New laws passed by the S.C. legislature take effect today, July 1. Among the changes:
• State employees will receive a pay increase of 2 percent and a $600 bonus for those who earn less than $70,000 a year
• Teachers will receive a pay raise of at least 4 percent, with new teacher salaries increasing to $35,000 annually
• Gas tax is increasing by another 2 cents a gallon
• College students (and their parents) will see a smaller tuition hike
• The Department of Veterans Affairs is officially a cabinet-level agency
Source: The State
Sick of being an outlier in Republican politics, U.S. Sen. Tim Scott started a new nonprofit, the Empower America Project, to build up a pipeline of conservative minority candidates. Source: Herald Online
Kids Count, the Annie E. Casey Foundation annual report on conditions for children in states, ranked S.C. at 39 overall, with a 38 in economic well-being, 42 in education, 38 in health, and 37 in family and community. Among the improvements, the number of teen births is down 21 births compared to the previous year. Source: Annie E. Casey Foundation
Mariana Atencio from MSNBC asked diners in the Marina Variety Store about what they thought of Kamala Harris after her debate, including local musician Benny Starr. Source: Twitter[embed-1] [content-1]
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