Latest news with #GregHembree
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
SC House and Senate reach compromise on K-12 vouchers
Senate Education Chairman Greg Hembree, R-Little River, leads an Education Committee meeting on Wednesday, April 26, 2023 in Columbia, S.C. (File/Travis Bell/STATEHOUSE CAROLINA/Special to the SC Daily Gazette) COLUMBIA — Up to 15,000 K-12 students could receive $7,500 scholarships next year for private school tuition under a compromise between the House and Senate that seeks to reinstate and expand payments halted by the state Supreme Court. After pushback from Democrats over not having enough time to read and fully consider the changes, senators decided to postpone a vote on returning the amended bill to the House. But that's just a timing issue. Democrats don't have the votes to stop advancement. For the coming school year, eligibility would continue to be capped at 10,000 students whose parents earn up to 300% of federal poverty guidelines. For a family of four, for example, the income limit would be $96,450. Eligibility would then max out in 2026-27 at 15,000 students living in households with incomes up to 500% of the poverty line. Under 2025 guidelines, the income limit would be nearly $161,000 for a family of four. The compromise, adopted 29-13 mostly along party lines, was a deal cut between Senate and House education chairs, said Senate Education Chairman Greg Hembree. No Democrat voted for it. Two Republicans voted against it: Sen. Shane Martin of Spartanburg County and Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey of Edgefield, who said the proposed expansion could result in higher-income parents taking most of the slots. The Edgefield Republican, whose children attend public schools, has consistently said the idea was to help children stuck in failing schools whose parents couldn't afford any other option — not as a state bonus for well-off parents already paying for private tuition. Republican leadership named the issue a top priority this year after the state Supreme Court struck down the private tuition payments last September as unconstitutional. Nearly 800 students have since been relying on private donors to pay their tuition this school year. SC Senate passes K-12 voucher bill pulling from lottery profits Typically, when the House and Senate pass differing versions of a proposal, the chambers will send the legislation to a six-member panel — consisting of three legislators from each chamber — to hammer out the differences. But reaching a compromise through that process would have been difficult and might have held up the bill, said Hembree, R-Little River. So, he met with House Education Chairwoman Shannon Erickson, R-Beaufort, and officials with the state Department of Education to figure out a middle ground, Hembree said. 'The bones of the bill remain pretty much the same,' he said. SC House passes bill to revive K-12 vouchers. The bulk of this year's money will go unused. The deal would give students who are in public school and below 300% of federal poverty guidelines priority through early application windows, Hembree said. The Legislature would also have the option of increasing the number of slots by allocating more money in the budget, he said. Each student would receive a set $7,500 scholarship for the school year, rather than an amount that would adjust depending on state aid to public schools. That money could come from either the lottery fund or the state's general fund. The thinking is that the state's high court will find one of the two options constitutional in the expected next legal challenge, Hembree said. The money would go to students through a third-party 'trustee,' a position the House added in an effort to circumvent the state constitution's ban on public dollars directly benefiting private education. 'In my view, this is an insurance policy,' Hembree said. The idea of a trustee raised immediate alarms for Sen. Russell Ott, D-St. Matthews. 'What guarantee do we have to the taxpayers of this state that when we let go of that money, we have any control of it whatsoever?' Ott said. That was just what he noticed on a cursory glance. The proposal could contain more concerns upon closer examination, he said. 'That's what should be concerning to everyone, that I have been able to find those questions in a matter of 30 minutes,' Ott said.
Yahoo
31-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
SC bill could expand students' access to free school lunch
COLUMBIA, S.C. (WSPA) – A bill in the state house is looking to give low-income students free school breakfast and lunches. Currently in South Carolina, students living in poverty can access free or reduced meals at school. A bill could make this provision a permanent state law. 'It's kind of a problem that's sort of already been solved,' Sen. Greg Hembree (R – Horry). It's really a question of it's in proviso we can keep it right there and let it ride, but quite honestly — I just don't like that practice. I think that's not a good way to legislate, and I think we've already got system that is working really well.' The bipartisan bill said students who qualify for the National School Lunch Program can get free meals. Some criteria needed to qualify as a student in poverty include being eligible for Medicaid benefits, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) benefits or being homeless, in foster care or transient. Sen. Hembree said many parents were not even aware that their child qualified for the program. 'You had all these children that for whatever reason they qualify, but their parents didn't apply for free lunch,' Sen. Humbree continued. 'They just didn't get on the list for whatever reason, and it literally doubled the number of districts and schools that were eligible.' School districts can participate in the Community Eligibility Provision known as more than 40% of students in a school district qualify, then the entire district could receive free school lunch. 'The school lunch provision has been in the state budget for the last two years. Now they've seen that it can work, that it has not caused disruptions to district operations or caused an unfunded mandate on districts,' explained Patrick Kelly with the Palmetto State Teacher's Association. An amendment made last week said if the CEP is discontinued by federal action, then the requirement to participate in the program is suspended. 'If the federal program went away, the state doesn't have the funding to backstop what the federal government is currently spending money on,' Kelly said. Kelly said this is a 'commonsense amendment' and will hopefully not impact the program, but it makes sense that lawmakers would be cautious. This program is funded by the Federal Department of Agriculture and does not use any state dollars. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
06-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
SC bill to allow use of debit cards for lottery purchases
Columbia S.C. (WSPA) – In South Carolina, you can only purchase lottery tickets with cash. However, many state lawmakers, including Governor Henry McMaster, are interested in changing the law to allow South Carolinians to buy lottery tickets using their debit cards. As of now, South Carolina is one of three states that has a cash-only requirement for lotter purchases. Senator and Chairman of the Senate Education Committee, Greg Hembree, believes there are many benefits to allowing debit cards. 'Technology and the way we use it has changed over the decades. We're simply catching our statute up to the modern way people use money,' he said. Not everyone is interested in this bill. Lawyer Sue Berkowitz said it will only increase gambling addictions. 'If they spend that limited resource, and if something happens like a blip and if they do get overcharged, or they do get a hit on it with an overdraft, that could be the difference in rent getting paid or food on the table.' Today, Senator Hembree suggested the removal of lottery courier services from the bill, comparing the concept as 'Uber Eats for lottery tickets.' It would let third party companies be allowed to purchase lottery tickets on the customer's behalf. 'Quite frankly, we have debated and really vetted the debit card statute previously. The courier service is really a brand-new idea that is going to require more study and more effort to figure out where the right answer is there.' When Berkowitz heard about the removal of lottery courier services, she stated 'Why would we allow that, that really is buying into allowing everyone else to make money off of people who might not have a whole lot to spend.' The South Carolina Lottery Commission estimated that the state is losing $50 million in revenue annually by only allowing citizens to buy tickets using cash. The next step for the bill is to be seen in front of the Senate Education Full Committee, and then it could be debated next on the senate floor. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
