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Lawmakers rushing to pass bills before crossover deadline

Both the House and Senate are expected to vote on dozens of bills this week.

COLUMBIA, S.C. — After the House took off last week and the Senate took a long Easter weekend, lawmakers have a lot to discuss before the upcoming crossover deadline.

Once they reach the April 10 deadline, it’s much harder for a bill that hasn’t passed in its chamber to move forward. Both chambers will be trying to get as much done as possible and vote on dozens of bills before then. 

Here are three pieces of legislation to keep an eye on this week:

First, The House is set to vote on the hate crime bill. H. 3620 aims to increase penalties for violent physical crimes committed based on someone’s race, color, religion, sex, gender, national origin, sexual orientation, or disability. 

An earlier version of the bill removed gender and sexual orientation from the list of protected classes, but they’ve since been added back in.

"This hate crime bill is way overdue," said author of the bill, Representative Wendell Gilliard, D- Charleston. "When you look at things that have happened around the state, around the country, right here in South Carolina alone, we’ve had a lot of incidents that would render a hate crime law," he told News19.

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Gilliard expects debate on the hate crime bill to start as soon as Tuesday, April 6.

However, some Democratic lawmakers disagree with the latest version of the bill, as it only increases penalties for violent physical crimes, and does not deal with other crimes like stalking or harassment.

The second bill is S. 499. It aims to bring legislative oversight to the State Election Commission and will likely pass in the Senate this week. If the bill becomes law, the Election Commission’s board members and director would have to be approved by the Senate. 

Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey, R- Edgefield explained on the floor last week that the current people serving would be removed, and the Governor would have to reappoint people to be okayed by the Senate.

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"The idea here is to treat this commission like we treat other commissions," Massey said on March 31. "Whether it's DHEC, or DNR, or the Conservation Bank or Forestry Commission, there are lots of commissions we have that all those commission members have confirmation by the Senate."

The Governor’s Office disapproves the bill. A spokesperson for the Governor told News19 it invites, "unwarranted outside political interference" and called it, “a power grab and non-starter.”

Whether the House will agree with giving the Senate power over the Election Commission is unclear.

The third bill that will likely gain traction this week is S. 628. It aims to make contraception more accessible by allowing women to get birth control directly from a pharmacist without a doctor’s note.

The move to make birth control more readily available has received widespread support from lawmakers, doctors, and pharmacists. If it passes second reading this week, it’ll need one more procedural vote before heading to the House.

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