State lawmakers gathered on Tuesday, June 6th, to grant their final approval of the State’s $27 billion dollar budget for the 2017-2018 fiscal year.
This approval comes after extensive negotiation and compromise by the General Assembly conferees assigned to the committee designated to marry the Senate and House versions of the budget.
The members of the conference committee were Senators Leatherman, Bennett, and Setzler and Representatives White, Pitts, and Stavrinakis.
The state legislature hasn’t formally convened for nearly three weeks, with the last regular session being May 11th. They aren’t expected to meet again until January except to consider vetoes.
Notable Highlights of the budget include:
– Extensive funding for South Carolina national disaster recovery
$68 million for Hurricane Matthew, $1.25 million for Pinnacle Mountain Fire, and $5 million for the 2014 Winter Storm Reimbursement
– $55.8 million for capital improvements in Abbeville plaintiff school districts and districts with a poverty index of 80% or higher
– $44 million recurring increase for local government who will bear some additional burden to shore up the pension system for state employees
-$60 million to increase the Base Student Cost by $75 to $2,425 per student
A full copy of the budget is available for public access here .The budget will remain as is barring any vetoes from the Governor McMaster, which are due by midnight Monday.
