H 4738

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026
Bill 4738
Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter
(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)
Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter
Committee Report
April 21, 2026
H. 4738
Introduced
by Reps. Erickson and McGinnis
S. Printed 4/21/26--S.
Read the first time March 31, 2026
________
The committee on Senate
Education
To whom was referred a Bill (H. 4738) to
amend the South Carolina Code of Laws by amending Section 59-26-20, relating to
certain duties of the State Board of Education and the Commission on Higher Education,
etc., respectfully
Report:
That they have duly and carefully
considered the same, and recommend that the same do pass:
GREG HEMBREE for
Committee.
_______
A bill
TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY
AMENDING SECTION 59-26-20, RELATING TO CERTAIN DUTIES OF THE STATE BOARD OF
EDUCATION AND THE COMMISSION ON HIGHER EDUCATION RELATING TO PUBLIC EDUCATOR
TRAINING, SO AS TO ELIMINATE THE GOVERNOR'S TEACHING SCHOLARSHIP LOAN PROGRAM;
BY AMENDING SECTION 59-26-35, RELATING TO THE SOUTH CAROLINA EDUCATOR
PREPARATION REPORT CARD, SO AS TO REVISE DUTIES OF THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF
EDUCATION AND THE COMMISSION ON HIGHER EDUCATION; BY AMENDING SECTION 59-53-40,
RELATING TO COLLEGE PARALLEL COURSES AND ASSOCIATE DEGREE PROGRAMS, SO AS TO
REMOVE RELATED BUDGETARY REVIEW REQUIREMENTS OF THE COMMISSION; BY AMENDING
SECTION 59-104-40, RELATING TO THE CONVERSION FROM THE QUARTER CALENDAR SYSTEM
TO THE SEMESTER CALENDAR SYSTEM BY THE TECHNICAL EDUCATION SYSTEM, SO AS TO
REMOVE OBSOLETE PROVISIONS; BY AMENDING SECTION 59-150-355, RELATING TO
EDUCATION LOTTERY APPROPRIATIONS AND USES, SO AS TO REMOVE OBSOLETE PROVISIONS,
AMONG OTHER THINGS; BY AMENDING SECTION 8-17-380, RELATING TO THE GRIEVANCE AND
PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL PROCEDURE FOR ACADEMIC EMPLOYEES, SO AS TO REMOVE
REFERENCES TO THE COMMISSION; BY REPEALING CHAPTER 51, TITLE 11 RELATING TO THE
SOUTH CAROLINA RESEARCH UNIVERSITY INFRASTRUCTURE ACT; BY REPEALING SECTION
39-9-230 RELATING TO IMPLEMENTATION OF the METRIC SYSTEM BY THE COMMISSIONER OF
AGRICULTURE WITH ASSISTANCE BY AN ADVISORY COMMITTEE; BY REPEALING SECTION
59-54-20 RELATING TO THE STATE OCCUPATIONAL TRAINING ADVISORY COMMITTEE; BY
REPEALING SECTION 59-101-340 RELATING TO ALLOCATION OF FUNDS APPROPRIATED FOR A
CERTAIN INVESTMENT INITIATIVE; BY REPEALING SECTION 59-101-360 RELATING TO
CERTAIN REVENUE FROM TAX ON CATALOG SALES CREDITABLE TO MAIL ORDER SALES TAX
FUND; BY REPEALING SECTION 59-103-50 RELATING TO THE ADVISORY COUNCIL OF
PRIVATE COLLEGE PRESIDENTS; BY REPEALING SECTION 59-103-120 RELATING TO THE
ACCREDITATION AND CHARTERING OF CHIROPRACTIC COLLEGES; by repealing SECTION
59-103-162 RELATING TO the SOUTH CAROLINA MANUFACTURING EXTENSION PARTNERSHIP; by
repealing section 59-104-210 relating to the competitive grants program; BY
REPEALING SECTION 59-104-230 RELATING TO THE ENDOWED PROFESSORSHIPS PROGRAM; BY
REPEALING SECTION 59-104-410 RELATING TO THE RESEARCH INVESTMENT FUND; BY
REPEALING SECTION 59-104-420 RELATING TO CRITERIA FOR RESEARCH INVESTMENT FUND
USES; BY REPEALING SECTION 59-104-430 RELATING TO COMPREHENSIVE REPORTS FOR THE
RESEARCH INVESTMENT FUND TO BE MADE AT THE END OF the FISCAL YEAR; BY REPEALING
SECTION 59-104-440 RELATING TO THE ALLOCATION OF FUNDS FROM THE RESEARCH
INVESTMENT FUND; BY REPEALING SECTION 59-105-60 RELATING TO THE MODEL SEXUAL
ASSAULT POLICY CREATED BY THE CAMPUS SEXUAL ASSAULT INFORMATION ACT; BY
REPEALING SECTION 59-111-75 RELATING TO THE COLLEGE LOAN PROGRAM FOR NATIONAL
GUARD MEMBERS; BY REPEALING SECTION 59-121-15 RELATING TO THE AUTHORITY OF THE
BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE CITADEL TO CHANGE THE NAME OF THE INSTITUTION; BY
REPEALING SECTION 59-127-75 RELATING TO THE FELTON-LABORATORY SCHOOL AT SOUTH
CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY; AND BY REPEALING SECTION 59-150-380 RELATING TO THE
EDUCATIONAL LOTTERY TEACHING SCHOLARSHIP GRANTS PROGRAM.
Be it enacted by the
General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION
1.  Section 59-26-20(n) of the S.C. Code is amended
to read:
    (n) the Commission
on Higher Education in consultation with the State Department of Education and
the staff of the South Carolina Student Loan Corporation, shall develop a
Governor's Teaching Scholarship Loan Program to provide talented and qualified
state residents loans not to exceed five thousand dollars a year to attend
public or private colleges and universities for the purpose of becoming
certified teachers employed in the public schools of this State.  The recipient
of a loan is entitled to have up to one hundred percent of the amount of the
loan plus the interest on the loan canceled if he becomes certified and teaches
in the public schools of this State for at least five years.  The loan is
canceled at the rate of twenty percent of the total principal amount of the
loan plus interest on the unpaid balance for each complete year of teaching
service in a public school.  However, beginning July 1, 1990, the loan is
canceled at the rate of thirty-three and one-third percent of the total
principal amount of the loan plus interest on the unpaid balance for each
complete year of teaching service in both an academic critical need area and a
geographic need area as defined annually by the State Board of Education.  In
case of failure to make a scheduled repayment of any installment, failure to
apply for cancellation or deferment of the loan on time, or noncompliance by a
borrower with the purpose of the loan, the entire unpaid indebtedness plus
interest is, at the option of the commission, immediately due and payable.  The
recipient shall execute the necessary legal documents to reflect his obligation
and the terms and conditions of the loan.  The loan program must be
administered by the South Carolina Student Loan Corporation.  Funds generated
from repayments to the loan program must be retained in a separate account and
utilized as a revolving account for the purpose of making additional loans.
Appropriations for loans and administrative costs must come from the Education
Improvement Act of 1984 Fund, on the recommendation of the Commission on Higher
Education to the State Treasurer, for use by the corporation.  The Education
Oversight Committee shall review this scholarship loan program annually and
report its findings and recommendations to the General Assembly.  For purposes
of this item, a 'talented and qualified state resident' includes freshmen
students who graduate in the top ten percentile of their high school class, or
who receive a combined verbal plus mathematics Scholastic Aptitude Test score
of at least eleven hundred and enrolled students who have completed one year
(two semesters or the equivalent) of collegiate work and who have earned a
cumulative grade point average of at least 3.5 on a 4.0 scale.  To remain
eligible for the loan while in college, the student must maintain at least a
3.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale.Reserved.
SECTION
2.  Section 59-26-35(A) of the S.C. Code is amended
to read:
    (A) The South
Carolina Commission on Higher EducationState
Department of Education, with the assistance of the Department of EducationCommission on
Higher Education, State Board of Education, the Center for Research on
Teacher Education (SC-TEACHER), and the Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office,
shall form a commission to conduct a detailed assessment of the current data
infrastructure, develop metrics, determine weightings, construct a unified data
upload system, and construct public and private facing data reports including,
but not limited to, annually publishing before November first an online report
card known as the "South Carolina Educator Preparation Report Card".  The
report card must be made available on the State Department of Education and the
Commission on Higher Education's websites.  The commission shall develop a
format that each educator preparation program must use on its website that
shows all required information regarding its respective program.  The report
card shall evaluate the ability of educator preparation programs, including
alternative programs, to prepare new teachers for success in South Carolina's
classrooms, as well as describe the school and district contexts in which
completers work.  The report card must include data on a variety of measures to
provide an overall picture of how well each educator preparation program
prepares effective educators and meets state goals including, but not limited
to, the following:
       (1)
number of undergraduate and graduate completers;
       (2)
placement and one, three, and five year retention rates by districts and
regions of the State;
       (3)
performance-based assessments of candidates;
       (4)
ability of program to recruit a strong, diverse cohort of candidates and
prepare them to teach in the content areas of greatest need;
       (5)
quality of clinical experiences, including access to qualified and trained
mentors, time in the field, and opportunities to apply knowledge and skills in
the clinical setting;
       (6)
effectiveness of individuals who completed a provider's program and are
employed in a public school classroom. The information must be differentiated
by provider and, where applicable, across content areas; and
       (7)
graduate and employer satisfaction.
SECTION
3.  Section 59-53-40 of the S.C. Code is amended to
read:
    Section
59-53-40.  (A) The board and local area commissions shall insureensure effective
coordination with the public schools, other state agencies, literary councils,
and private and nonprofit training organizations to maximize opportunities to
best meet local education and training needs.  The board shall maintain
effective coordination with the Commission on Higher Education and other
educational boards and state agencies.
    The Board is
required to submit to the Commission on Higher Education a budget and
enrollment documentation for all existing and proposed college parallel courses
or associate degree programs with college transfer credit by institutional
location for review and comment prior to submission of the Board's total state
budget request to the Governor.
    (B) All college parallel
courses or associate degree programs are subject to the approval or termination
by the Commission on Higher Education.
SECTION
4.  Section 59-104-40 of the S.C. Code is amended to
read:
    Section
59-104-40. (A) The technical education system in this
State shall convert from the quarter calendar to the semester calendar, if
funds are appropriated for this purpose.  The Commission on Higher Education
shall request state appropriations for the conversion to be funded and
completed over a two-year period.
    (B)
The State Board for Technical and Comprehensive Education, in
consultation with the commission, shall limit the offering of courses designed
for college transfer in those technical colleges that do not have approved
college transfer programs.  The offering of "college parallel" general
education courses in institutions not authorized to award the associate in arts
or associate in science degree is limited to those necessary to support
approved nontransfer programs.  The commission, after consultation with the
State Board for Technical and Comprehensive Education and with public senior
colleges and universities, shall establish rules and procedures by which this
limitation must be regulated.  The commission shall establish procedures
concerning courses acceptable for transfer as provided in Section 59-103-45(1).
SECTION
5.  Section 59-143-10(C) of the S.C. Code is amended
to read:
    (C) Funds made available for
Need-based Grants and Palmetto Fellows Scholarships through the Higher
Education Scholarship Grants allocation must be no more than the prior year's
earned revenue and must be released for use on July first
and January first of each fiscal year.  Notwithstanding the provisions
of this section, any unspent balance in the Higher Education Scholarship Grants
allocation of the Children's Education Endowment Fund, including interest and
low-level radioactive waste tax revenue from previous years' collections, may
be made available for Need-based Grants and Palmetto Fellows Scholarships.
SECTION
6.  Section 59-143-30 of the S.C. Code is amended to
read:
    Section
59-143-30. (1) Of the funds made
available for higher education scholarship grants from the higher education
scholarship grant allocation under Section 59-143-10 of
the 1976 Code for any year, a percentage thereof
must be allocated for higher education scholarships and grants for students
attending South Carolina independent colleges of higher learning in this
State.  This percentage shall be equivalent to the percentage of the
independent colleges' share of the total South Carolina resident undergraduate
full-time (FTE) enrollment of all public and independent higher education
institutions in South Carolina based on the previous year's data as determined
by the Commission on Higher Education and the South Carolina Tuition Grants
Commission one-half shall be allocated for
Need-based Grants and one-half shall be allocated for Palmetto Fellows
Scholarships.
    (2) Of the total funds made available
for higher education scholarship grants from the higher education scholarship
grant allocation under Section 59-143-10 for any year, a percentage thereof
must be allocated for students attending independent institutions of higher
learning in this State. This percentage shall be equivalent to the percentage
of the independent colleges' share of the total South Carolina resident
undergraduate full time (FTE) enrollment of all public and independent
institutions of higher learning in this State based on the previous year's data
as determined by the Commission on Higher Education and the South Carolina
Tuition Grants Commission. This percentage shall be drawn from the funds
allocated under item (1) for Need-based Grants.
    (2)(3) The allocation each year to students at the South
Carolina independent colleges under item (1) above(2) shall be used to provide tuition grants under Chapter
113 of Title 59 of the 1976 Code, and Palmetto Fellows
Scholarships under Section 59-104-20 of the 1976 Code in the manner the General
Assembly shall provide in the annual general appropriations act.  Of the funds
allocated to independent college students, fifty percent shall be awarded for
South Carolina Tuition Grants and fifty percent shall be awarded under the
Palmetto Fellows Program.  The funds allocated for South Carolina
Tuition Grants to South Carolina independent colleges students under this
subsection shall be included in the annual appropriation to the Commission on
Higher Education and transferred annually into the budget of the South Carolina
Tuition Grants Commission in the amount prescribed in item (1)(2)
above.  The funds allocated for Palmetto Fellows
Scholarships to South Carolina independent college students under this subsection
shall be included in the annual appropriation to the Commission on Higher
Education and may only be awarded to eligible students attending South Carolina
independent colleges.
    (3)(4) Independent colleges for purposes of this subsection
means those institutions eligible to participate in the South Carolina Tuition
Grants Program as defined by Section 59-113-50.
    (4)(5) Public institutions shall receive the remaining
allocation each year of the funds made available for higher education
scholarship grants under Section 59-143-10.  One-half
shall be used to provide higher education need-based grants as provided for in
this act or otherwise provided for in state law, and one-half shall be used to
provide Palmetto Fellows Scholarships under Section 59-104-20 of the 1976 Code
in the manner the General Assembly shall provide in the annual general
appropriations act.
    (5)(6) The maximum amount of funding provided for awards to
students attending South Carolina independent colleges from the Children's
Education Endowment Fund for South Carolina Tuition Grants and Palmetto Fellows scholarships shall not exceed the
percentage funding calculation described under item (1)
above(2).
SECTION
7.  Section 59-150-355 of the S.C. Code is amended
to read:
    Section
59-150-355.  (A) There is appropriated from the Education Lottery
Account for the following education purposes and programs and funds for these
programs and purposes shall be transferred by the Budget
and Control BoardExecutive Budget Office as
directed below. These appropriations must be used to supplement and not
supplant existing funds for education. Distributions from the Education Lottery
Account must be made on a quarterly basis by the last day of January, April,
July, and October of each year, beginning in July 2002 if the account has
accrued more than $35,000,000 in net proceeds by that date. The Budget and Control BoardExecutive
Budget Office is directed to prepare the subsequent Lottery Expenditure
Account detail budget to reflect the appropriations of the Education Lottery
Account as provided in this sectionin the annual appropriations act.Fiscal
year 2002-2003 certified net lottery proceeds and investment earnings of
$172,000,000 are appropriated as follows:  Department of Education-K-5 Reading,
Math, Science & Social Studies Program as provided in Section 59-1-525,
$32,915,900;  School Buses, $8,000,000;  State Library, Aid to County Libraries
as provided in Section 59-150-350(D), $1,500,000;  Commission on Higher
Education-Endowed Chairs as provided in Chapter 75 of Title 2, $30,000,000;
Commission on Higher Education-LIFE Scholarships as provided in Chapter 149 of
Title 59, $40,000,000;  Palmetto Fellows Scholarships as provided in Section
59-104-20, $5,000,000;  National Guard Tuition Repayment Program as provided in
Section 59-111-75, $1,500,000;  Technology:  Public 4-Year Universities, 2-Year
Institutions, and State Technical Schools, $11,103,683;  Tuition
Assistance-Technical Schools and 2-year institutions as provided in Section
59-150-360, $34,000,000;  HOPE Scholarships as provided in Section 59-150-370,
$5,787,600;  Administration of Scholarships, Technical Grants, and Endowed
Chair programs, $192,817;  South Carolina State University-Research and
Technology Grant, $2,000,000;  Of the funds appropriated for technology,
one-half must be used for University Technology Grant Program funds to be
awarded to public four-year universities, excluding the University of South
Carolina-Columbia, Clemson, and the Medical University of South Carolina.
Grants must be awarded to institutions with grant proposals supporting the
development of technology and/or technology infrastructure. The review process,
to include the awarding of grants, is to be determined by the Commission on
Higher Education. The remaining one-half of these funds appropriated for
technology shall be Technology Grant Program funds to be used for technology
upgrades across the public two-year institutions and the technical college
system for the support and development of technology. One-half of one percent
of the allocated amount must be used by the Commission on Higher Education to
fund Palmetto Fellows Scholarships. Funds appropriated for Research and
Technology Grant-South Carolina State University must be used to support basic
and applied research in information and technology outreach opportunities for
South Carolina's rural and urban citizens.
    (B)The Commission on Higher
Education is authorized to temporarily transfer funds between appropriated line
items and between recurring and nonrecurring funds in order to ensure the
timely receipt of scholarships and tuition assistance.
    (C) Annual net lottery proceeds and
investment earnings in excess of the certified net lottery proceeds and
investment earnings are appropriated and must be used and must be carried
forward to ensure that all LIFE, Palmetto Fellows, and HOPE Scholarships
created or supplemented by the General Assembly are fully funded annually. If
the lottery revenue received is less than the amounts appropriated, the
projects and programs receiving appropriations for any such year must have
their appropriations reduced on a pro rata basis, except that a reduction must
not be applied to the funding of LIFE, Palmetto Fellows, and HOPE Scholarships.
The amounts appropriated for school buses must be used for
the purchase of new school buses and the repair of existing school buses.
Fiscal year 2001-2002 certified net lottery proceeds and investment earnings of
$80,000,000 are appropriated as follows:  Department of Education-Education
Accountability Act, $23,903,683;  School Buses, $15,000,000;  Educational
Television Commission-ETV Digitalization as provided in Section 59-150-350(D),
$18,500,000;  Tuition Grants Commission-Tuition Grants, $3,000,000;  Commission
on Higher Education-Teacher Grants as provided in Section 59-150-350(D),
$2,000,000;  Technology:  Public 4-Year Universities, 2-Year Institutions, and
State Technical Schools, $10,596,317;  Historically Black College and
University Maintenance and Repair, $3,000,000;  South Carolina State
University-Research and Technology Grant, $1,000,000;  Needs-Based Grants,
$3,000,000. The funds appropriated to the Department of Education for the
Education Accountability Act shall be used to provide homework centers
($1,548,440);  retraining grants ($4,637,000);  external review teams
($1,466,872);  teacher specialists ($12,581,069);  principal specialists
($2,270,302);  school-based pilot programs ($400,000);  and Palmetto Gold and
Silver Awards Program ($1,000,000). Funds appropriated for teacher and
principal specialists must be used first to fully fund these programs. Any
funds remaining are to be used for the other five programs listed above.
School-based Pilot Programs must include the deregulation of any school
district with an overall absolute or improved designation of average or better
when requested by the district. The amounts appropriated for school buses must
be used for the purchase of new school buses including six appropriately
equipped school buses for the School for the Deaf and the Blind, and the repair
of existing school buses. Of the allocation for the purchase of new school
buses, two new nineteen-passenger activity buses must be purchased for John de
la Howe. Of the funds appropriated for technology, one-half must be used for
University Technology Grant Program funds to be awarded to public four-year
universities, excluding the University of South Carolina-Columbia, Clemson, and
the Medical University of South Carolina. Grants must be awarded to
institutions with grant proposals supporting the development of technology
and/or technology infrastructure. The review process, to include the awarding
of grants, is to be determined by the Commission on Higher Education. The
remaining one-half of these funds appropriated for technology shall be
Technology Grant Program funds to be used for technology upgrades across the public
two-year institutions and the technical college system for the support and
development of technology. One-half of one percent of the allocated amount must
be used by the Commission on Higher Education to fund Palmetto Fellows
Scholarships. The amounts appropriated for South Carolina's private
historically black colleges and universities, as defined in 20 U.S. Code
Section 1061, as amended, shall be appropriated in an equal amount to each
institution to be used by the institutions for construction and renovation
projects. Funds appropriated for Research and Technology Grant-South Carolina
State University must be used to support basic and applied research in
information and technology outreach opportunities for South Carolina's rural
and urban citizens. Fiscal year 2002-2003 net lottery proceeds and investment
earnings in excess of the certified net lottery proceeds and investment
earnings for this period are appropriated and shall be used to ensure that all
LIFE, Palmetto Fellows, and HOPE Scholarships created or supplemented by the
General Assembly for fiscal year 2002-2003 in this section are fully funded.
Fiscal year 2001-2002 net lottery proceeds and investment earnings in excess of
certified net lottery proceeds and investment earnings for this period are
appropriated and shall be carried forward and used to ensure that all LIFE,
Palmetto Fellows, and HOPE Scholarships created or supplemented by the General
Assembly for fiscal year 2002-2003 in this section are fully funded. For fiscal
Year 2001-2002 and 2002-2003 the first $1,000,000 of unclaimed prize money is
appropriated to the Budget and Control Board to contract for services assisting
in the prevention and treatment of gambling disorders as specified in Section
59-150-230(I). Any revenue in excess of the $1,000,000 must be appropriated to
the State Department of Education for the purchase and repair of school buses.
If the lottery revenue received for fiscal year 2001-2002 or fiscal year
2002-2003 is less than the amounts appropriated, the projects and programs
receiving appropriations for any such year shall have their appropriations
reduced on a pro rata basis, except that a reduction must not be applied to the
funding of LIFE, Palmetto Fellows, and HOPE Scholarships.
SECTION
8.  Section 8-17-380 of the S.C. Code is amended to
read:
    Section
8-17-380.  With respect to the teaching and research
faculty, professional librarians, academic administrators, and all other
persons holding faculty appointments at any post-secondary educational
institutions described in item (10) of Section 8-17-370, each such institution,
subject to the approval of the Director of the Department of Administration or
its designee and the Commission on Higher Education,
shall establish in writing:
    (a)
A performance appraisal procedure which shall assure:
       (1)
annual review and evaluation of such employees;
       (2)
written findings;
       (3)
review of evaluations with each covered employee;
       (4)
retention of performance appraisals and written comments of such employee, if
any, in a permanent file with right of full disclosure to the employee.
    (b)
A grievance procedure which shall at an appropriate stage provide a hearing for
such employees before an individual or committee designated for such purposes,
at which the employee shall have the right to representation by counsel and the
opportunity to present evidence in his behalf.  Any such procedure shall
include the right of the employee to appeal the post-hearing decision to the
governing board of the institution, or a committee designated by the board for
this purpose, such appeal to be limited to the record of the hearing.
Discrimination in compensation, promotion, and work assignment shall be
subjects for consideration by such grievance procedure.  Dismissal of tenured
or other permanent employees and dismissal prior to the end of an employment
contract term shall be only for cause, and shall be subject for consideration
by such grievance procedure.  The granting or the failure to grant tenured
status to such employees or nonrenewal of employment contracts at the end of
the contract term shall not be subjects for consideration by such grievance
procedure.
    The grievance
and performance appraisal procedure provided for herein shall be submitted to
the Department of Administration or its designee and the
Commission on Higher Education for approval within six months after the
establishment of any new institution.
SECTION
9.  Chapter 51, Title 11, and sections 39-9-230, 59-54-20, 59-101-340,
59-101-360, 59-103-50, 59-103-120, 59-103-162, 59-104-210, 59-104-230,
59-104-410, 59-104-420, 59-104-430, 59-104-440, 59-105-60, 59-111-75,
59-121-15, 59-127-75, and 59-150-380 of the S.C. Code are repealed.
SECTION 10. This act takes effect upon
approval by the Governor.
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