Despite talks of a continuing resolution to keep the state government open, the Speaker of the S.C. House said he is confident the state budget and two other funding measures will pass during special session.
Rep. Jay Lucas, R-Darlington, spoke about Week 2 of the session, which begins today, during a visit to Aiken on Saturday. The General Assembly is looking to pass the main budget bill, the capital reserve bill - which is used to provide funding for colleges and infrastructure - and a supplementary bill that contains about $400 million in surplus dollars.
Each of the three bills are in a Conference Committee, which is comprised of a six-member debate group that consists of three representatives and three senators. While the budget vote by the committee has the biggest implications for the state, the surplus funding has gained most of the attention because legislators believe the bulk of the funding should go toward infrastructure.
Lucas is in agreement, primarily because the General Assembly failed to move on a long-term roads plan.
"If we don't deal with it sooner rather than later, I'm afraid we won't be able to come close to funding our needs," Lucas said.
The House's version of the surplus bill looks to provide $150 million to state infrastructure and another $70 million to pay for road modifications to accommodate the state's recent Volvo acquisition.
An amendment also was added to restore the $4.1 million originally in the budget for ice storm recovery - an appropriation that looks to provide Aiken County with $1.6 million in recovery funds.
"I know that's an issue that's particularly important to this area," Lucas said.
Outside of the major issues, Lucas said he is in support of saving as much of the surplus dollars as possible since the state is headed for a $100 million shortfall in Medicaid benefits. Keeping some of the funding for a rainy day would give the state a head start on meeting future needs, he said.
"People want to always get the money and spend it, but maybe we should carry that money over and help deal with problems," he said.
Lucas said his first year as House Speaker was a promising one, but added that he wished the Senate would have been able to work with the House more on other issues, including ethics reform and the larger infrastructure bill.
"It was disappointing that some bills sat in the Senate after we worked so hard on them," he said. "When we go to Columbia, we go with an understanding that we have an obligation to our state to get things done."
Lucas was first elected to the House in 1998 and stepped up as Speaker in December following four years Speaker Pro Tempore.
Derrek Asberry is the SRS beat reporter for the Aiken Standard and has been with the paper since June 2013. He is originally from Vidalia, Ga., and a graduate of Georgia Southern University. Follow him on Twitter @DerrekAsberry.