State House Report: April 30, 2009

Friday marked the traditional “crossover” deadline in your General Assembly: the date when most legislation needs to be passed by one chamber in order to be considered by the other. The week before the crossover deadline is typically a very busy week on the House floor as every legislator wants his or her bill to go to the Senate before May 1st. One major item the House passed this week was legislation creating the “TRAC” Commission, which will study our tax code and present findings to the General Assembly by January of 2011.

This commission will examine all our state taxes – our income taxes, our sales tax exemptions, and all the other little ways the state taxes you. It’s a key effort to not only make our tax code simpler, but more fair and efficient. The goal is to provide tax savings and efficiencies to you and to businesses.

Republicans took this a step further and inserted language that will force that commission to study the impact of implementing a Fair Tax in South Carolina.

All of these tax reforms are a good idea on many fronts, not least of which is reducing the income tax – an idea supported by the governor which House Republicans have approved on several occasions.

I don’t know what the commission will recommend to the General Assembly when it returns its findings, but we have a tax code that is uncompetitive, taxes some too much, and exempts others far too many outdated political promises. A comprehensive look will hopefully help not only individuals’ tax bills, but also spur business development and job creation.

This Week, the Republican Party in South Carolina also scored a major electoral victory. We all heard much about the “First 100 Days” of the Obama Administration on Wednesday, but there was also a major story that you did not hear much of about.

At a time when all you hear on the national media is about the woes of the Republican Party, Republicans in the Upstate stood up and won a special election for the House.

House District 30 encompasses most of northern Cherokee County and has been represented by Democrats for as long as anyone can remember – probably for at least 133 years. Republicans turned out in droves and handed local businessman Steve Moss an overwhelming victory over a career Democrat politician. Rep.-elect Moss stood above the fray and ran a positive campaign about conservative issues, even as the Democrats dragged his name through the mud.

The victory in House District 30 is tempered only because the seat came open following the passing of long-time Rep. Olin Phillips, who was a friend to all of us in the House and a great representative and person.

But looking ahead, when we combine this week’s victory with the incredible turnout during the Republican precinct reorganizations and county conventions, and the Republicans in South Carolina are poised for a strong 2010. We need your help and we need you to stay involved. We have momentum!

As always, thank you for the privilege of serving you in Columbia. If I can ever be of assistance to you, or if you have ideas on issues you want me to share with the rest of the General Assembly, please don’t hesitate to contact me at 963-0337 or in Columbia at 803 734-3045.