Friday 5 2.21.2020

Here are a few articles you may missed this week. Take a few minutes and get smarter before church coffee hour this Sunday…

1. Hazing could become a felony in South Carolina. Under current law, those participating in hazing face a misdemeanor charge and a possible 12 months in prison and $500 fine. Proposed bill H. 3056 would make it a felony if someone is hazed and seriously injured with a possible 15 years in prison and $2,500 fine.
2. Rep. Todd Rutherford endorsement. Although Michael Bloomberg won’t appear on the South Carolina primary ballot, SC Rep. Todd Rutherford announced his support for the candidate in mid-February. Rep. Rutherford says his support is motivated by who he believes can defeat President Trump in November.
3. Another month closer to REAL ID. 223 days left to get your REAL ID for South Carolina residents.
4. NextEra’s Santee Cooper bid. While Governor McMaster supports NextEra’s acquisition of Santee Cooper, other SC legislators express their fears for the proposal. One major concern being the nontraditional request made by NextEra to be preapproved for the next 4 years of spending. Another concern is the company’s need for assurance that they will be able to bill its customers for certain unsuccessful projects because of state or federal regulation changes. The Post and Courier reports David Reuter, a NextEra spokesman, says, “…those stipulations are a ‘key component’ of the company’s deal and necessary to pull off a successful takeover of Santee Cooper…without those assurances, it would create ‘significant uncertainty’ for the company.”.
5. SC road improvements up ahead? With gradual gas tax increases only halfway through implementation, SC law makers are discussing if additional funding should be supplied by the surplus to fix rural roads. Legislators on both sides of the aisle have acknowledged that SC roads are a top complaint from constituents.

BONUS: For the first time since Nov 7, 2007, Illinois does NOT have a former governor in prison.