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South Carolina Legislation Meeting


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From my reading of the rules if the bill does not go to the Senate by May 1, it will be tabled until next session unless there is a 2/3 vote of the Senate (which seems unlikely). So I think a lot of time has been bought if it passes the House. Of course hopefully it won't but if it does, the extra time is good if needed.

 

Here is the Senate rule for those who want to see it quoted:

 

Final Date House Legislation May Be Considered

    Bills received after May 1 shall be received, read and referred to the appropriate committee but are not eligible to be taken up until the next regular session unless upon the report of such a bill by a committee it receives a two thirds (2/3) vote of the Senators present and voting to be placed on the calendar. Any bill failing to receive the required vote shall be returned to the committee. The committee report on any such bill received after the May 1 deadline shall clearly indicate that the bill had been received after May 1 and is subject to this rule.

    A Point of Order to enforce the provisions of this rule shall be valid until the Bill which is the subject of the Point of Order is printed and has been laid on the desks of the members in compliance with Rule 39.

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Hi folks,

 

I emailed my rep yesterday and here's her response.

 

Mr. Giles,

 

Thank you for taking the time to write concerning H3777 limiting

Geocaching. Geocachers have proven to be a responsible, educated group.

I will vote against this legislation. If I can ever be of service to you

at any time, please don't hesitate to contact me.

 

Nikki

 

 

>>> "Giles, Craig" <SSC8ED02@Allstate.com> 4/27/2005 11:10:26 AM >>>

Hi Mrs. Haley,

 

As one of your constituents I would like to express concern over

H.3777.

I was at a Boy Scout meeting last night and one of my Scout dads

brought the bill to my attention.

Realizing you're very busy, I won't take much of your time. It appears

that there may be a lack of accurate information in the legislature

concerning Geocaching. Below are several links to Geocaching events of

which you should be aware. I send these to illustrate that the vast

majority of us participating in this sport are responsible community and

environment minded individuals and that Geocaching is endorsed by many

organizations.

 

Cache In Trash Out Photos - http://tinyurl.com/cp6ot

Salvation Army Geocaching - www.kettlecache.com

National and International Press on Geocaching -

http://www.geocaching.com/press/

 

My concern is that this bill is too invasive, is being pushed based on

incidents that aren't linked to Geocaching and incidents that

demonstrate a lapse of judgment by a few individuals (the photos by the

grave stone shown by Ms. Ceips).

As a Geocacher, I've participated in this sport with my sons, my Scout

Troop and my friends and we've all come away richer for the

experiences.

At your convenience, please let me know your position on this bill. I

have provided contact information below and would be pleased to hear

from you.

Best Regards,

 

Craig Giles

Edited by Quix
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From my reading of the rules if the bill does not go to the Senate by May 1, it will be tabled until next session unless there is a 2/3 vote of the Senate (which seems unlikely). So I think a lot of time has been bought if it passes the House. Of course hopefully it won't but if it does, the extra time is good if needed.

 

Here is the Senate rule for those who want to see it quoted:

 

Final Date House Legislation May Be Considered

    Bills received after May 1 shall be received, read and referred to the appropriate committee but are not eligible to be taken up until the next regular session unless upon the report of such a bill by a committee it receives a two thirds (2/3) vote of the Senators present and voting to be placed on the calendar. Any bill failing to receive the required vote shall be returned to the committee. The committee report on any such bill received after the May 1 deadline shall clearly indicate that the bill had been received after May 1 and is subject to this rule.

    A Point of Order to enforce the provisions of this rule shall be valid until the Bill which is the subject of the Point of Order is printed and has been laid on the desks of the members in compliance with Rule 39.

Is it May 1st that the Senate receives the bill or the House?

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I have cached in the areas of Hilton Head, Charleston and Myrtle Beach. One of the best caches in S.C. was the one that is a tribute to the book Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. Once I found the cache, I bought the book and the movie and promised to return to the area. I didn't pee on the graves, stomp on flowers or push over graves. Instead I removed trash (not there from geocachers but rather a person visiting a grave over a quarter mile from the cache area) and bought several souvenirs.

 

I understand the legislation but I don't agree with it and it would seem that the sponsors of the bill are attempting to provide false information to promote their case.

 

A lot of people in S.C. have written their Senators and they have indicated that they will vote against the bill.

 

Have all of the Senators been sent such emails and can we have a list of the Senators that have been contacted and what their responses are?

 

I believe it would also be important to let the Senators know how many geocachers are in S.C. and that there are several people outside of the area that are keeping a close eye on the bill. Why would someone from PA care? The answer is that I own two timeshares in S.C. and I have spent at least two weeks in S.C. for at least the past eight out of ten years. I enjoy caching on my vacation and the caches have taken me to some wonderful historical sites that I would not have found otherwise. I would not have visited Charleston if it wasn't for geocaching and I provided the area with several of my dollars. I am also aware of other geocachers from all over the world that enjoy caching in S.C. and visiting the historical sites.

 

I watched the Meeting over my lunch hour and found it interesting that you can see from the board which way a Senator votes thus determining whether they are going to be true to their word or not.

 

If I can be of any assistance please let me know.

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they are meeting tomorrow regardless of what the video feed says. They said it a couple of times during the last 30 minutes. Anything that does not make it through the House by May 1, will not go to the Senate this session...they have a couple of big issues to deal with so maybe they will still miss us...

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Last night, after reading TinSparrow's email to the SCGA members, I sent 17 emails to certain House members, and so far I have received 3 personal and very positive replies. I've lurked through most of this thread but thanks to all who have helped us in SC!

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From my reading of the rules if the bill does not go to the Senate by May 1, it will be tabled until next session unless there is a 2/3 vote of the Senate (which seems unlikely). So I think a lot of time has been bought if it passes the House. Of course hopefully it won't but if it does, the extra time is good if needed. 

 

Here is the Senate rule for those who want to see it quoted:

 

Final Date House Legislation May Be Considered

    Bills received after May 1 shall be received, read and referred to the appropriate committee but are not eligible to be taken up until the next regular session unless upon the report of such a bill by a committee it receives a two thirds (2/3) vote of the Senators present and voting to be placed on the calendar. Any bill failing to receive the required vote shall be returned to the committee. The committee report on any such bill received after the May 1 deadline shall clearly indicate that the bill had been received after May 1 and is subject to this rule.

    A Point of Order to enforce the provisions of this rule shall be valid until the Bill which is the subject of the Point of Order is printed and has been laid on the desks of the members in compliance with Rule 39.

Is it May 1st that the Senate receives the bill or the House?

It is May 1st for the Senate to recieve the bill from the house. That is from the Senate rules about the deadline for consideration of House bills.

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Carleen, when they table it until the next session, when is the next session?

My understanding is that the sessions run from January to June each year.

So if I understand this correctly the bill has been tabled until January 2006, when they can bring it up for a vote?

No. The bill will still go through the process in the House, which is in session until June 2. The importance of the May 1 date is that anything received by the Senate after that date must be tabled in the Senate until the next session unless the Senate votes otherwise by a 2/3 votes which I would guess would be unlikely.

 

So, if the bill passes the House (keep your fingers crossed that it won't), then there should be time to deal with the Senate.

 

If it had gotten to the Senate before May 1, then there would be a rush to address all these issues there. Having the breathing room would be nice. Of course let's hope it never gets to the Senate to begin with. ;)

Edited by carleenp
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The House can vote on it any time from now until they close their session for the year. If they pass the bill and send it to the Senate, and the date of passage is after May 1st, the Senate will not consider it until next session (January), unless they decide by a 2/3 vote to consider it in this session.

 

In other words, like Carleen said just before me ;)

 

GeoForse

Edited by GeoForse
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I think I almost know more now about the SC legislature than I know about the Nebraska unicameral!

I think i have watched the SC House more than the last Presidential election!!!

I have to admit that you can watch the process is a beautiful thing. Naturally it's more interesting when you have something at stake.

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This has probably already been discussed somewhere on pages 1-12 of this forum, but who should out of staters contact to oppose this bill? I'm up in NC (Charlotte) and for the past two years my birthday present has been a weekend SC geocaching trip by myself (ie - no kids) to SC. I was also the first person to place a KTB cache outside of SC - which I have recently renamed. The last time I counted, I had more finds in SC than NC.

 

Thanks,

Eswau

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Whew!

 

Things are definitely looking up for us, though our work is not yet done. The calls and e-mails DO have an impact. Tom Delay is currently under fire for ethics violations, but what Ms. Cieps has done is just as bad, in my opinion.

 

It was bad when she first put forth a mis-leading case for this bill, but I gave her the benefit of the doubt that she was herself misinformed. I believe she has been contacted by more than a few of us to set the record straight, and continuing to push for this bill KNOWING that many photos and log comments have been taken out of context is blatently wrong.

 

Our rep. has been very easy to reach, and assured CR that she will vote against this bill. A little education about geocaching was all it took.

 

I live in Berkeley County, am a registered voter, and have voted in every available election. If I do not know either candidate, I generally vote along party lines.

 

I voted for our rep., Ms. Hinson, based solely on the fact that she took time from her busy schedule several years ago to attend a spaghetti dinner held by the PTA at my child's middle school. She looked like she just came from the office, and was still wearing nice business attire (including heels). We were thrilled that she was there, but what blew me away was the fact that she immediately asked for an apron and helped in the serving line. She may not belong to my favorite political party, but she will always get my vote, and some of my friends votes as well, as I always remind my friends of the event around election time.

 

What do you think the geocachers in Beaufort (pronounced B-you-fert for y'all northerners) will talk to their friends about? My warm fuzzy story is soon forgotten by those who were not there, but horror stories seem to take on a life of their own (as we in SC have recently discovered!)

 

Sissy

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OK we have time to hire a lobbyist.

As has been put forth a couple of times in the extensive dialog.

 

There is no substutuion for a hired expert!!! GET A lOBBYIST!!!!! They have the access, the ability, and they understand the process probably better than the legeslators them selves!!

 

Tell me where to send it and i would gladly donate 10 or more dollars to the cause

 

VaRaceMAN

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OK we have time to hire a lobbyist.

As has been put forth a couple of times in the extensive dialog.

 

There is no substutuion for a hired expert!!! GET A lOBBYIST!!!!! They have the access, the ability, and they understand the process probably better than the legeslators them selves!!

 

Tell me where to send it and i would gladly donate 10 or more dollars to the cause

 

VaRaceMAN

I would happily donate to a fund to hire a lobbyist if needed.

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This has probably already been discussed somewhere on pages 1-12 of this forum, but who should out of staters contact to oppose this bill? I'm up in NC (Charlotte) and for the past two years my birthday present has been a weekend SC geocaching trip by myself (ie - no kids) to SC. I was also the first person to place a KTB cache outside of SC - which I have recently renamed. The last time I counted, I had more finds in SC than NC.

 

Thanks,

Eswau

You can get e-mail addresses for the house members HERE. Event though you are not a resident every bit of feedback they get can only help. You can also try contacting the Toursim Board:

 

Director of Parks, Recreation and Tourism is Chad Prosser

Deputy Director is Charles Harrison

South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism

1205 Pendleton Street

Columbia, South Carolina 29201

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I would put some money to this if the state organization there is willing to take the lead and organize the effort.

 

{edited to remove comments that if taken out of context could have very negative effects. Thanks for the understanding}

Edited by hydee
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I would think if a group of bikers could tie up Senate seat belt legislation geocachers could get the caching bill bogged down in the Senate too.

 

It was kind of an interesting article that I found while looking up South Carolina lobbyists. ;)

I think this is a very good option if this bill gets to the house. Plan a breakfast event cache at a resteraunt near the capitol building and then spend the day walking the halls talking to State Senators. If it works for bikers it would work for Geocachers.

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I'm not sure that you need a lobbyist. You guys have done a great job so far. Hopefully, You will be able to get this bill killed in the House, but if not, you should have extra time to reach your senators and educate them on the hobby.

 

After that, if I were you, I would make it my goal to make sure that Ms. Cieps doesn't get reelected. You might also take note of how each Legislator votes. If someone tells you they will vote against it and 'changes their mind', you should vote accordingly.

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WOW!! I received two emails back from Reps today!!! Of course, I think I sent out about 37. I love to copy and paste, so it was paste, send, paste, send, etc. Below are the responses:

 

Mr. and Mrs. Crankshaw,

 

Thank you for taking the time to write concerning H3777 limiting

Geocaching. Geocachers have proven to be a responsible, educated group.

I will vote against this legislation. If I can ever be of service to you

at any time, please don't hesitate to contact me.

 

Nikki Haley

 

Thanks for your thoughts. I plan to vote against the bill.

Jay

 

I would recommend that those of you that are represented by these fine folks offer a personal thanks, not because of their vote, but because they took the time, maturity, and intelligence to properly research an issue before making a decision.

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I'm not sure that you need a lobbyist. You guys have done a great job so far. Hopefully, You will be able to get this bill killed in the House, but if not, you should have extra time to reach your senators and educate them on the hobby.

 

After that, if I were you, I would make it my goal to make sure that Ms. Cieps doesn't get reelected. You might also take note of how each Legislator votes. If someone tells you they will vote against it and 'changes their mind', you should vote accordingly.

I suggest keeping a list of who actively supports the bill and who opposes, along with vote counts. Publish that on the front of the local organization web site. At election time your organization can also publically endorse certain candidates or help pro-caching candidates with thier campaigns. Raise some money and donate it in the organization name to pro-caching candidates etc....

 

Also, has anyone tabulated the number of active cachers in the state and a rough number of out of state cachers who logged in the state in the last year or two? That could be good information to provide to Representatives and angencies that promote tourism. I would guess that many think the bill would not affect and anger many people/voters. They also likely don't realize that the numbers could be high enough to affect their vote count, especially if those people become vocal at election time. Of course getting those numbers could be a pain though.

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I spoke with my representative today,

House Majority Leader James H. Merrill

District 99 - Berkeley & Charleston Cos.

Contact Address:

(H) 174 Etiwan Park St., Daniel Island, 29492

Bus. (843) 884-9108 Home (843) 849-7306

© 518B Blatt Bldg., Columbia, 29211

Bus. (803) 734-3138 Home

 

E-Mail Address: JM1@scstatehouse.net

 

He called me on the telephone right after the session was over.

 

He apparently took the floor of the Senate and spoke out against the legislation. He had read my email sent this morning. My neighborhood was recently added to his district, but I couldn't be more pleased with his responsiveness.

 

I faxed him the sheet for the only geocache on Daniel Island. He said it sounded like a great activity for families and kids.

 

Obviously his position in the House implies a lot of influence and I am very grateful for his actions. He said they attempted to put in some amendments to fix some fo the defects in the bill, but when that didn't work, objections were made and it went on the contested calendar. It is still possible to pass the bill, but special procedures and votes are now required. He did say that this seemed very improtant to Representative Cieps who had been pushing it very hard.

 

He did tell me the members of the house need to continue to hear from us until the session is over and that we should encourage as many people from SC to contact their representatives as possible.

 

I really could not possibly ask for more from a representative. It does appear that Ceips will be back.

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I will head off (some) any curiosity about the bill being on the Calendar for tomorrow. It is at the end of the Calendar, but my reading of the rules glean that they do not take on contested matters on Fridays unless there was a motion for it. I noticed from the journal for today that some contested bills were ordered for consideration tomorrow, but not 3777. In addition it is still listed as second reading so I don't think it is possible for it to go to the Senate before the May 1 deadline. I don't want to say I am 100% sure there since I am far from clear on their rules for motions to consider a contested bill on Friday and whether a bill can have a second and third reading in one day. I think it can't be done though.

 

Of course keep in mind that it will still continue its course and the May 1 thing only provides a good chance to buy time if it passes and goes to the Senate. But even that is not 100%, so if it moves on write and call Senators right away!

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Here's an idea! Has anyone invited their rep geocaching?

I just recieved a voice mail from Rep. Funderburk in Camden and invited her to go out on Sat or Sun afternoon. Show and tell? If anyone is interested in meeting in Camden to help explain maybe two or three of us can plead our case pretty well.

 

X

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Here's an idea! Has anyone invited their rep geocaching?

I just recieved a voice mail from Rep. Funderburk in Camden and invited her to go out on Sat or Sun afternoon. Show and tell? If anyone is interested in meeting in Camden to help explain maybe two or three of us can plead our case pretty well.

 

X

Best idea I've seen in this thread so far.

 

Kenneth

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