Legislators request more ethics opinions as State House corruption probe rumbles on

S.C. House members have requested nearly a dozen formal ethics opinions this year on what they can — and cannot do — as an ongoing public corruption probe puts the spotlight on the behavior of lawmakers.

“It’s a very proactive attempt to make sure that they know what the lines are,” said state Rep. Mike Pitts, R-Laurens, who chairs the House Ethics Committee that issues the advisory opinions.

“If someone has a question about a certain situation, they want to make sure that they’re doing it right and not leave that open to interpretation at a later time.”

The House Ethics Committee issued three opinions Wednesday, including requiring members of the committee that screens potential judges to remove themselves if their spouse is a candidate.

The requests for guidance come after lawmakers created a new, independent investigative body to oversee ethics complaints about public officials. Previously, S.C. House members and senators policed themselves.

“We’ve made some major changes in the ethics laws, and people want to make sure that they are in compliance,” Pitts said.

Before Wednesday, nine formal opinions had requested, including a June go-ahead for House members to take part in an October tour of Israel.

In 2016, several House members went on a similar tour that included visits to strategic security sites and meetings with Israeli government leaders.

The Ethics Committee said it was OK for House members to go on the tour, paid for by a host organization that does not lobby the S.C. Legislature. But the committee said the trip must be reported in legislators’ annual income reports.

This story was originally published July 26, 2017 at 4:46 PM with the headline "Legislators request more ethics opinions as State House corruption probe rumbles on."