By rssfeeds-admin The South Carolina Senate’s general fund budget is $14.4 billion, and this year’s proposal differs significantly from previous years’ budgets.
In this proposal, there would be money for school resource officers to be placed in every school, the income tax would be lowered to a top rate of 6%, but there would be no money set aside for community projects.
Senator Harvey Peeler (R – Cherokee) said as Finance Committee Chair, he thinks, lowering income tax is a top priority.
“We need to give tax relief to our hardworking families in the state of South Carolina, and those are people that are paying income tax,” he said.
Leaders on both sides of the aisle say they support the Senate’s proposal. Senate Minority Leader Brad Hutto (D – Orangeburg) said he supports the idea but believes the senate should have funded earned income tax credits to target working families.
“Could you just address the way that we’re just doing? We just chop it off. If there’s no targeting those families that need extra money to get their children in daycare or those families that have medical needs, they’re going to get back a pittance,” said Hutto.
“I don’t see how you do it any other way. If you pay taxes, you get tax relief. If you don’t pay taxes, you don’t,” said Peeler.
Hutto said it is really not a fair approach.
“They’re hard working, and they don’t get paid enough, and they deserve tax relief, too. They’re going to get enough, maybe to take their wife to Applebee’s, and other people who don’t need the money are going to get enough to fund a European vacation.”
In this discussion, Peeler said this income tax proposal is more fair than other plans presented recently.
After the budget is passed, it will most likely go to a committee of Senators and Representatives to compromise on several aspects. It will then be enacted on July 1st.
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