Americans For Prosperity- South Carolina Releases 2023 Legislative Scorecard, Highlights Success of the Legislative Session
“Our annual Legislative Scorecard is an opportunity to grade lawmakers’ votes throughout the legislative session, and thank our policy champions who fought for freedom and opportunity for South Carolinians.”
COLUMBIA, SC – Americans for Prosperity–South Carolina (AFP-SC) today released its 2023 Legislative Scorecard, highlighting state lawmakers’ votes during the past legislative session.
The full Scorecard downloadable PDF is available here. The digital version of the scorecard can be found by visiting SCScorecard.com.
AFP-SC State Director Candace Carroll released the following statement:
“Our annual Legislative Scorecard is an opportunity to grade lawmakers’ votes throughout the legislative session, and thank our policy champions who fought for freedom and opportunity for South Carolinians.
“The 2023 South Carolina legislative session was a big win for South Carolinians. We were successful in our efforts to repeal Certificate of Need (CON) regulations as well as prohibit the state from denying occupational licenses based on prior criminal conviction.
“There is alway more work to be done to advance freedom and opportunity. We look forward to building on our success of this legislative session next year for all South Carolinians.”
What our Policy Champions have to say:
“I could not be more proud of the many conservative policies passed by the South Carolina House this year. In particular, repealing Certificate of Need and reforming licensure for work were landmark legislative accomplishments that limited government involvement in the private sector and cut red tape in significant ways. I applaud AFP for recognizing these conservative wins and for being a partner in these wins, knowing there are many more to come in the years ahead.” – South Carolina House Speaker Murrell Smith
“The free market is the most effective tool government can bring to bear to address most public policy challenges. From health care to education to energy, more competition and consumer choice will lower costs and improve outcomes. I’m grateful for AFP’s partnership in our work to unshackle South Carolina’s economy from excessive government interference.” – State Senator Wes Climer
The scorecard consists of 13 bills including the following 4 top priorities for AFP-SC during the 2023 legislative session:
- State Health Facility Licensure Act (S 164): This law fully repeals Certificate of Need (CON) laws. CON laws are bureaucratic hurdles that require healthcare providers to prove to a government board that building new facilities or expanding existing facilities meet their community’s healthcare needs. Hospitals and other health care facilities can now deliver services such as emergency care without going through a burdensome CON process.
- Board regulation of professions and occupations (S 165): This law removes blanket restrictions of obtaining occupational licenses due to having a criminal record. For our justice system to succeed, it must take steps to ensure that those who return to society after incarceration have the resources and knowledge to reach their full potential.
- Open Enrollment (H 3843): This bill would create an Open Enrollment Program to allow any student starting kindergarten or already enrolled in a public school to attend a participating public school even if they were not a resident of that district.
- ESG (3690): This bill would clarify that managers of retirement plans and investment portfolios should only consider pecuniary factors when executing their investment strategy on behalf of their clients.
