South Carolina Senate votes to remove Treasurer Curtis Loftus after Article 15, Section 3 hearing

Senators in the South Carolina Senate voted 33–8 to adopt a resolution under Article 15, Section 3 of the state constitution to remove State Treasurer Curtis Loftus after a Committee of the Whole hearing that ran all day and included presentations from constitutional subcommittee members, the treasurer and his lawyers, outside forensic accountants and multiple state officials.

The hearing focused on a long‑running accounting anomaly—an unexplained balance shown in SKIS fund 0993 and described by the subcommittee as a $1,800,000,000 discrepancy—that outside forensic accountants reviewed. Senator Grama (chairman of the Senate constitutional subcommittee) summarized the presenters’ case to the body, saying the treasurer “has broken the public trust” by failing to ensure accurate reconciliations and by mounting what the subcommittee described as a sustained campaign of obfuscation.

Why this matters: The Senate presenters argued the magnitude and duration of the errors, combined with what they described as repeated failures to notify the General Assembly and a threat to publish detailed state bank/fund architecture, demonstrated the “willful neglect of duty or other reasonable cause” that Article 15, Section 3 makes a basis for removal. Counsel for the treasurer urged senators to weigh due‑process concerns and to note the forensic review’s central finding that no cash was missing from bank accounts; the treasurer maintained there was no secret bank account and said, “There is no missing money, and all cash and investments are accounted for.”

Most important facts

- The Senate met as a Committee of the Whole for an Article 15, Section 3 removal hearing concerning Treasurer Curtis Loftus. The subcommittee presenters said independent and internal reviews showed the treasury books contained large errors tied to SKIS fund 0993. They pointed to audits, document trails and interviews with forensic accountants.

- The forensic audit by AlixPartners (commissioned by the General Assembly) concluded the bulk of the balance in fund 0993 represented accounting entries and appropriations that were recorded improperly during a software/conversion period; AlixPartners found no evidence of a secret bank account or missing cash but recommended accounting corrections and process changes. Presenters nonetheless argued those accounting failures and the treasurer’s prior statements about the fund showed a failure of duty and candor.

- Presenters told senators the treasurer repeatedly defended the cash position of the fund in public testimony and media interviews before the AlixPartners report was issued; presenters characterized later changes in the treasurer’s explanations as inconsistent and as evidence of deception. Senator Grama told the chamber the treasurer had been “a liability to the finances of our state.”

- The treasurer’s counsel, including Debbie Barbier and Sean Eubanks, argued the proceeding deprived the treasurer of traditional legal processes (witnesses, cross‑examination and document authentication) and urged senators not to substitute political judgment for the will of the voters. In his remarks Curtis Loftus said the forensic review showed “there is no missing money” and asked senators to respect due process.

- A separate but related event discussed at the hearing involved federal Housing Relief funds and interest. Presenters said a federal notice of noncompliance was issued after interest on housing funds was not remitted in a manner the federal rule required; the attorney general’s opinion subsequently prompted repayment steps. Presenters described the timing and the treasurer’s initial refusal to move funds as further evidence of poor fiduciary judgment.

- The hearing also covered a disputed April 2024 exchange over whether the treasurer intended to publish a detailed SKIS fund‑by‑fund report online; presenters said that proposed publication risked disclosure of sensitive financial architecture and prompted an urgent intervention by the Department of Administration and other state officials. The treasurer’s office and counsel said the administration advised secure posting methods and that the treasurer ultimately did not publish sensitive data.

Votes and outcome

- The Senate adopted the removal resolution by roll call, 33 in favor, 8 opposed. The motion was recorded and the clerk tabulated the vote.

- The concurrent resolution removed Treasurer Curtis Loftus from office under Article 15, Section 3 of the South Carolina Constitution. (The resolution text and the roll‑call packet are part of the hearing record provided to the chamber.)

What the forensic review did and did not find

- AlixPartners’ forensic accounting review (introduced at the hearing and discussed in presenters’ testimony) concluded the large positive balance in SKIS fund 0993 primarily reflected improper accounting entries and the recording of appropriations in a manner that inflated that ledger balance. The firm reported that reconciling by SKIS fund and by agency — a practice AlixPartners recommended — would eliminate the anomaly without changing bank balances.

- AlixPartners did not report missing cash or a secret bank account; it recommended accounting corrections and clarified the difference between general‑ledger/fund balances and bank cash on hand. Presenters argued that, regardless of whether cash was missing, the long duration of the errors and the treasurer’s public statements about the funds warranted removal under the constitutional standard.

Reaction and next steps

- The treasurer’s legal team said the proceeding should not substitute for judicial or evidentiary processes and that the treasurer’s public statements reflected reliance on then‑available comptroller and audit information. Lead counsel Debbie Barbier said the case turned on process as much as facts, calling due process “an obligation.”

- Presenters said they had conducted many public hearings and reviewed thousands of pages of documents; the constitutional subcommittee published reports recommending remedies and, in this hearing, urged removal as the appropriate remedy.

Ending note

With the Senate’s roll‑call adoption of the resolution, the chamber exercised its constitutional removal power. The record released at the hearing includes forensic reports, letters from officials and sworn affidavits; several follow‑up items the chamber flagged include statutory accounting fixes, interagency process changes and the forensic recommendations for reconciliations by SKIS fund and agency. The exact administrative implementation steps and the timelines for completing corrective accounting work were discussed but not finalized during the hearing.