one-day, here white raising conversations with nonfiction authors and those making things happen. they are weekly hour-long conversations that regularly feature fascinating authors of nonfiction books on a wide variety of topics. the about books podcast takes you behind the scenes of the nonfiction book publishing industry with insider interviews, industry updates, and best sellers lists. find all the podcast by downloading the free c-span now app or wherever you get your podcasts. and on our website, c- span.org/podcasts. now onto the palmetto state named for the palmetto street found throughout south carolina, that's what republican governor henry mcmaster is a significant term for his estate of the state address, he discusses the states budget surplus as well as education investments and teacher pay raises. before becoming governor he served as lieutenant governor under nikki haley and also as

the states attorney general purpose is about an hour.. >> thank you. thank you. thank you. please be seated. i appreciate everyone being here. mr. speaker, mr. president, my fellow south carolinians, we are here tonight to address successes, challenges and opportunities, but first as in prior years i would like to recognize those in uniform home we lost in the line of duty in 2023. sergeant ricky green junior of the south carolina department of corrections. deputy jacob eric solomon of richland county sheriff's office.

officer matthew logan hill of the easley police department lieutenant michael charleswood of the newberry police department. specialist jason read haven south carolina national guard. firefighter james michael mueller of the fire department. canine agent rico with the state law enforcement division. i attended that funeral and many others that i can, and when rico had his funeral, i have never seen so many people from the police academy. there wasn't a dry eye in the place. we have a great state. so, to the families and loved ones of these brave south carolinians, we all get our condolences. we are eternally grateful for their service.

we have once again with us tonight our first lady, my right, arson and you i'm delighted to have with us once again tonight, our first later lady my bride peggy. our son henry junior, stand when i call you. my wife peggy will start. [laughter] ou i enappreciate that. i will cal them all again. our son henry junior and his

wife virginia. their 16 month old daughter, our granddaughter, margo gray is at home and our daughter mary rogers and her husband sam herskovitz is here. sam is from san francisco, but fortunately, they moved to columbia and into charleston. it is okay. there 19 oh son james darvin is at home. we are glad you are here. by the way, i told those children their , and i know where those babies come from and we are waiting on some more right now. i hope so. no pressure. lieutenant governor pamela and her husband david are here tonight with our state

constitutional office. please stand and be recognized.. thank you, and finally, will the members of the best cabinet in the nation, south carolina, please stand and be recognized? cabinet members. if you are looking for the a-team, there it is, right there. also, i would like to acknowledge members of our supreme court in attendance tonight including chief justice beatty, who will retire this summer after more than seven years as chief justice of our supreme court. over 30 years of service to our state. we look forward to working with

our next chief justice, john kittredge. we thank you for your presence. we thank you. thank you. ladies and gentlemen, i believe there is no higher honor on earth than being selected by the people who know you best to serve in positions like this. i thank you and i will not let you down. we will continue to act boldly, think big and continue building on our success. my question, what are our priorities now and what will our magnificent date look like in 100 years from now? the world knows south carolina has great people. our quality of life and cultural heritage, abundant natural resources and prosperous economy make us unique and offer an enormous opportunity.

our booming economy in 2023 once again created a record budget surplus over $1.64 billion with over 9.21 billion in capital investment and 14,120 dobbs -- jobs. 2022 was equally grand with over 10 billion in capital investment. since 2017, we have announced over 36.4 billion in new investments and 86,000 new jobs. south carolina led the nation in population growth last year. also, according to the bureau of economic analysts, our personal income growth rate ranked second in the country at 4.9% through the third quarter of 2023. we are firing on all cylinders. south carolina tourism industry

continue to thrive in 2023 needing or exceeding the record- breaking tourism growth of earlier years. south carolina was named as one of the top five golf destinations in the world and best in the country for 2023. according to the international association of golf, travel, operators. ours is the only state in the united states to make this list sharing recognition with cyprus, dubai, los cabos and thailand. this reputation was enhanced in 2023 by the announcement of a new pga tour tournament, the myrtle beach classic, which will debut in may joining the prestigious rbc heritage tournament held a month before. since 1950, darlington raceway, the track too tough to tame, has provided generations of nascar fans with spectacular memories, breathtaking finishes, and a

lifetime of stories to be told and retold. the mother's day and labor day nascar cup races are south carolina's largest professional sporting events generating over 118 million in economic impact to the state. you have to see it to believe it. once again, charleston was named the number one city in the south by readers of southern living in 2023 and the number one city in the united states by travel and leisure readers for the 11th -- i say 11th year in a row. hilton head island was named the number one island in this year's travel readers choice,

rankings of the best islands in america. unity park was recognized by reader's digest magazine as one of the nicest places in america . no surprise to us. i would like to recognize that several of the businesses which announce their confidence in our people. by their substantial capital investment in 2023. if leaders will please stand as i name your company, we will respond when you are all standing. scout motors will revitalize an iconic american browned as an all electric next-generation truck and rugged suv with a $2 billion investment and 4000 jobs, president and ceo, mr. scott keough, please stand. hold it -- hold it.

they love you, scott, they can't help it. in charleston county, alma mater corporation will invest 1.3 billion with more than 300 jobs for a lithium hydroxide processing facility. ceo, mr. kent masters, will you please stand. stay standing, please. thank you. in sumter county, sumter county , sumter county, event magnetics investment of more than half $1 billion and creation of 300 jobs will produce rare earth permanent magnets and will help secure the united states domestic pipeline for these rare earth magnets. the only such facility in the western hemisphere. ceo mr. eric edition, please stand. in lawrence county, zf

transmissions gray court is expanding its operation for the growing and evolving mobility industry with a $500 million investment and 400 jobs, vice president and plant manager, mr. tobias bruegger, please stand, sir. in york county, politest, is relocating its corporate headquarters and semiconductor manufacturing operations to south carolina with a $443 million investment and 405 new jobs. vice president of global facilities, mr. gerald knowles, please stand. thank you. and richland county, service solutions will build a state-of- the-art flagship operation to produce lithium ion battery materials with more than 300 new jobs and more than $300 million in investment. ceo mr.

david classkick, please stand. in spartanburg county, milos t company, family owned beverage company will establish operations with a $130 million investment and 103 new jobs. ceo miss tricia woolworth will you please stand? also, our secretary of commerce, harry and his remarkable team, which worked around the clock to produce these successes, please stand. thank you. we thank you all. we thank you all. you have all made the right decision. we boomed in 2023 and we are

going to bloom again in 2024. how about power? we need power. south carolina is a national leader in the advanced manufacturing as we know. and now we are leading the way into new and innovative electric vehicle and battery manufacturing industries. we are home to for major electric vehicle manufacturers. major international ev battery manufacturers, the nation's largest ev battery recycling facility and many other industries and electric vehicle manufacturing supply chain. our leadership is displayed in the south in the sc nexus for advanced resilient energy consortium. we call it sc nexus. it was developed by the department of commerce. this consortium was developed in collaboration with our research universities, technical colleges, state agencies, savannah river national

laboratory, economic development nonprofits and private businesses. it is the culmination of groundwork laid in prior years through collaborative, private, public initiatives. this cooperative spirit produced our ev working group, a one-stop shop to recruit and assist with electric vehicles, investment, and manufacturing industry. it produced the power sc, energy resources and economic development interagency working group. this group please the effort to coordinate the states stakeholders to ensure that they have the energy necessary to meet the needs of our future. we know we need for. how much power will south carolina need? another is, how will it be produced and transmitted? recently, south carolina sc nexus won the u.s. department of commerce's economic development

administrations designation as one of the regional technology and innovation hubs, which allows sc nexus to apply for federal funding. out of over 400 applications, south carolina was one of the 31 finalists selected as a federal tech hub sc nexus will compete for federal grant funding valued between 40 and $70 million annually. my executive budget, it includes 15 million to support sc nexus and serves as the state match required for this competition. we are going to win, and you will love this story. we put together a group that went to washington and met with senator graham and the rest of the delegation, senator scott.

everybody was there. with hardly fit into the rooms. we explained exactly to everyone , what we were doing. we had already started in this area of power as you know from what was discussed a moment ago. we thought we had to act together. we came back a couple of weeks later and we got a call from secretary raimondo, who was in charge of the department of commerce. his department of commerce will be making the decision. we were ready for the call when he was coming so we had to conference with secretary raimondo and on the other line was senator lindsey graham, congressman jim kleinman and yours truly. and so, we recited the facts. we explained all we were doing and how we anticipated this and we were way ahead of everybody else.

at the end of the conversation, senator graham started cutting up and before long we were laughing and joking and just having a delightful time. and secretary mondo says this is quite unusual. i have never had a bipartisan conversation like this in my career. i said, that's the south carolina way. we know the demand for trained ev workforces are outpacing the number of qualified applicants manufacturers like bmw, mercedes-benz, volvo cars and scout motors will need a highly specialized and trained workforce of almost 20,000 south carolinians. they will need them soon to meet this demand. my thicket of budget recommends $50 million to create specialized ev training institutes at our technical

college campuses, which by the way are the best technical competence campuses in the united states and everybody knows it. less talk about unions for a moment. one thing we do not need is more labor unions in south carolina. we have got where we are without them and we do not need them now. we are a right to work state. we have the lowest union membership in the country. we have worked hard and carefully through education training and business recruitment to earn our record prosperity and we will continue to preserve it and enhance it. however, our prosperity and that of generations of south carolinians to come face a clear and present danger from the big labor unions. they have crippled and distorted the progress and prosperity of industries and cities in other states. you are familiar with the rust belt. it has taken years but they have managed to do it and now

their membership is at an all- time low and failing. now they are looking at us and other booming southeastern states, none of which want or need labor unions. in 2021, the international association sued the maritime shipping carriers for calling on the port of charleston's state-of-the-art leatherman terminal. over the past two and half years, was started as a secondary boycott to force the state ports authority to seat long-held state jobs to union labor has devolved into a broader threat to our current and future prosperity. the cranes at that terminal and others are run by state employees. they cost over $10 million each and it takes years to learn how to run them. that's why we have our people, our state employees running those grains. secondary boycotts are illegal.

the ila secondary boycott was initially rejected but later resurrected by president biden's appointees on the national labor relations board. we have taken the fight all the way to the united states supreme court , which i believe will understand the dire implications of this conduct, uphold the law, and rule in our favor. our aerospace vehicle manufacturers are no longer the sole targets for labor organizers. oh no, our thriving hospitality and tourism industry along our coast now finds itself a target too. it seems that no business or employee in south carolina is safe from the disingenuous campaigns and district of impacts of union infiltration. no one should bargain their prosperity under threats of union boycotts or coercive pressure campaigns. we will not let our state economy suffer or become

collateral damage. as labor unions seek to consume new jobs and conscript new news paying members. we will not allow the biden administration to chip away at south carolina's sovereign interest. we will fight. ladies and gentlemen, we will fight all the way to the gaetz of and we will win this battle. superior, we have the thank you. we are in good physical shape, superior. we have the largest rainy day reserve fund balance and lowest amount of general

obligation debt than any other time in recent memory. once again, i'm recommending general assembly put additional funds into the states a rainy day fund. 554.3 million, so that the fund maintains a balance of 1.16 billion, which is equal to 10% of this year's general appropriations act. till a few years ago, south carolina had the highest personal income tax in the southeast and the 12 highest in the nation. no more. two years ago i signed into law the largest income tax cut in state history, which will cut the rate to 6% in the next few years. accordingly, my executive budget recognizes this year is 99 million schedule cut to the income tax rate dropping it from 6.4 to 6.3%. the state board of economic advisers will soon issue an updated revenue forecast. if

allowed, i asked the general assembly to speed up that income tax cut schedule and let taxpayers keep even more of their own money. as we seek prosperity to our economy, we must constantly be alert to detect, avoid, and remove obstacles to its health and vitality. our laws and regulations provide guidelines for that prosperity and our civil justice system provides enforcement of these guidelines and redress for injury. yet, our rules on joint and liability have introduced an element of uncertainty into our business arena and uncertainty is the enemy of sound business. we must find a commonsense formula, which will provide accountability and just compensation without damaging our economy, and i know we can

do it. on courts and judges, we must also ensure that the public has confidence in all of our states judges. circumstances and events continue to raise questions. it is past time to provide full transparency and accountability to the magisterial selection process, which provides, as you know, the bulk of our judges, over 300, in a number across the state. our constitution provides that the governor appoints magistrates subject to the senate's advice and consent. i have instituted a new procedure requiring magisterial candidates to complete more detailed applications and to waive confidential, confidential fall and authorize release of records related to any attorney or judicial disciplinary proceedings. this application and screening

process closely aligned with the processes used by senate committees when scrutinizing statewide appointments submitted to the government and also by those of the judicial merit selection commission who in evaluating judicial candidates for election by the general assembly. as for our circuit and appellate courts, south carolina is one of two states where the legislature chooses the judges by election. being unique in itself signifies neither good nor bad. it is the confidence in the process that counts. the people are watching. not only how the general assembly screams and selects judges, but also whom the general assembly elects to these critical positions. the rule of law is a cornerstone of our society and constitutional republic. we need judges who understand their proper judicial road who appreciate our constitutional structure and who interpret the law as it is written rather

than as they wish it were written. as the u.s. support corporately because to return issues and authority to the states that were never given to the federal government to begin with, it is essential the general assembly elects qualified, intelligent jurors who can carefully analyze important and challenging questions that will be raised with increasing frequency in our state courts. to properly provide for a separate and independent judiciary, the currently unrepresented executive branch should play a roll in selecting judicial candidates before the general assembly exercises its constitutional authority to elect judges. i suggest our founding fathers prescribed a method for judicial selection that has served our nation well and with which our people are quite familiar. gubernatorial appointment with advice and consent of the senate requires no reinvention of the wheel and will inspire evidence

of our people and will encourage more excellent attorneys to seek public service. as for infrastructure, our state roads, bridges, highways and interstates are the arteries of our prosperity. our rapid growth is outpacing the capacities. continued big, bold, and transformative investments are imperative. the 2023 annual accountability report highlights the need to repair, rehabilitate and rebuild many of the nearly 9000 bridges on our primary and secondary roads. some are over 80 years old and showing it. some are in such a date of disrepair the required restrictions render them useless for commercial trucking, school, buses or fire trucks. accordingly, i recommend $500 million in surplus funds from the homestead exemption fund be

appropriated to the south carolina department of transportation for emergency build a bridge replacement and repairs. this will keep us moving. on another note, as you know, after nearly 30 years of service to the state of south carolina, the marvelous kristi a hall, secretary of the south carolina primitive transportation has announced her retirement. secretary hall will be remembered as one of the greatest transportation secretaries in our states history. her unparallel expertise and relentless work ethic have allowed the department to flourish under her leadership. whether responding to natural disasters or spearheading transformative infrastructure projects, she has consistently delivered for the people of south carolina. she thinks ahead and leaves a legacy of excellence. she is placing agency in position to continue driving our state forward for years to

come highlights of their career include restoring agencies finances and financial reputation, developing and leading our strategic 10 year plan and accelerating critical interstate widening projects. secretary hall has been recognized for her ability to work with industry partners to deliver results on infrastructure projects. in addition, she has helped lead our state are a number of disasters including the floods of 2015, hurricane matthew and hurricane florence. under her leadership and in partnership with law enforcement, south carolina executed its first fully successful interstate lane reversal during a coastal evacuation. madam secretary, will you please stand and be thanked and recognized? thank you.

environment. our precious environment. i asked again the question, what will south carolina look like in 100 years? we have seen what happened in other states. they didn't plan wisely or think ahead. when those things are gone, they are gone. mountains, beaches, islands, lakes and marshes are among the most beautiful in the nation. this land as noted by the explorers from kings and queens centuries ago is lush, fertile, and brimming with abundance flora and fauna. our incomparable heritage both cultural and environmental distinguishes our state foremothers and possess a strength and beauty we must never lose.

fortunately, economic growth and preservation of our shared heritage are not opposing objectives, which must be balanced as in competition. one against the other. they are complementary, instead, intertwined and inseparable. each dependent on the other to strengthen one is to strengthen the other. we cannot allow our states culturally and environmentally significant structures monuments, lans, islands and waters be overcome by development, mismanagement, flooding, erosion or storm damage. it is our duty to preserve and protect our history, culture, and environment, and the public's access to them before they are lost forever. we have a veritable army of people in public and private organizations dedicated to these goals. some of you may remember the cautionary lyrics of singer- songwriter joni mitchell. you don't know what you got until

it's gone. paved paradise and put up a parking lot. some will remember that. according i'm recommending $33 million be appropriated to identify and preserve culturally or environmentally significant operators, provide disaster recovery and flooding mitigation efforts as well as beach nourishment projects along our coasts. k-12 education is a universal key, the universal key to a prosperous, happy, future. working together, we must continue to invest in public education. the positive impact of our investments is growing and in our full day four-year- old kindergarten, 4k program for children in poverty continues to grow, with 17,437 children, nine -- now enrolled.

for the next school year, an additional 2500 children are expected to enroll in the program. my executive budget includes 21.1 million to meet this increase enrollment. this program is increasing the number of children are ready to learn. approximately 41% of children who participate in a full day, four-year-old kindergarten are ready for kindergarten as compared to 27% of children in poverty who do not participate in the program. we know it works. we know it is vital. we know if they are going to go to the top, we have to start with education at the bottom in those young years. in september of 2023, south carolina department of education released the results of the south carolina college and career ready assessments in reading and mathematics for

school year 2022-23. for the first time in recent history, at least half of the students in grades three through eight met or exceeded grade level standards in reading. this is good news, but it is not nearly enough. we must do more. we must continue to invest in early literacy and professional development in the science of reading. if they cannot read, they cannot thrive. this will ensure that all children can be reading on grade level by the end of the third grade. we know that students who cannot read proficiently, by the third grade, are four times more likely to drop out of high school. unfortunately, the assessment revealed that only 41% of students in grades three through eight in school your 22- 23 met or exceeded grade level standards in mathematics.

therefore, my executive budget recommends an additional $10 million to improve the teaching and learning of mathematics. in addition, this executive budget provides $30 million for the education scholarship trust fund starting this year those funds will allow low income parents to choose the type of education environment and instruction that best suits their child's unique needs. regarding teachers, regarding teachers, we must continue our remarkable progress to raise teacher pay. in school your 2017 through 18, the minimum starting salary for teaching in south carolina was $30,113. that is not enough. today it is $42,500. that is not enough. my executive budget increases are starting pay for teachers

to 45,000 for the next school year. my goal is that by 2026, the minimum starting salary of a teacher will be at least, at least, $50,000. in school your 2017 to 18, the average teacher salary was 50,182, well below the southeastern average. in school your 2022 through 23, the average teacher salary was 57,000, exceeding the southeastern average, which is a 15% increase over five years. that is good news, but again, we need more. south carolina is also making significant progress in providing school-based mental health services to school-age children. in january of 2022, i directed

to perform a comprehensive review and analysis of the school mental health services program at the department of mental health. within four months, hhs produced a review of the program and seven recommendations for removing barriers to getting quality mental health services in our schools. these recommendations were enacted on july 1-2022 and produced a public private ownership that offered schools more choice and control in getting school-based mental health services for their students. health and human services also conducted a survey at the start of the current school year to determine the availability of school-based mental health services in south carolina. their surveys showed the number of school-based mental health counselors available for public schools has doubled from 600 in january of 2022 to 1209 in september 2023. the ratio was

one counselor for 300 students then. it is now one for every 653 students. this survey also showed students in more than 200 additional schools now have access to mental health counseling and all 73 of our traditional school districts now have access to mental health counseling. let's speak about how your education. we also know that access and affordability to higher education for every south carolinian is essential to ensuring that we have the trained and skilled workforce to successfully compete for jobs and investment in the future. we need all economic challenges. this marks the fifth year in a row that i have asked the general assembly to for his college tuition for in-state students with an appropriation of $49.8 million. this

represents a 4.5 increase as defined by the higher education price index. i'm also requesting $95 million in lottery funds to south carolina workforce industry needs scholarships through the south carolina technical college system. despite the high demand for schools, training, and knowledge, many institutions across the nation are seeing declining enrollments. to address these challenges, i propose funding for the education oversight committee, which is a nonpartisan committee composed of legislators, educators, and business representatives to oversee a systemic review of our states 33 public institutions of higher education. this study will provide a systemic review including an assessment of any advantages from consolidating schools or programs or re-evaluate courses, degrees, and certificates. the goal is to

make sure we are meeting our states future workforce needs. also, providing $80 million so that every south carolinian who qualifies for federal need- based financial aid as measured by the federal pell grants has sufficient state financial assistance to attend any, any in-state public college, university, or technical college. students at private independent and historically black colleges and universities will receive an additional $20 million for tuition grants and assistance. recently, we learned that the commission on higher education had approximately $151.7 million in surplus lottery funds that have been not used for college scholarships. my executive budget recommends allocating these excess funds for additional needs based grants and to pay for extra semester of life, hope or fellow scholarships. these one-time funds should be

used to incentivize students to complete their undergraduate degree and enter the workforce as soon as possible. my executive budget also provides $44 million for deferred maintenance and health and safety upgrades at our for your comprehensive institutions, to your ranch campuses and our technical colleges. in addition, i'm proposing $34 million appropriation for campus infrastructure resiliency and medical university of south carolina. a second 70 million installment for the college of veterinary medicine at clemson university and a $35 million investment for the health science campus at the university of south carolina. my executive budget also proposes $1 million for operations and security for the anne frank center and $1 million for the center of civil rights history and research, both at usc.

our center on college street and university of south carolina , the anne frank center is one of the four in the world and there is only one in north america. for education, i propose continued funding of $20 million for the patel alliance, a collaborative nuclear sciences research partnership between university of south carolina clemson university south carolina state university , all as full partners with the savannah river national laboratory also. truly, we must have the strongest commitment to education we can muster if we are going to succeed. turning to mental health, our covid-19 experience revealed that a mental health crisis existed in south carolina. it wasn't clear how bad the problem was. that's why two years ago i directed health and human services to initiate an

immediate review of our states behavioral health funding and delivery system. it became clear from director kurz efforts that the time had come to modernize and restructure south carolina's siloed healthcare delivery agencies. the department of mental health and health of services and environmental control and others , restructuring of these agencies is and will continue to be a complicated legal and financial endeavor involving billions of dollars in federal funding that flows through these agencies for a myriad of services and programs such as medicaid. last year, my executive budget and general appropriations act directed the department of administration to procure the professional expertise necessary to analyze and provide the general assembly with a comprehensive plan to restructure these agencies.

consolidating and privatizing services where possible. the prestigious boston consulting group was hired and has provided an initial report. unfortunately, their analysis confirmed what many of us feared , and much worse. according to their report, south carolina has the most fragmented health and human service delivery system in the nation. as a result, for example, 77% of our states young people with major depressive episodes are not receiving mental health. according to the organization mental health america. this ranks lowest in the country. our citizens and families are suffering as a result of this dysfunction. with little or no ordination between the relevant agencies, south carolinian's sake and assistance and are forced to navigate through a confusing landscape of agencies and

officials as they seek for a loved one or dependent. too often they fall through the cracks of a system that does not cordon it, communicate, or collaborate. that is not acceptable, and i will state, ladies and gentlemen, the time has come for dramatic restructuring for the consolidation and streamlining of these agencies into one single cabinet agency. one that will develop a strategic plan and operational approach to improve the quality , accountability, and delivery of health and human services to the citizens in our state as the consulting group has recommended. this will require us to reimagine how our state provides access to crisis mental health care, physical healthcare, substance abuse services, disability, and special needs services and assistance to the elderly and

at risk. i implore you, ladies and gentlemen, let this legislative session be remembered for the creation of the most effective efficient and professional health and human service to list three -- delivery system in our states history. turning to law enforcement, our state law enforcement criminal justice agencies have begun to stem the tide of personnel loss with recruitment and retention provided in the two previous appropriations for i propose we build on this success by providing an additional $17.8 million for recruitment and retention pay raises and fiscal year 2024-25. invaluable experience should not be allowed to walk out the door. i'm also proposing a $2000 state income tax credit for every active law enforcement officer, firefighter, first

responder, and emergency medical technician employed by a public entity. additionally, this budget maintains a proviso suspending the $10,000 retirement cap or anyone enrolled in police officer retirement system. this will allow retired officers to return to work and fill existing vacancies. ladies and gentlemen, placing an armed certified resource officer in every school all day every day has been one of my top priorities. some of yours as well. the general assembly has begun providing funds to hire more resource officers for our states 1284 public schools. this grant program has been very successful and has more than doubled the number of officers assigned to a school going from 406 in 2018 to 1109 in 2023.

i am recommending an additional 13.4 million to add officers in each of the remaining 175 schools, which currently do not have an assigned state resource officer. that is an armed, trained resource officer. another subject, animal fighting. especially dogfighting, especially dogfighting. you have seen some and you have heard about it. it's one of the cruelest criminal activities in our society. law officers estimate people participating in this barbaric activity have long criminal records. some sheriffs have told me if they could look -- locate a fight and through a net of everybody that would catch half the criminals in the county. in 2022, an agent was dedicated to combating animal fighting and working in collaboration with other law enforcement officers. shortly thereafter, this agent helped execute one of the

biggest takedowns of a dogfighting operation in south carolina history. this executive budget expense upon this success by recommending 566 thousand dollars to hire three additional sled agents dedicated to animal fighting. in july 2022, the south carolina department of corrections began utilizing the process that allows mobile phone providers to permanently disable contraband phones and devices. they are detected by a certified contraband system approved by the federal communications commission. to date, over 875 phones and devices have been disabled. my executive budget recommends 23 million more dollars to expand this valuable program to each prison in our state.

let's talk about our revolving door. our law enforcement officers know who the repeat criminals are. they know that they commit over 80% of the crimes. unfortunately, this is happening every day. people ask and i ask, how long are we going to allow this to happen? law enforcement needs our help. they need stronger laws to keep illegal guns out of the hands of criminals and juveniles and they need new laws to impose -- close the revolving door and keep criminals behind bars and not out on bond. currently, there are no graduated criminal penalties for illegal gun possession and state law. that means the penalty is the same, small, no matter how many times the criminal gets caught. this provides no deterrent. graduated fennelly felony with no bond would help keep repeat

criminals behind bars and not at on bail or they can and will commit more crimes. during the last year, i have continually called on this general assembly to act, take a vote, past graduated criminal penalties for illegal gun possession so that i can sign it into law. during this last year, it has become an almost daily occurrence for an innocent south carolinian to be shot or shot at by a career criminal who should be behind bars instead of roaming our streets with virtual impunity. it is and gentlemen, this new law will require in order of preparation, no money. all have to do is vote yes. caroli carolina.na i believe we have the best law

enforcement established in the country. joining us today is south carolina patrol lance corporal frazier. please welcome lance corporal frazier. >> [ applause ] >> corporal, please stay standing and your wife too. i want you all to look at this man. around 3:30 am on april 16, 2023 the trooper was on duty and issuing a traffic stop after witnessing a vehicle traveling at a high rate of speed on highway 78. think for a moment. these officers get up in the morning and put on a tie or

something they ntput on a bulletproof vest. as a sheriff deputy arrived to assist, trooper frazier was shot by the suspect. he stopped the car, got the license, went back to check it out and saw that there was a warrant out for the man so he was returning to the car and us he returned, a deputy was joining him or just arriving and the man in the car pulled out his pistol and shot him in the face. well, both officers returned fire as the suspect sped away. if you have seen the video, corporal frazier was lying on the ground calling in the

information about the vehicle while he was bleeding on the ground and firing to try to stop the vehicle, all at one time. the suspect crashed into a home and a video from the body and dash cam is hard to watch. trooper francis, his professionalism was amazing. he embodies the best of the highway patrol and south carolina law enforcement. it is and gentlemen, the gun that was used to shoot this man, according to the state law enforcement division is a stolen game -- gun. it was in the hands of a repeat offender. for 22 years he was repeatedly breaking the criminal law and getting arrested. he was out nson bond on charges in georgia. his long rap shoot -- rap sheet includes charges for trespass,

robbery, assault and battery. dealing drugs, sexual misconduct and many other charges. this career criminal should be behind bars and not behind the wheel of a car in south carolina. we are thankful that trooper frazier is here with us. we could not continue to ask the best law enforcement officers in the country to risk their lives every year to go out and protect us while they are vulnerable to assaults by career criminals that we know by name, rank, serial number, and crime. trooper frazier, please stand high and let us say thank you again. >> [ applause ]

>> thank you. so ladies and gentlemen, i ask you again, sending a bill with graduated criminal penalties for illegal gun possession. >> ladies and gentlemen, i ask you again, graduated criminal penalties for illegal gun possession and i will immediately sign into law to get people off streets and behind bars where they ought to be so that people and our children can be safe. i have got a lot more i would like to say but i will wrap it up. in closing, two members of the general assembly i say, let us continue our successful partnership. one that has been

based on communication, collaboration, and cooperation. let us continue to embrace civility through our deeds and words. and to encourage people to be proud of their state. this is the best place in the world to live, work, and raise a family. let us of the state on a course that will bring us prosperity, success, and happiness for generations of south carolinians. ladies and gentlemen, the best is yet to come. may god continue to bless america and the great state of south carolina. thank you. [ applause ]

>> c-span has been delivering congressional coverage for 45 years. here is a highlight from a key moment. >> racial profiling has to stop mr. speaker. just because someone wears a hoodie does not make them a hoodlum. the bible teaches us -- the member will -- the member will -- the chair must remind you to -- >> walk in mercy and humbly

with your god. in the new testament, it teaches us these words. the spirit of the lord is upon me because he has anointed me to proclaim the good news to the poor. >> the member is out of order. >> c-span. powered by cable. c-span is your unfiltered view of government and we are funded by these television companies and more including spark light. the greatest time on earth is the place you come home. at spark light it is our home too. we are facing our greatest challenge and that is why spark light is working round-the- clock court -- clock. we want to make your job easier so we do hours. >> we are giving you a front- row seat to democracy.

the c-span shop allows you to look at our products, books, home decor, and accessories. there is something for every c- span fan and every purchase help support our nonprofit operations. shop anytime at c-span.org slash shop . and now the state of the state address from michelle lujan grisham in santa fe. she is highlighting policy achievements over the last year while discussing education, gun control and climate change. she was interrupted by environmental and progress palestinian protesters. this is about 50 minutes. minus