Friends of South Carolina,
Now you know that the South Carolina Senate is ignoring you!
I’m writing today to tell you what they currently are proposing instead of what you have asked.
Frankly it reminds me of Dr. Frankenstein’s monster; showing just about the same amount of intelligence.
You have repeatedly asked the Senate to implement the common sense recommendations of the South Carolina Policy Council in the new Department of Administration bill, H3066.
If implemented, they will restructure our government to give us transparency, accountability, and a balance of power between the three branches!
Instead of implementing these recommendations, as you have asked, they have put together a Frankenstein bill that is a mixed up mish mash of policy that makes absolutely no sense at all.
In fact, it is dangerous, giving the appearance of change, while doing little to fix the accountability problems that plague our government.
So please contact your Senator right away!
You can find your Senator and his contact information here.
Tell him that the current version of the Department of Administration bill has lots of problems that would be fixed if he simply would implement the recommendations of the South Carolina Policy Council.
The current bill, as amended, creates a new government agency for managing the state’s bonded debt. It’s called the “Bond Review Authority”. It will be made up of… you can guess without me telling you…
- The Governor
- The Treasurer
- The Comptroller
- One Senator
- One Representative
That is almost exactly the make-up of the current Budget and Control Board! How stupid do they think we are?
It is the quasi-executive quasi-legislative nature of the Board that makes it so difficult to hold accountable!
And they want to create a new board, with the same problem, to be in charge of our state’s ability to put itself in debt?!?! No way!
But wait… there’s more… with the current Frankenstein version of the Department of Administration bill, the Budget and Control Board will still be around for at least two more years, managing the state retirement system!
Yep, that’s right! At least two more years of the problematic Board!
Help me understand the logic of this.
The Budget and Control Board has been managing our state retirement system so badly that they have buried it under $13 billion in unfunded liability in just a short 13 years.
That’s right; the retirement system was fully funded and solvent in 1999.
Do they really think we want the Budget and Control Board to keep it for two more years?
Isn’t that like adding more logs to a fire and expecting it to go out?
That is nuts!
Here is a final example of the madness of the current bill under consideration:
The Board of Economic Advisors was created in 1973 by the Budget and Control Board to prepare and review economic forecasts and general fund revenue projections.
Under the current Senate proposal, it still exists and reports to, not one person, not even just one branch of government, but to
- The Governor
- The Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee
- The Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee.
Who is accountable? All three will be pointing fingers at each other and you and I will be left in the dark!
You can read the remaining summary of the current Senate proposal for restructuring our state government here. But be warned! It will make you mad!
No wonder they haven’t had any record votes on this disaster of a bill!
We need a brave Senator to offer an amendment that implements the recommendations of the Policy Council!
These recommendations will give us a government with transparency and accountability.
That transparency and accountability will save you money and offer your children and grandchildren a state full of opportunity for prosperity!
Contact your Senator and tell him enough is enough! It is time for our Senators to grow a steel spine and fight.
You can find your Senator and his contact information here.
We simply want an accountable and transparent state government with proper division of powers between the three branches.
The functions of this quasi-legislative and quasi-executive Board must be divided between EITHER the executive OR the legislative branches of government.
If we insist on getting it right, we can tell our children and grandchildren that we had a little bit to do with their prosperity.
That IS what we are demanding! Accountability and transparency will give our children and grandchildren the chance to grow up in a state full of opportunity for prosperity!
But, if we allow our Senators to compromise away this chance… making deals off the record, in back rooms and in huddled conversations on the floor of the Senate, we deserve what we get.
But our future generations don’t deserve that. They don’t deserve to inherit this debacle.
Why has no one put up an amendment to implement these common sense recommendations made by the Policy Council?
This bill is on “Special Order”.
That means it can’t be blocked with procedural tricks!
That means any amendment that is offered must be debated and voted upon as long as one Senator refuses to give his consent to skip it.
Who will be the hero of this generation? Who will offer an amendment that will implement every single recommendation of the Policy Council?
I’ve asked before, who will fight for it?
What does that mean, to “fight for it”?
Giving a fiery speech is not fighting for it! We’ve heard several of those already on the floor of the Senate.
Giving a speech doesn’t get policy implemented!
I’ll repeat what I said before; fiery speeches are for “Toastmasters”!
No, a fight for good government means:
- Introduce an amendment with all of the South Carolina Policy Council’s recommendations;
- Don’t give “common consent” to anything that prevents a vote on the amendment. It only takes one Senator refusing to give consent to force a vote on an amendment.
- Force roll call votes on the amendment!
- Accept no more voice votes!
Our Senators need to move legislation… and not this Frankenstein bill that is under current consideration; full of compromises with Leatherman and his band of big government liberals hiding behind the “Republican” label.
Please, contact your Senator!
Give special attention to our reformers!
Make sure they understand what it is they were elected to do!
You can find your Senator and his contact information here.
They were not elected to make deals in back rooms or on the side of the chamber for halfway measures!
They were elected to fight for the people of South Carolina!
They need to grow some steel in their spine and force a vote on an amendment that implements all of the Policy Council recommendations. If they lose that vote, so be it, but if they never even bring it to the floor for a vote, then they lose without even fighting!
What kind of reformer goes down without a fight? Not the kind that I support!
You can find your Senator and his contact information here.
Sincerely,
Talbert Black Jr.
State Coordinator
Campaign for Liberty
P.S. The South Carolina Senate has been debating the Department Of Administration bill for three weeks, amending it five times. So far, they have given us a bill that in its current form does little to improve our currently unaccountable system.
They have failed to implement the recommendations of the South Carolina Policy Council. These recommendations will structure our state government with transparency and accountability. That will allow us to save the tax payer money and give our future generations a state full of opportunity for prosperity.
Contact your Senator and tell him to stand up for the people of South Carolina and introduce and amendment that implements these common sense recommendations and then insist on a recorded roll call vote on the amendment!
You can find your Senator and his contact information here.
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