Getting South Carolina Lawmakers To Go On The Record

It isn’t hard to figure out why South Carolina state legislators spend taxpayer dollars so irresponsibly: anonymous voice votes shield them from being held accountable by constituents.

South Carolina ranks lowest in the nation for legislative accountability and the vast majority of votes in the state legislature are never recorded.  South Carolina is one of only five states where legislators are not required to record votes.  In 2008, the South Carolina House of Representatives recorded only 8 percent of votes on general bills or joint resolutions, and the Senate recorded only 1 percent.

A roll call rule to improve legislative vote recording took effect in January, but the measure is temporary and subject to the whims of the legislature.  The Spending Accountability Act of 2009 (H. 3047) is a more permanent solution introduced by possible 2010 gubernatorial candidate Rep. Nikki Haley.  S. 11 is the companion Senate bill.

Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are sponsoring the bills, but support is not universal.  Opponents say roll calls for every vote will incur unjustifiable expense, an excuse that’s pretty rich coming from legislators who approved funding for an Elvis impersonator, a deep fryer, and a “Doo-Da” Festival.

A House subcommittee hearing on the Spending Accountability Act is scheduled for Tuesday, April 21, 2009.  The citizens of South Carolina have a right to know how elected officials are voting on all issues brought before the South Carolina General Assembly.   Remind the legislature that transparency in government is not optional by urging them to pass H. 3047 out of committee so it can be voted on by the entire House.

Contact the following South Carolina House members, as well as your Representative, and let them know that open government is a principle worth fighting for.

Subcommittee Chair Denny Nielson
803-734-3097
DWN@schouse.org

Rep. Brian White
803-734-3113
WBW@schouse.org

Rep. Murrell Smith
803-734-3042
GMS@schouse.org

Rep. Herb Kirsh
803-734-3071

Speaker Bobby Harrell
803-734-3125
HSP@schouse.org

Chairman Dan Cooper
803-734-3144
HWM@schouse.org

Majority Leader Kenny Bingham
803-734-3138
KAB@schouse.org

Update, 4/21/09: The Spending Accountability Act of 2009 passed subcommittee today.  The next step is a hearing before the full House Ways and Means Committee tomorrow (Wednesday, April 22) at 2:30pm.  Contact information for all Ways and Means members is available on the State House Web site, or the following list of email addresses may be copied and pasted into your email client:

HWM@schouse.org, LDB@schouse.org, JAB@schouse.org, KAB@schouse.org, WC@schouse.org, GCH@schouse.org, TE@schouse.org, HB@schouse.org, KK@schouse.org, HBL@schouse.org, LFL@schouse.org, DAL@schouse. org, JL@schouse.org, JM1@schouse.org, JN@schouse.org, DWN@schouse.org, HLO@schouse.org, PittsT@schouse.org, RFR@schouse.org, JGS@schouse.org, GMS@schouse.org, JS@schouse.org, WBW@schouse.org, ADY@schouse.org

Update, 4/24/09: The meeting this week in which the Ways and Means Committee was scheduled to address the Spending Accountability Act was canceled.  A new meeting of the full Committee has not been announced, and Rep. Nikki Haley is calling the cancellation a “major setback.” The Committee may fail to review the bill before the House adjourns for the year.

Please, melt the phones and flood the Ways and Means Committee members with emails.  Let them know that voters expect H.3047 to pass during the current session.

April 20, 2009 · Filed Under Action Alerts, South Carolina

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Make Little Hannah’s Christmas Wish Come True

I’m a Christmas card slacker, but I’m making an exception this year.

There will be no excuses when it comes to sending one very important card to one very brave little girl named Hannah Faith Garman. 4-year-old Hannah is suffering from an aggressive brain cancer called glioblastoma multiforme. Her doctors expect her short life to last only a few more weeks, and her Christmas wish is to get as many cards as she can. A friend of the family writes:

Right now she has lost most of her motor skills. She is confined to bedAnd cannot really do anything or play with the gifts she is getting frompeople, but she LOVES getting cards – she has gotten so many from people she does not know and jus t loves to have grandma read about the people who send Them and see their pictures and is so proud of all her cards. Her room is just filled with cards.When asked what she wants for Christmas she said she wants to see howMany Christmas cards she can get. Many people have passed this wish along to their churches, prayer groups, friends and family. There are school groupswhere children are making her cards. People are including pictures so shecan see who it i s that i s sending her the card.

If you would like to help with her wish, please send her a card at:

Hannah Garman
704 Orchard Rd
Lititz, PA 17543

Hannah’s father Darin posts photos and updates at CaringBridge.com. On Thursday he wrote, “Hannah opens every card we receive and the card is read to her. It is one of the few things she can do while being in bed all day.”

Please take a moment on Sunday or Monday to send a card to let Hannah know how many people are thinking of her and praying for her health. There is also a Hannah Garman benefit fund set up at Ephrata National Bank to help the family with medical expenses.

Thanks to Stacy at Smart Girl Politics for bringing Hannah’s Christmas wish to my attention. Michelle Malkin has more, including a photo gallery of Hannah.

Let’s all help make Hannah’s Christmas wish come true.

December 21, 2008 · Filed Under Action Alerts

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