News and Press Releases for March 2007

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3/13/2007

Governor Sanford Calls for Removal of Grants Review Proviso

Governor Commends Positive Aspects of House Budget, Says Grants Review Proviso Bad for Taxpayers

Columbia, S.C. - Gov. Mark Sanford today issued the following statement on the S.C. House's budget, including the soon-to-be-debated proviso setting up a new process to award tens of millions of dollars in grants at the state level.

"First off, I'd give real credit to the House for much of what's in their budget document, which to a large degree mirrors what we'd proposed in our own Executive Budget," Gov. Sanford said. "The House is making a significant step toward shoring up our long-term retiree healthcare liability, they're cutting income taxes, and they're paying for the unfunded liability in the tuition prepayment program. As well, the House budget limits tuition increases, puts dollars in the Commerce closing fund, puts new Troopers on the roads and funds a down payment on the port access road in North Charleston - all of which are important budget priorities for the state.

"All of that being said, though, we remain very concerned about things like the House's budget proviso regarding awarding millions of dollars in grants through an unaccountable and not at all transparent process. Right now, those grants reside at the Budget and Control Board, where a temporary hold has been placed on awarding those grants until an accountable and transparent process is put into place so those grants can truly be awarded competitively, rather than on a 'who knows who' basis preferred by some in the legislature. The House proposal is the exact opposite of what we've been pushing for in terms of restructuring, and it creates a real danger of turning this grants process into a legislative favor factory where certain members of the General Assembly would be able to hold sway over tens of millions of dollars and use them for political purposes.

"I'd urge every House member to consider this issue carefully during budget deliberations this week, and to vote against provisos like this one that would undermine much of the good work they've done on this budget."