20th will allow crews to begin the final pass on debris pickup and expedite the cleanup process. Since debris collection began following Hurricane Helene, SCDOT has collected more than 3 million cubic yards of debris.
In Memory of Rep. Marshall Cain
This week, the SC House of Representatives honored the memory of former Aiken Representative Marshall Cain, who passed away Monday at the age of 90. Marshall was a SC political trailblazer and a lifelong public servant. (View Brief Video Tribute)
Meeting Masons
It was a delight to be invited to speak to members of the Aiken Masonic Lodge at their dinner Thursday evening. We had a rousing discussion focused on the common sense policies that President-Elect Trump will begin initiating this coming week to reverse the divisive policies and divisive cultural nonsense our nation has suffered through these past four years. America is Back!
SPOTLIGHT REPORT
S.C. is BOOMING!
People and businesses are flocking to South Carolina.
U-Haul names SC #1 in its U-Haul Growth Index, which measures the net gain (or loss) utilizing one-way U-Haul equipment. SC climbed three spots in the rankings to unseat Texas, the No. 1 growth state for the previous three years. California experienced the greatest net loss of do-it-yourself movers and ranks 50th for the fifth consecutive year.
Site Selection, a national publication, ranked SC #3 as having the best business climate in a survey of site selection experts who guide businesses and industries in choosing where to locate their facilities. Georgia dethroned Texas for the #1 slot. The site selectors ranked states based on several criteria, including a business-friendly environment, workforce availability, and training programs.
The South Carolina Department of Commerce announced its 2024 industry recruitment results, which showed that 2024’s capital investments totaled $8.19 billion. Existing industries reinforced their commitment to SC by reinvesting in the state through expansion projects, accounting for $5.38 billion of all announced capital investments last year. Information technology and computer equipment led the way with $4.1 billion in investments, followed by automotive ($1.3 billion) and aerospace ($1 billion).
PHOTO OF THE WEEK
Lucky to have my wingman, our son, Ryan Taylor, join me for an early morning Legislative breakfast at the Lexington County Chamber Thursday. Ryan is the Executive Director of the Nancy K. Perry Children’s Shelter in Lexington.
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