S.C. House Speaker fires back at Gov. Haley on roads

S.C. House Speaker Jay Lucas fired back at Gov. Nikki Haley a day after she threatened to veto both House and Senate road repair bills.

“Rather than issuing a preemptive veto threat, I invite you to continue to engage in open discussions with the House to craft mutually agreeable legislation,” Lucas wrote in a letter to Haley.

Lucas said the House is moving forward with the bill that emerged from a special committee he appointed to address the state’s road needs.

The house is not moving forward with a bill sponsored by Rep. Tommy Stringer, R-Greenville, that is Haley’s plan – to increase the gas tax by 10 cents and cut the income tax by 2 percentage points.

Critics said that deal would gut state revenues, forcing cuts in spending on education, health care and law enforcement.

“The House is also working on a responsible income tax reduction that will not jeopardize our state’s credit rating,” Lucas wrote.

That plan would adjust the state’s tax brackets and save the average taxpayer about $48 a year.

This story was originally published March 25, 2015 at 12:24 PM with the headline "S.C. House Speaker fires back at Gov. Haley on roads."