Local News

S.C. Legislative Report with Rep. Burns: Tax reform, judicial elections, more

By S.C. Dist. 17 Rep. Mike Burns:

Overview of the week:

We are now over a month into the legislative session and I am very pleased with the progress being made. In the next few weeks, I expect to see developments with the education reform bill, a plan for reforming the tax system and an outline for next year’s budget. I am excited and prepared to keep working hard for you and the best interests of all South Carolinians.

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Judicial Elections:

On Wednesday, we held a joint assembly in order to elect judges for the Court of Appeals, Family Court and Circuit Court. We elected a diverse group of judges that represent SC’s judicial system in the highest regard. For a complete list of the elected judges click here and scroll down: https://www.schousegop.org/more

Tax Reform

The Tax Reform Committee, a bipartisan committee appointed by the speaker last year, met this week to discuss a reform bill. The committee is preparing to report a bold plan that will reduce income taxes and broaden the base of sales taxes resulting in much fairer tax rates across the board for all South Carolinians.The bill will also address business license fees and reduce the corporate tax rate. We are hoping the bill will be on the floor before budget week.

Education Meeting:

Please take a second to fill out this education reform bill survey: https://goo.gl/forms/Oi9dNj7HdKaQQkai1

Numbers to know:

45.2% of all third graders “met or exceeded expectations” on SC Ready. This means over half of all third graders in SC did not meet the college and career readiness standards for 3rd grade.

354 3rd graders were held back at the end of the 2017-2018 school year due to not being able to meet the readiness standards.

Helpful Links:

If you haven’t downloaded the SC Legislature App yet download it now to track bills you are interested in: https://t.co/jqocTeVGkW

Keep up with roads, education and other projects here: https://www.schousegop.org/more

Additional Links:

https://www.fitsnews.com/2019/02/07/ridiculous-racism-allegations-at-sc-state-house

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.

– Rep. Mike Burns