Due to inclement weather, the House and the Senate did not meet in statewide session on Tuesday.
Both bodies returned to Columbia on Wednesday for week two of the 2022 session.
The House spent short days on the floor allowing for committees to meet while the Senate began to work through items on their calendar, including certificate of need and congressional redistricting legislation. The Senate continued working through priority issues, setting up debate for medical marijuana legislation (the SC Compassionate Care Act) by placing the legislation in one of the Senate’s Special Order slots.
Of note this week, the House Agriculture and Natural Resources Environmental Affairs I Subcommittee gave a favorable report to H.3527, dealing with special provisions affecting gas, water, or pipeline companies. This legislation creates a regulatory model for pipeline companies seeking to use eminent domain. The legislation would establish provisions to provide for applications, permitting, notice requirements, reporting requirements, requirements for final orders, and rehearings. The bill would direct the Public Service Commission (PSC) to promulgate regulations and provide that hearings go before the Administrative Law Court. This model would provide a comprehensive, permanent solution to ensure private property rights are protected.
The legislation now heads to the full House Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee for review.
Stay tuned next week and in the weeks to come as I provide an update on the movement of our priority legislation and other issues of interest.
For more information regarding SCR’s 2022 priorities, click here.
Sincerely,
Lindsay Jackson
Chief Advocacy Officer South Carolina REALTORS®