South Carolina General Assembly
120th Session, 2013-2014

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H. 4632

STATUS INFORMATION

General Bill
Sponsors: Reps. Stavrinakis, Merrill, McCoy, Daning, Murphy and Harrell
Document Path: l:\council\bills\agm\18107ab14.docx
Companion/Similar bill(s): 1021

Introduced in the House on February 6, 2014
Introduced in the Senate on April 30, 2014
Last Amended on April 29, 2014
Currently residing in the Senate

Summary: Charleston University Act

HISTORY OF LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS

     Date      Body   Action Description with journal page number
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    2/6/2014  House   Introduced and read first time (House Journal-page 15)
    2/6/2014  House   Referred to Committee on Ways and Means 
                        (House Journal-page 15)
   2/18/2014  House   Member(s) request name removed as sponsor: R.L.Brown, 
                        Mack, Sottile
    3/4/2014  House   Member(s) request name removed as sponsor: Crosby
   3/10/2014  House   Member(s) request name removed as sponsor: Gilliard
    4/9/2014  House   Committee report: Favorable with amendment Ways and 
                        Means (House Journal-page 136)
   4/10/2014  House   Requests for debate-Rep(s). KR Crawford, Nanney, Tallon, 
                        Ballentine, Taylor, Wood, GR Smith, Hamilton, 
                        Forrester, Williams (House Journal-page 103)
   4/10/2014          Scrivener's error corrected
   4/29/2014  House   Amended (House Journal-page 57)
   4/29/2014  House   Read second time (House Journal-page 57)
   4/29/2014  House   Roll call Yeas-98  Nays-5 (House Journal-page 61)
   4/30/2014  House   Read third time and sent to Senate 
                        (House Journal-page 57)
   4/30/2014  Senate  Introduced and read first time
   4/30/2014  Senate  Referred to Committee on Education
   4/30/2014          Scrivener's error corrected
   5/22/2014  Senate  Recalled from Committee on Education 
                        (Senate Journal-page 79)

View the latest legislative information at the website

VERSIONS OF THIS BILL

2/6/2014
4/9/2014
4/10/2014
4/29/2014
4/30/2014
5/22/2014

(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)

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RECALLED

May 22, 2014

H. 4632

Introduced by Reps. Stavrinakis, Merrill, McCoy, Daning, Murphy and Harrell

S. Printed 5/22/14--S.

Read the first time April 30, 2014.

            

A BILL

TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY ADDING SECTION 59-103-22 SO AS TO DESIGNATE THE UNIVERSITY OF CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA, AS A RESEARCH INSTITUTION ELIGIBLE TO PARTICIPATE IN THE SOUTH CAROLINA RESEARCH CENTERS OF ECONOMIC EXCELLENCE, TO REQUIRE THE UNIVERSITY SHALL SUBMIT A CORRESPONDING MISSION STATEMENT TO THE COMMISSION ON HIGHER EDUCATION AND THAT THE COMMISSION SHALL APPROVE THE MISSION STATEMENT PURSUANT TO CERTAIN DEADLINES, TO PROVIDE THE UNIVERSITY SHALL NOT DUPLICATE ANY DEGREE PROGRAMS OFFERED IN THE CHARLESTON REGION, TO PROVIDE THAT THE COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON SHALL REMAIN A FOUR-YEAR LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGE, AND TO PROVIDE THE UNIVERSITY OF CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA, AND THE COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON MUST EACH BE ESTABLISHED AS SEPARATE BUDGET SECTIONS IN THE ANNUAL APPROPRIATIONS BILL; AND TO AMEND SECTION 59-2-75, RELATING TO THE SOUTH CAROLINA RESEARCH CENTERS OF ECONOMIC EXCELLENCE ACT, SO AS TO ADD THE UNIVERSITY OF CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA, TO THE SENIOR RESEARCH UNIVERSITIES ELIGIBLE FOR CERTAIN INCENTIVES AND PROVIDED WITH CERTAIN POWERS RELATING TO RAISING CAPITAL FROM THE PRIVATE SECTOR TO FUND CERTAIN ENDOWMENTS RELATED TO RESEARCH, AMONG OTHER THINGS, AND TO PROVIDE THAT THE UNIVERSITY OF CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA, SHALL NOT DUPLICATE ANY DEGREE PROGRAMS OFFERED IN THE CHARLESTON REGION.

Whereas, the General Assembly finds that both the College of Charleston and the Medical University of South Carolina are treasures of South Carolina and forever shall be; and

Whereas, the General Assembly finds that the economy of Charleston has fully transformed from one dependent on military and defense concerns to one of broad diversification demanding a highly trained and multitalented workforce; and

Whereas, the General Assembly finds that an overwhelming number of the nation's top one hundred metropolitan areas have a full-scale comprehensive research university, but that Charleston regrettably is not among them; and

Whereas, the General Assembly finds that by merging the extraordinary assets and talents of the College of Charleston and the Medical University of South Carolina to form a full-scale comprehensive research university will enable Charleston to forever solidify its place as a leader in higher education and ensure its continued economic prosperity. Now, therefore,

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

SECTION    1.    Article 1, Chapter 103, Title 59 is amended by adding:

"Section 59-103-22.    The University of Charleston, South Carolina, as provided for in this chapter is hereby designated a 'research institution' as provided in Section 59-103-15 (B)(1), and as such is eligible to participate in South Carolina Research Centers of Economic Excellence as provided in Title 2, Chapter 75. The University of Charleston, South Carolina, shall submit a mission statement corresponding with its designation as a research institution before January 1, 2015, and this mission statement must be approved by the Commission on Higher Education before April 1, 2015. The University of Charleston, South Carolina, shall not duplicate any degree programs offered in the Charleston region. The provisions of this section do not alter the designation of the College of Charleston as a four-year liberal arts college. The University of Charleston, South Carolina, and the College of Charleston must each be established as separate budget sections in the annual appropriations bill."

SECTION    2.    Section 2-75-5 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:

"Section 2-75-5.    (A)    This chapter is known and may be cited as the 'South Carolina Research Centers of Economic Excellence Act'.

(B)    The General Assembly finds that:

(1)    it is in the public interest to create incentives for the senior research universities of South Carolina consisting of Clemson University, the Medical University of South Carolina, the University of Charleston, South Carolina, and the University of South Carolina to raise capital from the private sector to fund endowments for professorships in research areas targeted to create well-paying jobs and enhanced economic opportunities for the people of South Carolina;

(2)    these endowed professorships should be used to recruit and maintain leading scientists and engineers at the senior research universities of South Carolina for the purposes of developing and leveraging the research capabilities of the universities for the creation of well-paying jobs and enhanced economic opportunities in knowledge-based industries for all South Carolinians;

(3)    in communities across the United States in which better paying jobs and enhanced economic development in knowledge-based industries has flourished, the local or state government has created incentives and made a long-term commitment to public and private funding for a significant number of endowments for professorships in targeted knowledge-based industries;

(4)    the South Carolina Education Lottery provides a source of funding and an incentive for the senior research universities to raise, in dollar-for-dollar matching amounts, sums from nonstate sources sufficient to create endowed professorships;

(5)    these endowed professorships should be awarded to the senior research universities through a competitive application process, provided that the competitive process must encourage the senior research universities to submit cooperative applications with one another as well as in cooperation with other institutions of higher education; and

(6)    these endowed professorships, funded equally from the South Carolina Education Lottery and from other nonstate sources, provide a foundation for the creation of centers of economic excellence; and

(7)    these endowed professorships and senior research universities shall seek collaboration and develop partnerships with similarly focused programs at the state's technical colleges to meet the workforce demands of South Carolina's growing economy."

SECTION    3.    This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.

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This web page was last updated on May 22, 2014 at 6:16 PM