Friends of South Carolina,
How does an obscure study by an out of state think tank become the law of the land?
In South Carolina, Hugh Leatherman teams up with his Democratic buddies to create a new government agency tasked with implementing it, that’s how!
You read that right! Republican (in name at least) Hugh Leatherman teamed up with seven Democrats to create a new agency with the authority to, among other things, manage the economy, education, healthcare, infrastructure, and financial structures of 17 counties along I-95.
And from the looks of this e-mail blast from “Ten at the Top,” an NGO (non-governmental organization) working to implement Agenda 21 in the South Carolina upcountry, an I-85 Corridor Authority is likely in the works for the near future, as well.
Leatherman is the sole Republican sponsor of this “I-95 Corridor Authority” bill, S211. His liberal buddies, Matthews, Land, Leventis, Hutto, Williams, Ford, and McGill all co-sponsored the bill with him to create this new agency.
I wrote about this new agency’s power and who will wield itearlier.
Fortunately, the Governor vetoed this bill. However the Senate handily overrode the veto 30 – 10.
Now, we have one last chance to stop this mammoth new agency. But only if we can get the House to vote to sustain the governor’s veto.
A list of Representatives who voted to create this monstrosity is at the end of this e-mail.
Contact your representative, no matter how they voted the first time, and tell them to sustain the governor’s veto of S211.
This new agency, according to S211, will “oversee the implementation of the recommendations contained in the I-95 Corridor Human Needs Assessment published in December 2009.”
This Assessment makes 64 recommendations for action. All 64 will become required by law if this veto is not sustained. Some are very specific, but most are very broad, general suggestions, like recommendation 4.4.1, “Encourage consolidation of water services”. How... to what end... with what means? Those questions are not answered and are left up to this new agency to determine. But whatever they determine, they will be required to “encourage consolidation of water services”... by law if this veto is not sustained.And since this edict and many others in this Assessment are not circumscribed with limitations of any kind, they become a wide open avenue to abuse of power and authority.
Here are some of the recommendations that will become law if the House overrides the governor’s veto:
- Recommendation 1.1.4: “Foster greater use of public-private partnerships.” Yeah... like the SCRA and the Inovista projects that work so well. Insert sarcasm here!
- Recommendation 1.2.1: “Act as a political block.” Really? Are these counties going to merge into one super county? Are the needs of Beaufort county the same as the needs of Marlboro County? And the General Assembly thinks they can be forced to act together as a political block. Yeah.
- Recommendation 2.1.4: “Broker linkages between people, communities, and industries.” Huh. What exactly does that mean? No matter... if this veto is overridden, it becomes a requirement for implementation and a wide avenue to abuse of power because the Authority can make it mean anything they want.
- Recommendation 2.4.5 is one of my favorites: “Leverage the region’s agricultural base in innovative ways to feed new markets and cultivate agritourism.” Agritourism? Hahahaha! Corn mazes are going to save our economy? That, by itself, should convince folks to never let government plan our economy!
Well, that is just a short sampling. And I haven’t even touched on how it “recommends” that the educational system be improved, or how to “close the infrastructure gap,” or even how to “target disparities in health and social services.”
Maybe I’ll list some more in a future mailing.
Until then, please, contact your State Representative today and tell him to sustain the governor’s veto of S211, The I-95 Corridor Authority Act. It is vital to the future wellbeing of our state to stop this thing!
Our State Representatives are our last chance to prevent this huge growth in the size, spending, and authority of our state government!
You can find who your State Representative is at this link by entering your zip code.
Below, you can see a list of all the Representatives who voted for this boondoggle and who chose not to vote at all.
The House will vote on the veto on January 10th when they reconvene for the new year. We need 1/3 of SC House to vote to sustain the governor’s veto so we can stop this agency before it gets created!
Please contact your Representative and tell him or her to sustain the governor’s veto on S211, the I-95 Corridor Authority Act.
Thanks for all you do!
Let me know what your Representative says! I am keeping score.
Best Regards,
Talbert Black, Jr.
Interim State Coordinator
Campaign for Liberty
P.S. Remember, in order to stop this further increase in the power and authority of our runaway legislature, contact your State Representative today and tell him or her to sustain the governor’s veto of the I-95 Corridor Authority.
We must stop the creation of this new state agency that will be given almost unlimited authority and will be directed by the state legislature.
Contact your Representative today!
Original vote record for the I-95 Corridor Authority:
These members voted for the I-95 Corridor Authority:
Alexander, Allen, Allison, Anderson, Atwater, Bales, Ballentine, Bannister, Barfield, Battle, Bingham, Bowen, Bowers, Brady, Branham, Brannon, Brown H.B., Brown R.L., Butler, Clemmons, Clyburn, Cobb-Hunter, Cole, Dillard, Edge, Erickson, Forrester, Frye, Funderburk, Gambrell, Gilliard, Hardwick, Harrell, Harrison, Hart, Hayes, Hearn, Herbkersman, Hodges, Horne, Hosey, Huggins, Jefferson, Johnson, King, Knight, Loftis, Lowe, Lucas, Mack, Mitchell, Moss D.C., Moss V.S., Munnerlyn, Murphy, Neal J.H., Neal J.M., Neilson, Ott, Parker, Parks, Pinson, Pitts, Rutherford, Sabb, Sandifer, Sellers, Skelton, Smith G.M., Smith J.E., Smith J.R., Sottile, Spires, Stavrinakis, Tallon, Thayer, Toole, Tribble, Jr, Weeks, Whipper, White, Whitmire, Williams
These members were present but didn’t vote for or against:
Agnew, Anthony, Bikas, Brantley, Brown G.A., Chumbly, Crawford, Crosby, Daning, Govan, Hiott, Howard, Limehouse, McCoy, McEachern, Stringer, Willis
These were members were absent and didn’t vote:
Hixon, McLeod, Merrill, Pope, Vick
These two were not elected at the time of the vote:
Putnam, Southard
Those not listed voted against the I-95 Corridor Authority.
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