I’m sure you’re tired of hearing about gambling in the Palmetto State. I know I am! But, we just can’t let down our guard because we have elected officials who obviously believe that gambling is a great way to garner money from our citizens.
What gets me is that they tried to turn to church folk, civic organizations, and school children to desensitize people to the dangers of gambling. Three bills were recently introduced to entice nonprofit organizations to turn to card games, dice games and raffles to raise money for projects. This included, but was not limited to, poker games of all kind, blackjack, casino type games with dice, and roulette tables. Led by the efforts of Senators Martin, Elliott, Anderson, and others, S 732 was killed by a vote of 13—8. These senators would appreciate an email or call thanking them for their work on this bill.
Senators Ford, Hutto, McConnell, and Knotts introduced and fought for S 732. If one of these is your senator, you might want to send them an email noting your concern for their views on gambling. These senators need to understand that people who want to gamble for entertainment can almost certainly afford to travel to cities that offer the games and the crime and the seediness to do so. They also need to understand that the people who gamble the most in South Carolina are the ones who can least afford to lose. Families are hurting from the losses.
The other gambling bills, S 967 and S 1151, encourages ticket sales for a raffle—never mind the public not knowing how much the jackpot prize cost the organization and not knowing if the ticket sales will cover the cost of the prize. One of these bills is a statute and the other is a Constitutional amendment. No matter how innocent gambling bills seem to be, there is always the possibility they will be the back door to reintroduce video poker and other electronic gambling.
Other bills we’re working on include a bill to regulate sexually oriented businesses, one to limit sexual predators’ residential distance to places where children congregate, one to do away with future common law marriage situations, and an ultrasound bill.
House bill 3679 imposes regulations on all adult businesses. Rep. Scott Talley, Spartanburg, introduced this bill and has been ridiculed for doing so. It includes language to provide a six-foot, no-touch zone around employees in bars and clubs. It also includes a mandatory midnight closing for these businesses. Please call your House member and encourage him/her to vote to pass H 3679.
House bill 3094 defines sex offenders’ residential limitations near schools, playgrounds, daycare facilities and parks. This bill passed the House and is in a Senate Judiciary subcommittee.
Senator Luke Rankin, Myrtle Beach, has been filibustering to oppose a bill that would end the archaic practice of common law marriage. The ban has broad support of probate judges and funeral directors from across the state. Common law marriage situations clog our probate courts and pose problems for families at a time when there should not be any questions about who are the legitimate heirs. In many, if not most, cases, attorneys benefit the most from a common law situation. Call your senator and ask that he or she vote to cut off debate when they meet on this issue on April 10.
The last bill I’ll discuss with you is House bill 3355 concerning an ultrasound requirement to determine the age of a pre-born baby before aborting the pregnancy. This bill has passed the House several times in previous sessions. We believe we have a good compromise being discussed in Conference Committee. This is the furthest this bill has ever progressed. Pray for members of this committee to see this requirement as a benefit for all concerned. The Conference Committee includes Senators Fair, Short and Verdin and Representatives Delleney, Shoopman and Vick.
We’re following several other important bills, but I’m hitting the highlights of the most current activity. Please pray that these bills will pass and for the wisdom of our elected officials.
