South Carolina Senators on both sides of the aisle – Republicans and Democrats alike – voted 44-0 this week for H.3066, a piece of legislation that denies a transparent and responsive state government to the citizens of South Carolina.

There is still time to stop H.3066 before it goes into effect. The House of Representatives will review this legislation next, so contact your representative today and urge them to take action.

Our Milton Friedman Celebratory Breakfast was a big success. The room was packed. Our two speakers, State Senator Lee Bright and SC GOP Chairman, Chad Connelly, ardent supporters of School Choice, gave educational and entertaining presentations. They both stated that it was encouraging to see so many people attend an event on a Saturday morning to learn about educational opportunity for all children.

Many people are against School Choice, because they do not understand what it entails. SCHOOL CHOICE HAS BEEN PROVEN TO SAVE TAXPAYERS MONEY AND INCREASE STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT IN OTHER STATES. South Carolinians should be irate over our state rating last, or near last, in national test scores. Nearly 50% of the children who start their education in SC will drop out before graduating high school. Corporations decide not to come to SC, because our state cannot provide enough educated employees.

MILTON FRIEDMAN CELEBRATORY BREAKFAST
Americans for Prosperity Foundation – South Carolina is hosting, in conjunction with The Foundation for Educational Choice, a celebratory breakfast in honor of Milton Friedman. It will take place at the Holiday Inn Express on 1036 Woodruff Road in Greenville on Saturday, July 30 from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. This is a free event, with a free breakfast!

Milton Friedman, a Nobel Prize winning economist, started as an advocate of Keynesian economics and later became a vocal supporter of the free market. His books and teaching have influenced and persuaded many, including Thomas Sowell and William F. Buckley. His legacy of advocating capitalism and deregulation make him an increasingly important figure in the school choice debate. According to Milton Friedman, “Education spending will be most effective if it relies on parental choice and private initiative – the building blocks of success throughout our society.”

On May 24th, Debbie Spaugh with AFP-SC spoke during a press conference in the State House. The subject was the State Budget for 2011-2012. Obviously many of our state Legislators did not get the message from the voters in 2010 to STOP THE WASTEFUL SPENDING! Last year's state budget of $21.1 billion was the largest in SC history. At that time, SC state and local government was spending $.26 of every dollar earned by South Carolinians. This was the 5th highest amount in the nation.