House advances general appropriations bill after marathon session; several high‑profile amendments tabled

The South Carolina House on April 25 advanced the state's general appropriations bill (H.4025), adopting dozens of sections across state agencies after hours of roll‑call votes and floor debate. Lawmakers also voted to table multiple amendments that drew extended public and member debate.

The budget session began as a special order on the general appropriations bill. The clerk and chair moved the House through Part 1A line by line; the chamber recorded roll‑call tallies on numerous sections throughout the day and into the evening. Examples recorded in the transcript include adoption of Section 3 by a vote of 115 to 0 and adoption of Section 11 by a vote of 114 to 0. The House also received second reading of Senate Bill 157 earlier in the day.

Why it matters: H.4025 sets recurring and nonrecurring spending across state government and determines what state agencies and programs will receive in the coming fiscal year. Votes on amendments during the floor session reflected competing priorities over education funding, arts and cultural grants, library staffing, and transparency in use of certain grants.

Key floor outcomes - The House adopted many sections of H.4025 by recorded roll calls; several sample tallies appear in the public record (for example, Section 3: 115–0; Section 11: 114–0). The clerk recorded votes on scores of additional sections through the day. - Major amendment actions (floor motions to table) included: Representative Govan's amendment to reallocate $30 million from K‑12 scholarship money to early childhood/parenting programs (Amendment 71) — tabled 83–26; Representative Pace's amendment to remove most Arts Commission funding and move $4 million into K‑12 arts education — tabled 91–18; a request to cut a library staffing add (Amendment 99) — tabled 96–16; and another amendment to require accountability and reporting by crisis pregnancy centers (Amendment 95) — tabled 86–22. Several tuition‑mitigation amendments raised by Representative White and others were either withdrawn or tabled during debate.

What lawmakers said Representative Govan framed his amendment as a move to invest in early childhood and family literacy rather than private school scholarships, saying research shows the best long‑term return is in early education. Opponents said the amendment would divert money that had already been committed by law.

Representative White and several freshmen pushed a separate set of amendments seeking to end or change tuition mitigation funding for public universities; members on Ways and Means defended the existing mitigation approach and warned of job cuts or tuition increases if mitigation were removed.

Representative Pace argued the House should shrink the size of state government and redirect arts commission funding to education or tax relief; supporters of the Arts Commission and several members described a broad economic and educational impact from arts funding.

Next steps Clerk records show the House recessed and set reconvene time; the budget process continues through committee and final floor action before enrollment. Members said the desk needed time overnight to process amendments and assignments; the House planned to reconvene the next day morning to continue the work.

Votes at a glance - Motion: Receive second reading of Senate Bill 157 — outcome: second reading received (clerks recorded the action on the floor). - Action: Adoption of scores of sections of H.4025 (general appropriations) — outcome: sections adopted by roll call across the day (sample tallies in transcript: Section 3 115–0; Section 11 114–0; others recorded). - Amendment 71 (Rep. Govan): reallocate $30,000,000 from scholarship trust to early childhood/family literacy — motion to table passed 83 yes, 26 no; outcome: tabled. - Amendment 29 (Rep. Pace): tuition/mitigation change (floor amendment) — motion to table passed 97 yes, 15 no (tabled). - Amendment 10 (Rep. Pace): cut Arts Commission funding and move $4,000,000 to education — motion to table passed 91 yes, 18 no (tabled). - Amendment 99 (Rep. Pace): cut a state library personnel request ($487,711) — motion to table passed 96 yes, 16 no (tabled). - Amendment 95 (Rep. Bauer): require reporting/accountability for crisis pregnancy centers receiving funds — motion to table passed 86 yes, 22 no (tabled).

What to watch The bill will return to the floor for further debate and final passage votes. Members flagged follow‑up work on: (1) formulas for tuition mitigation across the state's 17 public universities, (2) reporting and accountability language for grants paid through the Arts Commission and other agencies, and (3) the mechanics of any tax‑cut language that floor proponents say could be funded by spending reductions.

Ending: The House adjourned after the session and scheduled an early reconvene; staff and clerks will continue to process amendment paperwork overnight, and members planned further floor action the following day.