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Committee reports favorably on Mister Dugas' nomination to South Carolina Real Estate Commission
Summary
A Labor, Commerce and Industry committee screening for Mister Dugas, an applicant to the South Carolina Real Estate Commission, ended with a favorable report. Dugas emphasized education for agents and answered routine financial and ethics screening questions.
Mister Dugas, an applicant to the South Carolina Real Estate Commission, received a favorable report from the Senate Labor, Commerce and Industry committee after a screening session that included biographical remarks, ethics and background questions, and a short question-and-answer period.
Dugas told the committee he was born at the Naval Hospital in Beaufort, lives in Greenville, attended the University of South Carolina (undergraduate and law school), and has practiced commercial and residential real estate law since 1986 at the Horton law firm, where he currently serves as president. "I think I can add a unique perspective to the commission, especially in the, I think, the education area of for agents," he said during his remarks.
The committee's staff confirmed receipt of Dugas' personal data questionnaire, statement of economic interest form, a SLED background check, a credit report and driving record, and reported those materials as complete. During screening Dugas answered routine questions in the negative, including whether he or a family member had defaulted on a student loan, filed for bankruptcy, been disciplined for professional misconduct, or acted as a lobbyist.
Senators asked Dugas about issues in the residential real estate market. When a senator from Dorchester raised concerns about agents who purchase properties and quickly resell them (so-called wholesaling or flipping), Dugas said the commission should monitor conduct that conflicts with disclosure and ethics obligations: "If an agent is buying a piece of property ... and then they turn around and they're the seller, they have to disclose that they're a licensed agent," he said, noting a recent statutory amendment on related conduct but saying he had not fully studied the change.
After the questioning, Senator (Greenville) moved that Dugas be given a favorable report; the motion carried by voice vote. The chairman told Dugas that the full Senate confirmation vote could be several weeks away and that he should not "read anything into that."
