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Hembree: “We asked the Department for solutions in January.” He says the Department declined. 17/

Massey: “If you receive a [voucher] scholarship, you don’t have to go to school. 16/

SC Senators Question Superintendent Ellen Weaver

A Senator calls the current situation a “misunderstanding,” but it’s important to note that Senators who have grilled Superintendent Weaver do not see it this way. 15/ youtu.be/eWpBr3d44ho?...

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YouTube video by ProTruth South Carolina

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Hembree says Palmetto Promise (the pro-voucher think tank once headed by Superintendent Weaver) was presenting “option 4” homeschool funding but that the Department under Weaver is now using the term “unbundling” to distance themselves from “option 4”. 14/

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Hembree says about 1,200 students currently funded by the state voucher bill are homeschooled. 13/

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Reposted by ProTruthSC

The committee is now moving to S. 692, the school voucher bill. At the end of discussing the “bathroom bill,” a large group including several “Moms for Liberty” shirts immediately left the rooms 10/

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Currently S. 692 includes language *intended* to clearly exclude homeschoolers. Many, including Sen. Massey, have voiced concerns that there may still be loopholes allowing SCDE to use state voucher funds for homeschoolers. 12/

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Sen. Hembree says he was surprised to find out over the summer that the SC Department of Education was using school voucher funds for homeschool students. “That’s when the conflict started, or, the disagreement over the nature of the bill. 11/

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The committee voted to move the bill forward as amended with a favorable reading (it seems as if only Hutto vote “NO”). 9/

Hutto points out that the best way to ensure everyone is “comfortable” would be to require facilities that do so (instead of *restricting* transgender and nonbinary people from facilities). More on the harms of “bathroom bills” on our website: irp.cdn-website.com/88a58afd/fil... 8/

irp.cdn-website.com

Hutto moves to delete the cause of action. Senator Cash argues the cause of action should remain. Senator Hembree agrees the requirements on districts and higher education could be “mighty difficult to enforce,” citing a Clemson game as an example. 7/

Hutto points to the impossibility of districts enforcing the bill’s definitions of “Male” and “Female” in the context of restrooms. 6/

Hutto is concerned that there is no limit on attorney’s fees paid out by school districts if students use the “wrong” restroom under the bill. He says he asked an out-of-state group which files these suits what they generally charge; the representative of the group didn’t know. 5/

Of course none of these moves will prevent this legislation from sending a harmful message to SC’s LGBTQ+ citizens and students. 4/

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Senator Massey indicates that the *Board of Education* should determine penalties for schools, instead of the Department, because the Board will “follow the law”. 3/

Senator Hutto suggests amending the bill to *require* single-user restrooms to accommodate all people. 2/

Current discussion is centering on the need for “single user” facilities if the bill goes into effect and prevents many people from having appropriate restrooms and changing rooms. 1/

The Senate Education Committee is currently debating amendments to the anti-LGBTQ+ “bathroom bill” H. 4756. 1/

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This is especially troubling since budget provisos usually do not receive public comment or significant debate. 4/4

Provisos are supposed to be temporary budget laws that last only a year; in reality, most of SC’s state-level censorship and controversial education rules have been added as budget provisos. Many are then copied and pasted into the new budget each year. 3/4

The process is complex, but please consider contacting your House members to urge them to oppose using budget provisos to defund schools and libraries, to promote censorship, to discriminate against students, or to make decisions about curricula. 2/4

ProTruthSC @protruthsc.bsky.social · 07/03/2026

This week (starting Tuesday, March 10) the first budget deliberations will be held on the floor of the SC House. The graphic below is also available as a PDF under the “Resources” tab at ProTruthSC.org (link in bio). 1/4

This flowchart shows the process by which an SC budget bill is drafted and becomes law. A PDF is available at this link: https://irp.cdn-website.com/88a58afd/files/uploaded/Budget+Graphic+%281%29.pdf

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Check out our latest blog post: www.protruthsc.org/zooming-out

protruthsc.org

Zooming Out

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scunitedlgbtq.bsky.social @scunitedlgbtq.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

📣 URGENT ASKS for a busy week ahead. ✍️ Write the committee: bit.ly/4lcUcBr ☎️ Use our call script and phone list to call: bit.ly/3OUBnab ❗️ If you get a response via email or get someone on the phone, forward it/tell us via email at info@southcarolinaunited.org

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Reposted by ProTruthSC

Mary Wood @maryrosewood.bsky.social · 26/04/2025

🧵My pal, @joclasp.bsky.social, hosted a drag queen book club for our organization, @midlandsapple.bsky.social, today at Yew Belong Community Center, where she highlighted 'Flamer' by @mikecurato.bsky.social. This important text was recently banned by our state superintendent of education... #MomSky

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ProTruthSC @protruthsc.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

Apologies for the typo. It was today, March 3. Fortunately, the subcommittee seemed to realize the bill had too many unintended consequences for representatives’ comfort.

ProTruthSC @protruthsc.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

Full PDF of these slides: irp.cdn-website.com/88a58afd/fil... 2/2

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-requiring private schools that choose to receive voucher funds to end practices that discriminate against students based on their gender, identity or religious beliefs. 4/5

-better funding students who continue attending their community public schools, to pay for services they lack because of local or state underfunding… 3/5

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-requiring accountability for all funds -ending current requirements that families waive their rights to special education (under IDEA) to collect funds -ending the Department’s current practice of allowing families to claim funds for unaccountable “homeschool” services in violation of the law… 2/5

Graphic containing the same suggestions for amendments included in this thread.

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ProTruthSC @protruthsc.bsky.social · 10/02/2026

A Senate education committee will meet 2/19 to discuss amendments to South Carolina’s existing school voucher law. Please contact members of the committee before 2/18 to urge them to amend the existing law by… 1/5

Screenshot of the agenda for the 2/19 meeting of the SC senate ed committee.

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SC Senators discuss potential (and predictable) violations of SC’s unconstitutional school voucher law. Public funds should benefit students in a way that is transparent and accountable. The new law is neither. youtu.be/hVdf0RhaKTE

youtu.be

SC Senators discuss potential violations of school voucher law

YouTube video by ProTruth South Carolina

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Correction: the email address in the image should read 3M1Health@schouse.gov

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H. 4757 gives individual parents greater power to restrict teaching about diverse groups of people, including LGBTQ+ people. It makes the jobs of educators and students much harder by censoring a range of topics and adding burdensome paperwork and reporting requirements for schools. 3/

While we support the rights of parents to be involved in education, “parental rights” is often a codeword used by Moms for Liberty and other groups to give individual parents power over educational decisions that impact all students.2/

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Please email 3M1health@schouse.gov by 3PM to share feedback on H. 4757, the so-called “parental rights” censorship bill. 1/

Graphic about SC House Bill 4747. Description in text of post.

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The primary theme in the challenges today seems to be a focus on references to or depictions of sexual assault in books written for older students and adults. 19/

The former board member taught The Kite Runner himself: “it’s vital for [students] to be exposed to another culture.” 18/

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A former school board member testifies in favor of retaining The Kite Runner. He praises the previous process of book reconsideration and specifically the requirements that reviewers read the whole book and understand the passages “in context”. 17/

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She is again reading an out-of-context reference of sexual assault (though the reference does not contain explicit description). 16/

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