With the state facing record high unemployment rates and a budget hole of half a billion dollars, the 118th General Assembly has a full plate of work during this second session, which began January 12. We will need to make difficult decisions to balance the budget, make necessary funding cuts, create more jobs and spur economic development.

The state has a massive budget shortfall, as we have received, and are projected to receive, far less tax revenue than anticipated to cover the costs of current state programs. These difficult economic times will give us an opportunity to make tough but necessary changes. We will be looking at ways to reform the budget process, restructure government and create incentives to bring more business to our state. As part of government reform, we need to take a look at the entire tax code and the entire budget. We must make targeted cuts and keep critical services in place while getting rid of anything that is truly wasteful.

The current leadership talks about being conservative, yet the government spends more today, as a percentage of what you and I produce than in 2000 when the Republicans gained complete control of the state government. Since then, they have spent away our budget reserves, miscalculated the amount of money needed for critical budget items, spent money on pet projects and shifted control of local governments away from local taxpayers, thereby making them more dependent on the state.

The Democratic House members this session are committed towards making government more responsible, honest and accountable. We will push for broader reporting of lawmakers’ financial ties and clearer reporting of votes by committees and subcommittees. We will fight to suspend all excess expenditures bills until we gain a 10 % reserve fund, and we will advocate real tax reform by looking at the entire tax code, not just sales taxes. We will be introducing legislation to prevent any new fees unless voted on first by the General Assembly, and we will support new tax credits for homegrown energy.

In fact, Chesterfield County has the potential to become a leader in the growing field of alternative energy. I worked diligently during the legislative break to encourage companies that invest in alternative energy to set up shop or expand in our county. I met with company officials and many officials from state agencies, including the State Energy Office, the Department of Agriculture and Department of Commerce. We’re hoping to bring an industrial plant to Wallace that would produce biodiesel, a cleaner-burning diesel fuel made from renewable sources such as vegetable oils. We also hope to see the expansion of a facility near Jefferson that makes fertilizers from worm castings, or worm manure. It is imperative that our state rely less on fossil fuels and become more energy independent, so you can be sure I will be working hard to create more economic incentives for alternative energy facilities.

I also spent time during the break honing my leadership skills by attending two leadership workshops. I was one of 50 leaders nationwide selected to attend a leadership conference at the University of Virginia’s Darden Business School in Charlottesville. I was proud to be the only official chosen from South Carolina. The other conference was held at the Zig Ziglar Center for Ethical Leadership at Southern Nazarene University in Oklahoma. Mr. Ziglar is one of my favorite authors and motivational speakers. The conference stressed the importance of staying true to positive, moral values. These experiences have helped teach me more about leadership and integrity so that I can be a more effective representative.

If you see me and don’t recognize me, it’s probably because I lost more than 80 pounds! I lost all the weight by slashing in half my meal portions, paying greater attention to nutrition and by starting an exercise program. I feel healthier than ever and have returned to the same weight I had during my high school days.

Now, let me update you about legislation everybody’s talking about. Last week, the House approved a resolution (H 4219) to censure Gov. Mark Sanford for “dereliction in his duties of office as Governor and for official misconduct that has brought dishonor to him, the State of South Carolina and to its citizens.” I joined 101 other colleagues in supporting the resolution that admonishes Sanford for leaving the state to meet with his mistress in Argentina in June without notifying the lieutenant governor and others about his whereabouts. The resolution also chastises him for misusing state aircraft by flying to events unrelated to his office duties.

I believe that everybody, including the public at large, is ready to put this issue behind us. We need to be getting back to the business of the people of this state.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me in Columbia at 803-734-2999, at 333A Blatt Building, P.O. Box 11867, Columbia, S.C. 29211 or call the Chesterfield County Legislative Delegation Office at 843-623-5001, at 200 West Main Street, Chesterfield, S.C. 29709.

Ted M. Vick is the District 53 Representative.