First weeks after House District 99 election have been busy, productive
What a whirlwind the first two weeks in the S.C. State House have been! We appreciated the cheers from the gallery, from folks all across the state who were there to show support at my swearing in. That was just really cool!
One of my first votes in the House just a few days ago was H4375 to repeal the Base Load Review Act (BLRA) prospectively and temporarily reduce rates for consumers by rolling back rate increases. Over the last decade SCE&G raised rates nine times on consumers since the BLRA was passed and made into law. These rate hikes were equivalent to 19.52 percent increases on the consumer. When you look at the financials of SCE&G’s parent company, SCANA, you will find its financials have been strong. While ratepayers paid out more than $1.8 billion to pay for VC Summer, SCANA stockholders took in about $2.5 billion in cash dividends and the company itself has seen cash positive annual revenues of $450 million plus. The money was there. It always was. I believe this was a step forward to saving ratepayers thousands of dollars in the future and shifting the burden away from ratepayers back to the utility. Will we ever get our money back? I hope so - that’s certainly my objective in all of this. But we made the first move to save the end-user $37 million per month that SCE&G would have continued to bill had we not repealed the BLRA.
What’s missing in all of this? Santee Cooper. I will continue to communicate with y’all on where we are in this process. More legislation is coming down the pipeline, and while these are not perfect fixes, there is some progress being made to repair the damage done to consumers.
I made a commitment during the campaign to disclose ALL of my sources of income and the amounts, going above and beyond what we are required to do when filing for office. Honoring my commitment for greater transparency starts with me putting my money where my mouth is. So, I posted this information online after the election (www.nancymace.org/personal-income-disclosure/). I also have a published, public calendar that anyone may view at any time.
And if you’re keeping score at home, I’ve been added to the 3M committee (Military, Medical and Municipal Affairs). My subcommittee will be Military Affairs.
And lastly, during my second week in office I submitted my first House Resolution, a bipartisan effort to show support to our coastal communities who oppose offshore oil drilling. When the federal government picks winners and losers in the market place, i.e. gives Florida a hall pass, but no other, this is the federal government usurping the rights of the state, not to mention the cost prohibitive nature of inland infrastructure at this time and potential harm to the environment.
As always, if you have something on your mind, or want to make sure I have a bill on my radar, please feel free to holler any time. My contact info is nancymace@schouse.gov and (803) 212-6717. My cell is (843) 580-6223 and nancy@nancymace.org is an alternate way to reach me. Stop by to see me if you’re in Columbia during session. I’d love to shake your hand!
Rep. Nancy Mace (R), of Daniel Island, was elected to House District 99 in a special election on January 16. She is the first woman to hold this office.