Are you a state employee? One SC senator wants to get you a raise

Across-the-board pay raises are not included in the state budget proposal that senators will debate next week.

But one member wants to change that, saying Thursday he plans to whip bipartisan support and offer as much as a 3 percent pay raise for all state employees through a budget amendment.

"I live in Richland County, where there are lots of state employees, wonderful state employees. I hear from them at the grocery store, at the gym, at church, asking when will they get a pay raise," said state Sen. Darrell Jackson, D-Richland. "The answer is always the same: I will always fight for that."

Neither the House nor Senate version of the budget that takes effect July 1 includes pay raises for all state employees.

Advocates for S.C. state workers have long argued their low pay contributes to low morale, leading them to find jobs in the private sector or even out of state. They point to a 2016 study, paid for by the state, that found South Carolina pays its employees less than other states across the South.

That is especially true for educators in the face of South Carolina's teacher shortage.

Education advocates and the S.C. Department of Education have asked the General Assembly to approve a 2 percent pay raise for S.C. public school teachers. They also have asked the state to pay higher salaries for new teachers with a bachelor's degree, which they say is needed as the state grapples with the ongoing teacher shortage — felt especially in rural areas.

Starting Monday, the Senate will begin debate on the state's $8.2 billion general fund budget — mostly funded by S.C. sales and income taxes — including a proposal to raise S.C. public schoolteachers' salaries by 1 percent. The state also gets billions more from the federal government and other fees.

Among the proposed teacher pay raises, the S.C. Senate Finance Committee added more money to cover "step" raises for teachers. Budget writers also added $20 million every year to the budget to help colleges repair and renovate buildings.

Once the Senate adopts its budget proposal, House and Senate negotiators will meet to work out their differences.

Here's a look at the Senate's version of the budget ahead of next week's debate.

Raises spread thin

All S.C. schoolteachers would earn more money under the S.C. Senate's proposed budget.

The Senate Finance Committee last week proposed a 1 percent pay raise for teachers and increased the current $2,425 per student cost by about $60 — about $64 million total — to cover teachers' "step" raises.

The House's version of the budget added money for a 2 percent raise for teachers but did not increase per-pupil funding. House budget writers did add $32 million to keep up with the growing population of K-12 students.

The Senate's version of the budget also adds:

• $42,000 in raises for attorneys and law clerks in the Administrative Law Court. The House adopted the same.
• $5 million to pay for raises for the state's correctional officers. The House added $3.7 million.
• $2 million to cover overtime costs for S.C. Highway Patrol troopers. The House proposed the same.

SC colleges get more money

The state's public colleges and universities would get more money in the Senate's version of the budget.

Senate budget writers added $20 million more per year in new money to pay for college building repairs and renovations. That is on top of the $50 million in one-time money the S.C. House added to its version of the budget.

Senators hope that new money will discourage colleges from raising tuition for in-state students.

The University of South Carolina would get an added $4.5 million through the Senate's budget, alongside the $5 million the S.C. House set aside to help pay for USC’s new, $200 million medical school campus.

Clemson University would get almost $2.9 million to cover building costs through the Senate's version of the budget on top of $5 million in one-time money the House approved.

College officials had hoped the S.C. Legislature would agree to borrow $500 million to repair colleges and state-owned buildings. But that proposal died in the House, falling victim to Gov. Henry McMaster's veto threat and an unwillingness to pass a massive borrowing plan during an election year.

"We're hopeful that next year we can resume the conversation around a bond bill to further invest in our facilities," USC spokesman Wes Hickman said. "Neighboring states have invested billions of dollars in upgraded classrooms and labs for their colleges and universities in recent years, and South Carolina's institutions cannot compete if our buildings are allowed to fall into further disrepair."

Health care: 'Time to pay for it'

Just as with the S.C. House's proposed budget, new money in the Senate's version is largely devoured by rising health care costs. That includes:

• About $59.4 million in added state money to cover higher health care costs for more than 490,000 state workers, their family members and retirees enrolled in the state's health plan as of January. (The House added $56.4 million).
• Nearly $62 million to cover the costs of South Carolinians who get their health insurance through Medicaid. The bulk of the 1.2 million S.C. residents covered by the joint federal-state insurance program are children. (The House added nearly $60 million.)
• Another $32.4 million (same as the House adopted) to cover the higher costs of state workers' pensions.

State Senate President Hugh Leatherman, R-Florence — arguably the most powerful lawmaker in South Carolina — last week commended his colleagues' work solving the state's pension crisis.

Changes adopted last year by lawmakers require state, county and city workers, police officers and teachers and their employers to pay more into the state retirement system. Lawmakers hope those fixes will help the state afford to pay about $20 billion in benefits promised to S.C. retirees.

"But now is the time to pay for it," Leatherman said. "You've heard the old saying: Sooner or later you (have) got to pay the fiddler or the fiddler will quit playing music for you. We're at that point."

This story was originally published April 7, 2018 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Are you a state employee? One SC senator wants to get you a raise."