SOUTH CAROLINA BAPTIST CONVENTION

PUBLIC POLICY LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

5/13/2025

The Latin phrase “sine die” literally means “without a day.” For the members of the South Carolina Legislature, it means the end of the legislative session.  Sine die arrived at 5:00pm, Thursday, May 8 and its arrival was welcomed by just about everyone involved in South Carolina government.  The 2025 session has been difficult to navigate for lawmakers, activists, and others who seek to influence and shape the direction of bills introduced in the Legislature.  Lawmakers could not agree on several major pieces of legislation that will now have to wait until at least January 2026 for final consideration. 

Just 45 bills passed both chambers during the session.  Major pieces of legislation include:

• S62 Education Scholarship Trust Fund – This is a major step toward allowing parents to choose how and where their children will receive their education.  For the 2025-2026 school year, each qualifying student may receive up to $6,000, with the amount expected to increase to $8,500 in subsequent years.  Families can use scholarship dollars for:
• Private or independent school tuition and/or fees.
• Textbooks, curriculum, and educational materials.
• Tutoring and educational therapies.
• Online classes and courses
• Fees for extracurricular activities and specified transportation costs.
• Contracted services from public school districts. 

Student eligibility is based on income levels pegged to federal poverty guidelines.  For             2025-2026, qualifying families can make up to 300% of the federal poverty guideline.  For 2026-2027 and beyond, the qualifying income level rises to 400%.  The program limits total student participation to 10,000 for 2025–2026, then increases the limit to 15,000 for 2026–2027 and beyond.  The bill allows parents to use the funds for their children in public school, private school, or to purchase educational materials for homeschool. 

• H3430 Tort Reform and Liquor Liability Act –I rarely report on this type of legislation, and I didn’t get involved in the debate.  However, this bill took up so much time during the session and if affects so many businesses, I wanted you to know about it. Establishments (primarily restaurants and bars) that sell alcohol called for the Legislature to help them reduce the costs of obtaining liability insurance against lawsuits from those who suffered serious injury or death after consuming alcohol, linking the consequences to their businesses.  According to the restaurant and bar owners, many were being forced to close because of the high cost of liability insurance. Victims’ rights advocates expressed concern that any revision of the law that would offer relief to businesses would prevent victims of impaired drivers from being compensated for the devastating effects of alcohol abuse.  The compromise bill that passed and received the Governor’s signature kept in place the legal standard of “reckless and willful behavior” allowing victims to continue to seek compensation from the courts in cases where alcohol leads to injury or death.  A leading victim’s rights advocate I spoke to said under this law, victims may find it harder to get compensation, but they will keep the right to sue for damages if the restaurant or bar is determined to be at fault.  Damages will be capped at 50% of actual damages if the business is not the primary cause.  Restaurants and bars that serve alcohol will reduce their required maximum coverage if they take approved preventative measures to reduce risk, including closing before midnight and completing employee alcohol server training. 

Here is a list of bills that made some progress this session:

• H3457 – The Human Life Protection Act received a House subcommittee hearing.  The House Judiciary Constitutional Laws Subcommittee heard testimony and adjourned without taking a vote.
• S.28 and S.29 – passed, making it is easier for law enforcement to go after AI generated child sexual abuse material and AI sexual exploitation.  Gov. McMaster will soon sign these bills into law. 
• H.3405 – requires app store providers to verify age and obtain parental consent for a minor to download an application.  It has passed the committee process in the House and is currently on the House floor.
•  H.3927 – will prevent public schools, public universities, and state government offices from promoting DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion).  The bill passed the House and is currently assigned to the Senate Judiciary Committee.
• H.3431 – will protect minors by requiring social media companies to provide more information for parents and guardians.  The bill passed the Senate and is currently on the House floor.
• H.3058 – provides penalties for anyone who discloses intimate images without consent or discloses a digitally forged image.  The bill passed both the House and Senate and will soon be signed into law by the Governor. 
• S.32 – will provide a tax credit to those who give financial support to a crisis pregnancy center, pregnancy resource center, crisis pregnancy center maternity home, or a residential program for human trafficking victims.  The bill passed unanimously in the Senate and is currently on the House floor. 

Unfortunately, bills to advance and protect the rights of parents to make all decisions for their children regarding their education and medical care failed to gain traction this session. S243 and H3011, and H3118 are all still in their respective committees and have not been scheduled for a hearing.  During the last week of the session, S651 was introduced in the Senate. It would establish an Office of Parental Rights under the Governor’s Office to “prohibit the state from infringing on the fundamental rights of a parent to direct the upbringing, education, healthcare, and mental healthcare of the parents minor child.”  The bill was read across the desk of the Senate and assigned to the Judiciary Committee. 

Fortunately, there was no movement on S99 (Hate Crimes) or S53 (Medical Marijuana) during the session.  Both bills remained dormant, but efforts to pass these bills will undoubtedly continue. 

GAMBLING LEGISLATION

Before the 2025 session began, I heard rumors about the gambling interests targeting South Carolina to advance gambling on multiple fronts.  The rumors turned out to be true. Toward the end of the session, three gambling bills H.4176 (casino gambling), H3625 (online sports wagering), and S344 (pari-mutuel betting on horse racing) advanced in the Legislature.  The casino gambling bill is deceptively titled the I-95 Economic and Education Stimulus Act.  Over the last month of the session, the bill passed the committee process in the House, making it all the way to the House floor where it lacked the votes to pass. 

House Republican Leaders, along with many South Carolina citizens who expressed their concern, and many of our pastors and church leaders came together to encourage legislators to vote against this bill.  The press conference on April 29 brought close to 80 pastors from several denominations to the State House to oppose all forms of gambling and to call for the advancement of legislation to protect life beginning at conception.  South Carolina Baptists joined with Palmetto Family Alliance, Faith Wins America, the Catholic Diocese of Charleston, and The Swamp Fox Initiative to send a joint letter opposing gambling to all members of the Legislature. 

When citizens stand up and speak out about issues, lawmakers listen.  Gambling has not gone away, and it has not been defeated.  It will be on the calendar when the 2026 legislative session kicks off in January.  Between now and then, we need to organize, educate, and mobilize our state to keep us from repeating the mistake of video poker.  Please watch your email for information updates and action alerts.  As always, you can find your lawmaker and contact them at www.scstatehouse.gov.  Please reach out to them and thank them for opposing gambling.  Ask them how you can pray for them and their families. 

He must increase, I must decrease,

Dr. Tony Beam

SCBaptist Policy Consultant