SC Senate stalled on education reforms, House leader says

Reforms to address a state Supreme Court order to improve education in poor, rural schools stalled this year because of the S.C. Senate, House Speaker Jay Lucas, R-Darlington, said Thursday.

Passing those proposals must be a priority in January, when lawmakers return to work, Lucas added.

Lawmakers must report their progress toward improving the state’s public schools to the S.C. Supreme Court by June 30. The court has ordered lawmakers and schools to work together to fix problems that it identified in a 2014 order.

Lucas said he hopes “to get the court to sign off on the fact that the S.C. General Assembly has done a good job ... with regard to rural school districts and, again, take that step forward and bring all the children in South Carolina a 21st-century education.”

Lucas added the House likely will ask the court this summer to release it from the lawsuit, citing the chamber’s passage of education legislation.

For example, the House passed a bill that would pave the way for the governor to appoint the state superintendent of education, now an elected post. The House also passed a bill that would allow the state to borrow money to help schools renovate existing facilities or build new ones.

But both proposals stalled in the Senate, where they remained Thursday as this year’s session officially ended.

State Sen. Vincent Sheheen, D-Kershaw, said Thursday senators plan to study education issues before January, holding public hearings to learn what school districts say they need to improve public education.

The goal will be to come up with legislation to introduce in the legislative session that starts in January, Sheheen said.

House Speaker Lucas was not impressed Thursday by that plan.

“I wish the Senate would have joined us earlier in this effort,” Lucas said.

This story was originally published May 11, 2017 at 5:53 PM.