5/09/2023

Senators feast on taxpayer-funded earmarks for pricey projects

 

May 9, 2023

Through largely hidden budget earmarks, S.C. senators have proposed a total of more than $314 million for projects next fiscal year mainly in their respective legislative districts – including dozens of $1 million-plus requests, a review by The Nerve found.

The 46-member Senate two years ago changed its rules purportedly to require more disclosure of historically secret taxpayer-funded earmarks, but the chamber hasn’t posted online its latest earmark list, though it passed a $38-billion, fiscal year 2023-24 state budget version on April 19.

The Nerve recently obtained the Senate earmark list under the S.C. Freedom of Information Act. A separate request under the open-records law was made for any House earmarks; House Clerk Charles Reid in a written response said the 124-member chamber has “no document(s) responsive to your request.”

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