2023-2024

Legislators met in a Joint Assembly this week and elected Hon. John W. Kittredge as the new Chief Justice of the South Carolina Supreme Court. The Senate spent most of the week debating a Judicial Merit Selection Commission reform bill (S. 1046) that was previously set for special order.

After weeks of the judicial elections being held up in the Senate, legislators reached a resolution by placing a judicial reform bill (S. 1046) in the special order status. Senators began debating the bill Thursday. The Senate and House then agreed to hold the election for the South Carolina Supreme Court Chief Justice at noon March 6. All the other judicial elections will be at noon April 17.

The Senate debated several bills this week and passed S.915, which creates the Executive Office of Health and Policy.

The Senate Finance Committee met for the first time in 2024 and took up several bills of interest to counties. When not in committee meetings, members of the Senate spent time on the floor debating H.

The House and Senate met on Wednesday and finally approved the budget bill (H. 4300). Both chambers also took up several conference reports. The Senate and House also indicated that unless there are budget vetoes by the Governor they consider to be significant, they will not reconvene until January 2024.

The budget and other bills of interest are discussed below: