H. 3002 is a bill to reform how we fund education in South Carolina. There is a provision that allows the State Department of Education to establish a merit pay system in place of the current step program.

The bill was amended last week to require a study committee of teacher’s to provide a report back to the House Ways and Means and Senate Finance by Dec. 1.

Dr. Mick Zais, SC Education Superintendent, has advocated for a merit pay system that includes some measure of performance as a way of compensating teachers.

If we do establish a performance pay scale for teachers, I doubt very seriously if the legislature is the appropriate entity to create such a system. I’d rather either the Department or the local school districts make these guidelines.

While we’re waiting on the SC House to debate this bill, I’d like to see what other states have done in this area before the Senate takes up H. 3002.

Bill passed Senate unanimously in 2009

Senate Majority Leader Harvey Peeler filed legislation today for an economic plan that will assist businesses and help put the unemployed back into work. His “Jump Start Plan,” which passed the Senate unanimously in 2009, gives businesses tax credits for up to two years for bringing on board an unemployed South Carolina resident. The state unemployment rate was 10.6 percent as of December.

“My phone is ringing off the hook from businesses being taxed when they’re forced to lay off employees. If businesses are going to be taxed for laying off workers, it only makes sense to provide tax incentives for businesses that hire people off South Carolina’s unemployment roles.” Peeler said. “As I said when this bill passed in 2009, government can’t create economic growth. Only private business can. The best government can do is get out of the way.”

The bill gives a particular business a $100 tax credit per month per formerly unemployed S.C. resident, for a maximum of $2,400 over a period of 24 months. Eligible people would have to have been out of work for at least four weeks, be employed by the business for at least four weeks while working at least 35 hours a week and provide a notarized affidavit confirming legal residency. The tax credit cannot exceed the amount of taxes the business pays in a year, but any excess can be carried forward into the next year.

Companies in South Carolina are already hurting from higher unemployment insurance taxes. They are in need of a tax break. Sens. Kevin Bryant and Greg Ryberg are cosponsoring the legislation. The bill passed unanimously in 2009.

WIS-TV had a panel of an HIV patient, a representative from NAMI, a psychiatrist, and myself discussing the costs savings proposals I’ve been making involving prior authorizations on certain classes of prescriptions drugs.
part 1

Senator Bryant Calls for DHHS Audit

Bipartisan group of 20 legislators join request

Sen. Kevin Bryant, joined by 20 other members of the General Assembly including Senate Majority Leader Harvey Peeler and House Majority Leader Kenny Bingham, sent a request to the Legislative Audit Council on Wednesday for an audit of the state Department of Health and Human Services. The agency is running a budget deficit of more than $200 million and is seen as the largest problem in the state budget dilemma this legislative session. Next year, the deficit projection tops $1 billion.

“We need to find out how and why DHHS went so deep in the red,” Bryant said of the bipartisan effort. “We cannot allow state agencies to operate this way now or in the future. By getting the Audit Council on the case, we’ll be able to get to the bottom of this problem.”

Peeler and Bryant have submitted a bill to create a proviso that allows new DHHS director Tony Keck more flexibility in budget decisions at the agency. However, Senate Democrats are currently blocking consideration of the legislation.

The audit request by Bryant asks the LAC to look into management care programs, provider reimbursement methodology and ways other states have handled similar crises. Keck, representing Haley, is joining the legislators and asking for additional information.
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Last Spring the legislature was taking on the task of reforming a dysfunctional agency, The Employment Security Commission, and transforming it to the new Department of Employment and Workforce (DEW). This task also involved us to reformulate the methodology of how benefit payments were calculated. This new plan spread out the payments based on experience ratings. Most SC employers saw reductions in their payments and some saw increases.

I am currently chairing a sub-committee reviewing plans to amend this payment calculation methodology. DEW has been very cooperative in submitting several scenarios. These plans may be seen here.

The LCI sub committee will meet on Tuesday 02.22.11 at 10am and on Wednesday 02.23.11 at 10am to review a few more scenarios.

01.27.10 Legislative Audit Report of the ESC

02.23.10 Reform Prosal

02.25.10 Reforming the Employment Security Commission to the Department of Employment and Workforce

12.13.10 FUTA Reduction

10.26.09 Sanford on ESC Reform

02.06.09 ESC Reform gains traction