The South Carolina House passed H4624 by a strong 82 to 23 vote, sending this important piece of legislation to the Senate. H4624, also known as “Help, Not Harm,” would prevent minors from receiving puberty blockers, cross hormone treatments, and gender reassignment surgery. The bill was assigned to the Senate Medical Affairs Committee and set for a subcommittee hearing on Wednesday, Feb. 14.
Prayerfully, by the time you read this article, the bill will have passed from the subcommittee to the full Medical Affairs Committee, then to the full Senate, and well on its way to being set for a special-order slot on the Senate calendar. To have a chance to pass this session, bills that make it to the Senate floor must be set for special order, either by a two-thirds vote of the Senate members present for a vote, or by a simple majority of the Senate Rules Committee.
There is strong support in the Senate for this bill, and sources are telling me that it will be set for special order, guaranteeing it will come up for a vote before the end of the session. Check next month’s edition of The Courier to track the progress of H4624 and go to the SCBC website under Public Policy to sign up for legislative updates.
H3424, the Child Online Safety Act, and H4700, the South Carolina Social Media Regulation Act, both passed the House by near unanimous votes. H3424 will require online pornography providers to verify the person accessing their service is not a minor. It passed with 113 yes votes to only 1 no vote. H4700 would require parental permission for a minor to set up a social media account. It passed with 105 yes votes and only 1 no vote. Both bills have been assigned to the Senate Labor, Commerce and Industry Committee, and will face a subcommittee hearing and full committee vote before having the opportunity to be set for a special-order slot.
After more than a week of debate, the Senate passed the Constitutional Carry Act (H3594) by a vote of 28 to 15. However, the Senate amended the House version, implementing several changes including creating a free optional training program available twice a month in every South Carolina county. Other amendments to the bill include changing the age from 21 to 18 to carry a concealed weapon, plus an added penalty for CWP holders who violate prohibited spaces. The House rejected these changes, voting to strike the Senate bill and insert the original House version of the bill. The original House version now heads back to the Senate, where it will have to be considered on a straight up or down simple majority vote.
Sources close to the Senate say the Senate will pass the clean House version, sending it to Gov. McMaster, who has promised to sign it into law. If passed and signed by the governor, South Carolina will become the 14th state to pass a constitutional carry law that will allow owners of firearms to carry them without a permit.
As of this writing, the Senate was poised to pass a bill adding South Carolina to the list of states allowing so-called “medical marijuana” to be available to those who qualify. The Compassionate Care Act will be sent to the House, where its fate is uncertain. Critics of the Compassionate Care Act point out the number of studies emerging that link marijuana use with psychiatric disorders, including depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia. Proponents of the legislation tout its medicinal value, even though the medicinal properties in marijuana are available by prescription in FDA-approved medications, such as Marinol.
The House passed legislation that will allow the curbside delivery of alcohol and will likely take up a bill that would allow counties to hold a referendum on Sunday alcohol sales. This expansion of accessibility to alcohol takes place against a backdrop where South Carolina currently ranks seventh in the nation in DUIs and is consistently ranked in the top 10 in domestic abuse cases. Many scientific studies link alcohol abuse with domestic abuse, particularly with the men involved.