Harvey Peeler

The S.C. Department of Mental Health is a shadow of its former self these days, as are many state government offices after legislators trimmed more than $1.5 billion in state spending over the past 1-1/2 years.

The nation’s recession has forced lawmakers to slash the size of state operating budgets, mowed down the number of state workers and, in some cases, put new limits on the pool of residents who can get agency services.

This week, lawmakers return to Columbia facing more budget dilemmas at virtually every state agency.

As legislators prepare to return to session next week, one lawmaker says no state agency is safe from budget cuts. A slow economy and high unemployment has left a gap of more than a half-billion dollars.

A report released by the state budget office estimates South Carolina is taking in about the same amount of money it took in seven years ago. Since then, as the population has grown, so has the need for services. But the economy has soured.

So just like last year, the General Assembly is going to have to find ways to provide services with what money it has. [...]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 17, 2009

Sen. Harvey Peeler announced today that he has met with Department of Transportation Commissioner Sarah Nuckles and with DOT’s district engineer Stan Bland concerning the increased congestion along Highway 11 in Cherokee County. “The Department of Transportation has agreed to look at improving the intersection of North Gate and Twin Bridges roads,” said Peeler. “DOT talked about the possibility of using federal intersection improvement money which is available to help with this type of traffic problem.” DOT engineers have been to the site and are currently studying ways to solve the continuing congestion problem.

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Prefiled legislation aims for smaller government, budgets

The Republican leadership of the 46-member state Senate will put smaller government and more austere budgeting at the top of its 2010 agenda, though it is clear lawmakers also have not forgotten the year that was 2009.

Senators prefiled more than 100 bills Wednesday for the legislative session that begins in January, including one that seeks to clarify the lieutenant governor’s authority to act in a state emergency in the governor’s absence.

Another measure, also filed by Senate President Pro Tempore Glenn McConnell, R-Charleston, would require the State Law Enforcement Division to protect and provide security to both the governor and lieutenant governor, whether they want it or not. [...]

Previous Legislation Unintentionally Restricts Access To EMS Records

December 9, 2009 – Columbia, SC – Senate Majority Leader Harvey Peeler (R-Cherokee) is taking immediate action to fix an unintentional legislative error that restricts public access to EMS records. Legislation was introduced today during Senate pre-filing.

In 2004 Senator Peeler sponsored legislation restricting public access to EMS records at the request of representatives from the Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC). The purpose of the legislation was to meet federal HIPAA requirements keeping patient medical records private. Unfortunately errors in the bill are keeping all EMS records private, as brought to light by the Beaufort Gazette attempting to analyze ambulance response times.

“I want to make very clear that we never intended to keep EMS out of the view of public scrutiny. We were only trying to meet federal requirements keeping the medical records of South Carolina’s citizens private…exactly what DHEC officials told us we had to do. We are going to fix this problem at the earliest possible opportunity.”

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I’m excited. The Boeing announcement is one of the best events I’ve seen happen during my nearly 30 years in the S.C. Senate. It proves how far we can take South Carolina when strong leaders work together to push conservative reforms. The nation’s hardest-working taxpayers, efficient government, low taxes and a high quality of life have given us a study advantage in our goal to rebuild South Carolina’s economy and create new jobs for our working families across the entire state. But that’s not all.

According to news reports, a big reason Boeing agreed to expand its operations in South Carolina is that the company wasn’t comfortable with the demands a union at its Washington plant was making.

Boeing’s decision to expand its facility near Charleston says a lot about the business climate in South Carolina and serves as a reminder why we must protect our tough right-to-work laws. We are sending a strong message to the world: We want your business, and we’re committed to getting it. I want to continue sending that message by defending workers’ rights to secret ballots when deciding whether to unionize. [...]

SUBCOMMITTEE MOVES TWO AGENCIES UNDER THE GOVERNOR’S PURVIEW

A key South Carolina State Senate subcommittee passed three government restructuring bills yesterday, a move many are applauding as a strong effort to make state government more efficient, accountable, and responsive. Chaired by Senator Danny Verdin (R-Laurens), the Medical Affairs subcommittee refined the operations of South Carolina’s health care services, moving two agencies under the Governor’s cabinet.

Senate Majority Leader Harvey Peeler (R-Cherokee) appointed the committee to look for ways to make the Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC), the Department of Disabilities and Special Needs (DDSN), and the Department of Mental Health more efficient. Hit by a tough economic crisis, Senate leaders are looking for conservative ways to tighten the state’s budgetary belt. Restructuring agencies will save taxpayer dollars while making the departments more efficient.

In three separate bills, DHEC and the Department of Mental Health will be moved under the Governor’s cabinet and led by a Secretary appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate. DDSN will remain a non-cabinet agency with a seven-member board appointed by the Governor with advice and consent of the Senate. The DDSN bill also enacts changes recommended by a Legislative Audit Counsel review.

In passing the bills out of subcommittee, Senator Verdin said “We should be focused like a laser on building South Carolina’s economy and creating new jobs. Government reform will save taxpayer dollars and help make our state more business friendly.”

He continued, “South Carolina’s hard working taxpayers deserve better than what government is providing. We know what has to be done to make government more accountable and we’re determined to get the job done.”

Majority Leader Peeler commented “we have to prove to businesses looking at South Carolina that we’re committed to running the most efficient and accountable government in the nation. Conservative reform will create jobs.”

Legislative Delegation urges residents to apply for appointments

The representative and three senators who comprise Union County’s Legislative Delegation encouraged citizens and Union County Council on Tuesday to send resumes to Gov. Mark Sanford if they are interested in securing one of two replacement appointments.

Rep. Mike Anthony, D-Union, and Sens. Shane Martin, R-Spartanburg; Harvey Peeler, R-Gaffney; and Creighton Coleman, D-Winnsboro; each said Sanford has the power to fill vacant spots created by his suspension of Union County Supervisor Donnie Betenbaugh and the resignation of Union County Clerk of Court Brad Morris.

Citizens overfilled the grand jury room of the Union County Courthouse to attend the council’s first meeting since the shake-up. Pain caused by public corruption charges reverberated from the opening prayer to the adjournment.

Anthony said “all of us are hurting” because of the charges and because the remaining politicians have been painted with a “broad brush.” Anthony distributed e-mail and physical addresses where interested parties who live in Union County can send their resumes to Sanford.

Peeler said he attended the meeting to “restore faith and confidence in Union County government” for concerned residents. [...]

Senate Majority Leader Harvey Peeler is interested in hearing voters thoughts on issues like widening I-85 and limiting government spending.

Peeler has launched his own Web site in an effort to get more feedback from voters. He will conduct a constituent survey on his Web site over the next few weeks to learn where voters stand on raising the cigarette tax, investing in the state’s technical college system and providing tax credits for businesses to hire unemployed South Carolina workers.

“These are just a few of the big issues that will be coming up soon in the General Assembly,” Peeler said. “I’ve also provided plenty of space for you to give me your opinion on other issues. You can give me your opinion on Governor Sanford, the President’s liberal health care plan, or local issues like roads and crime.”

Peeler said he views the Web site as another way he can stay connected with voters and better represent their interests in the State House.

“When I first ran for office, we talked to people by going door-todoor and over the phone,” Peeler said in an email sent to voters. “It still amazes me how much has changed and how we can communicate 24 hours a day, seven days a week, instantaneously. I’ve launched this site to keep you informed of what’s happening in Columbia on the most important issues facing our region’s families.”

Peeler wants the Web site to become more than another way for him to talk with people. The longtime Republican leader said he would like to hear about people’s problems as well as the positive things going on in their lives.

The Web site includes a link to a twitter account which will provide hourly updates during the 2010 legislative session.

“I believe conservative principles can solve our problems. That’s the approach I take to Columbia, but that doesn’t mean I have all the answers,” Peeler said. “No one does. That’s why we have to work together and share what’s on our minds.”

The state Senator’s new Web site is: www.harveypeeler.com.

The Gaffney Ledger

A S.C. Senate panel is considering three bills that would restructure the way the state provides health and environmental services, improving the level of those services and the accountability of the agencies that provide them.

Senate Majority Leader Harvey Peeler has set up the medical affairs subcommittee to consider the bills, which were sponsored by a variety of House and Senate members. Because the three bills deal with restructuring health agencies, it makes sense for the committee to consider the bills together and combine them into a single restructuring proposal.

The general direction of the proposals also makes sense for the state.

A Senate bill would split the Department of Health and Environmental Control into two agencies. It is too much for one board to handle both the state’s environmental concerns and all of its health matters. The group that decides where open-heart surgery centers can locate in the state shouldn’t also be responsible for determining pollution standards for the state’s freshwater resources.

Splitting the agency would allow environmental authorities to control one agency and concentrate on that mission without being distracted by public health matters. It would allow the same concentration for medical authorities.

The bill would also create new boards, appointed by the governor, to run the new agencies and create a secretary of health and environmental control to oversee them as part of the governor’s Cabinet.

One of the House bills would combine the Department of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Services, the Department of Mental Health and the Continuum of Care for Emotionally Disturbed Children into a new Cabinet agency called the Department of Behavioral Health Services.

The other would move the Department of Disabilities and Special Needs into the governor’s Cabinet.

These are worthwhile moves. Just as splitting DHEC into two agencies makes sense so that the two halves can focus on their unique missions, combining three agencies that deal with mental health issues into one department would allow the creation of plans and approaches that address the state’s behavioral health needs.

And moving these agencies into the governor’s Cabinet is long overdue. Too many state agencies and departments are controlled by little known boards, insulated from accountability and prone to inefficiency and waste. Once these departments are included in the Cabinet, state residents would know the governor is accountable for providing these state services.

The General Assembly has waited too long to modernize state government and restore accountability to elected officials. South Carolinians can hope that Peeler’s efforts will lead to real progress on state government restructuring this year.

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