March 31, 2006
Let Delegation Know Workers' Compensation is Important to Your Business
The House workers’ compensation bill (H. 4427) looks like Joan Rivers after too many plastic surgeries – changed so much that you can hardly recognize it. We’re anticipating the bill will be debated next Wednesday in the House, but will this version of the bill truly benefit business? We don’t think so and here’s the main reason why: The bill needs to include the American Medical Association (AMA) provision that was taken out of the bill because it has been proven to save businesses money in the workers’ compensation system.
A compromise amendment is expected to be offered next week that would reinstate the scope of commissioner discretion to within 110 percent of the AMA guidelines. According to the South Carolina State Chamber of Commerce, S.C. impairment or disability judgments currently average 157 percent above recognized standards while the southeastern average remains at 108 percent. The amendment would be much better than what employers are dealing with right now.
Now what? It’s imperative to the success of the workers’ compensation bill for you to call your legislators and tell them how important it is to add the AMA provision back in the bill.
Late School Start Bill Advances to Governor's Desk
The uniform late school start bill (H. 4429) got final approval from the Senate yesterday. This is a great victory for parents and businesses in South Carolina. We commend the parents with Save S.C. Summers for their hard work and dedication. We also commend our local delegation for their tireless work on this issue. The bill now moves to the governor’s desk. Gov. Sanford publicly has proclaimed he would sign the bill, making the third Monday of August the earliest schools could begin their school year.
House Budget Shows Promise for Grand Strand
The House budget bill was passed this week and there's some good news for the Grand Strand. The bill includes dedicated money for I-73, I-74, higher education along the Grand Strand, additional tourism promotion, the children's museum and more.
Beach Renourishment Shot Down
A beach renourishment initiative was recently shot down in the House. One of the reasons why it may not have been successful was because of questions about some of the wording in the provision. Now we're waiting to see if the Senate will tackle the beach renourishment issue.
Thumbs Up to the S.C. Senate for passing the late school start bill and a special thank you to Sens. Luke Rankin, Ray Cleary and Dick Elliott for their dedication to this issue. Our senators worked diligently last week to avoid a filibuster and to allow the bill to move smoothly through the Senate.
Thumbs Up to the S.C. House for passing a budget that helps address some of the Grand Strand’s most important needs. We are quite pleased with how the Grand Strand was treated during the budget process.
Did you know?
You can download a voter registration form or check on your current voter registration information online? Not only can you check to be sure your information is correct, but you can see what congressional district, House district, Senate district and school district you are in. It also will tell you what voting precinct you are in and where your precinct location is.
