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A Look at South Carolina Gov. Haley’s Successes and Stumbles

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South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (AP Photo)

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (AP Photo)

SEANNA ADCOX, Associated Press

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — GOP Gov. Nikki Haley’s successful push to remove the Confederate flag from South Carolina’s Statehouse grounds following last month’s massacre at a historic black church has boosted her national profile. But that transpired over just a few weeks of the five years she’s been in office.

Here are a few other successes and some of her stumbles:

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JOBS

Haley has successfully branded herself a jobs governor, propelling her to re-election last year. Major announcements include Boeing’s decision in April 2013 to create 2,000 additional jobs at its North Charleston plant after legislators passed a $120 million incentives package she eagerly signed.

Michelin, Bridgestone, Continental, Trelleborg and Giti Tire also have announced new or expanded facilities in recent years, making South Carolina the nation’s tire capital.

But early in her tenure, legislators blasted her as nearly torpedoing an economic deal negotiated by her predecessor. She opposed giving Amazon a temporary exemption from collecting state sales taxes in exchange for 2,000 jobs. The bill eventually became law in June 2011 without her signature.

Since then, her administration has actively used incentives to bring companies to the state — angering tea party activists who helped put her in office. In May, Haley and her Commerce agency secured Volvo Car’s first North American plant, and a pledge of 2,000 jobs, by promising more than $200 million in state incentives.

The Associated Press has questioned her administration’s math on the total number of jobs announced since she took office, twice finding her figure was overstated and easily misinterpreted, as thousands of the jobs won’t arrive for years and some have already fallen through.

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AUTHORITY OVERREACHES

Minutes after the 2011 regular session ended, Haley ordered legislators back to pass her top agenda items. The GOP-controlled Legislature sued, and the state Supreme Court ruled she lacked the authority to make such an order.

Similarly, the state’s high court ruled a panel she chairs should not have disregarded a 2012 legislative agreement in the state budget by raising state employees’ health care premiums.

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ETHICS

Haley has called, unsuccessfully, for strengthening South Carolina’s ethics laws. Her push began shortly after the House Ethics Committee cleared her in June 2012 of allegations she illegally lobbied for an engineering firm and a hospital while a House member, benefited from lobbyists donating to the hospital’s foundation, and should have disclosed consulting income from the firm since it had state contracts.

It was the second time in two months the then-GOP-dominated committee cleared her, saying the state’s ethics laws are too ambiguous.

The first vote to clear her came immediately after the committee found probable cause that violations had occurred. The back-to-back votes caused a backlash and led to a formal hearing.

Haley repeatedly said there’s nothing wrong with asking lobbyists to donate to a nonprofit — especially since the foundation paid her a salary, not a commission — and that it was impossible under the state definition for her to lobby for an agency regulation. She said she didn’t report the consulting income because state law doesn’t require it.

Haley has said her own experience led her to push for reform, to make clear what’s right and wrong, so others don’t go through what she did.

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MISSTATEMENTS

In fall 2012, Haley acknowledged state officials didn’t do enough to prevent a hacker from stealing the personal data of 6.4 million people and businesses from the Department of Revenue’s computer servers. The acknowledgement came as a report showed dual verification for access and encrypted Social Security numbers could have prevented the theft. It followed weeks of her saying no one was to blame and nothing differently could have been done.

On the campaign trail last year, Haley sang the praises of a regulatory task force she created, saying it issued more than 3,000 recommendations on how to cut bureaucratic red tape, and all of those recommendations were “dealt” with. Actually, the panel’s report listed less than 50 recommendations, many of which have not been implemented. Her office later clarified that staff worked on each suggestion, whatever the outcome.

In September 2011, Haley acknowledged she couldn’t back up claims that half of people seeking work at the Savannah River Site, a former nuclear weapons manufacturing site now undergoing long-term cleanup, failed their drug tests. She repeatedly made the assertion to advocate linking drug tests to unemployment benefits. The actual number was less than 1 percent.

Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Oakland Post: Week of June 18 – 24, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of June 18 – 24, 2025

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OPINION: California’s Legislature Has the Wrong Prescription for the Affordability Crisis — Gov. Newsom’s Plan Hits the Mark

Last month, Gov. Newsom included measures in his budget that would encourage greater transparency, accountability, and affordability across the prescription drug supply chain. His plan would deliver real relief to struggling Californians. It would also help expose the hidden markups and practices by big drug companies that push the prices of prescription drugs higher and higher. The legislature should follow the Governor’s lead and embrace sensible, fair regulations that will not raise the cost of medications.

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Rev. Dr. Lawrence E. VanHook. Courtesy of Rev. Dr. Lawrence E. VanHook.
Rev. Dr. Lawrence E. VanHook. Courtesy of Rev. Dr. Lawrence E. VanHook.

By Rev. Dr. Lawrence E. VanHook

As a pastor and East Bay resident, I see firsthand how my community struggles with the rising cost of everyday living. A fellow pastor in Oakland recently told me he cuts his pills in half to make them last longer because of the crushing costs of drugs.

Meanwhile, community members are contending with skyrocketing grocery prices and a lack of affordable healthcare options, while businesses are being forced to close their doors.

Our community is hurting. Things have to change.

The most pressing issue that demands our leaders’ attention is rising healthcare costs, and particularly the rising cost of medications. Annual prescription drug costs in California have spiked by nearly 50% since 2018, from $9.1 billion to $13.6 billion.

Last month, Gov. Newsom included measures in his budget that would encourage greater transparency, accountability, and affordability across the prescription drug supply chain. His plan would deliver real relief to struggling Californians. It would also help expose the hidden markups and practices by big drug companies that push the prices of prescription drugs higher and higher. The legislature should follow the Governor’s lead and embrace sensible, fair regulations that will not raise the cost of medications.

Some lawmakers, however, have advanced legislation that would drive up healthcare costs and set communities like mine back further.

I’m particularly concerned with Senate Bill (SB) 41, sponsored by Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), a carbon copy of a 2024 bill that I strongly opposed and Gov. Newsom rightly vetoed. This bill would impose significant healthcare costs on patients, small businesses, and working families, while allowing big drug companies to increase their profits.

SB 41 would impose a new $10.05 pharmacy fee for every prescription filled in California. This new fee, which would apply to millions of Californians, is roughly five times higher than the current average of $2.

For example, a Bay Area family with five monthly prescriptions would be forced to shoulder about $500 more in annual health costs. If a small business covers 25 employees, each with four prescription fills per month (the national average), that would add nearly $10,000 per year in health care costs.

This bill would also restrict how health plan sponsors — like employers, unions, state plans, Medicare, and Medicaid — partner with pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to negotiate against big drug companies and deliver the lowest possible costs for employees and members. By mandating a flat fee for pharmacy benefit services, this misguided legislation would undercut your health plan’s ability to drive down costs while handing more profits to pharmaceutical manufacturers.

This bill would also endanger patients by eliminating safety requirements for pharmacies that dispense complex and costly specialty medications. Additionally, it would restrict home delivery for prescriptions, a convenient and affordable service that many families rely on.

Instead of repeating the same tired plan laid out in the big pharma-backed playbook, lawmakers should embrace Newsom’s transparency-first approach and prioritize our communities.

Let’s urge our state legislators to reject policies like SB 41 that would make a difficult situation even worse for communities like ours.

About the Author

Rev. Dr. VanHook is the founder and pastor of The Community Church in Oakland and the founder of The Charis House, a re-entry facility for men recovering from alcohol and drug abuse.

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Antonio‌ ‌Ray‌ ‌Harvey‌

Air Quality Board Rejects Two Rules Written to Ban Gas Water Heaters and Furnaces

The proposal would have affected 17 million residents in Southern California, requiring businesses, homeowners, and renters to convert to electric units. “We’ve gone through six months, and we’ve made a decision today,” said SCAQMD board member Carlos Rodriguez. “It’s time to move forward with what’s next on our policy agenda.”

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Shutterstock.

By Antonio‌ ‌Ray‌ ‌Harvey‌
California‌ ‌Black‌ ‌Media‌ 

Two proposed rules to eliminate the usage of gas water heaters and furnaces by the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) in Southern California were rejected by the Governing Board on June 6.

Energy policy analysts say the board’s decision has broader implications for the state.

With a 7-5 vote, the board decided not to amend Rules 1111 and 1121 at the meeting held in Diamond Bar in L.A. County.

The proposal would have affected 17 million residents in Southern California, requiring businesses, homeowners, and renters to convert to electric units.

“We’ve gone through six months, and we’ve made a decision today,” said SCAQMD board member Carlos Rodriguez. “It’s time to move forward with what’s next on our policy agenda.”

The AQMD governing board is a 13-member body responsible for setting air quality policies and regulations within the South Coast Air Basin, which covers areas in four counties: Riverside County, Orange County, San Bernardino County and parts of Los Angeles County.

The board is made up of representatives from various elected offices within the region, along with members who are appointed by the Governor, Speaker of the Assembly, and Senate Rules Committee.

Holly J. Mitchell, who serves as a County Supervisor for the Second District of Los Angeles County, is a SCAQMD board member. She supported the amendments, but respected the board’s final decision, stating it was a “compromise.”

“In my policymaking experience, if you can come up with amended language that everyone finds some fault with, you’ve probably threaded the needle as best as you can,” Mitchell said before the vote. “What I am not okay with is serving on AQMD is making no decision. Why be here? We have a responsibility to do all that we can to get us on a path to cleaner air.”

The rules proposed by AQMD, Rule 1111 and Rule 1121, aim to reduce nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from natural gas-fired furnaces and water heaters.

Rule 1111 and Rule 1121 were designed to control air pollution, particularly emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx).

Two days before the Governing Board’s vote, gubernatorial candidate Antonio Villaraigosa asked SCAQMD to reject the two rules.

Villaraigosa expressed his concerns during a Zoom call with the Cost of Living Council, a Southern California organization that also opposes the rules. Villaraigosa said the regulations are difficult to understand.

“Let me be clear, I’ve been a big supporter of AQMD over the decades. I have been a believer and a fighter on the issue of climate change my entire life,” Villaraigosa said. “But there is no question that what is going on now just doesn’t make sense. We are engaging in regulations that are put on the backs of working families, small businesses, and the middle class, and we don’t have the grid for all this.”

Rules 1111 and 1121 would also establish manufacturer requirements for the sale of space and water heating units that meet low-NOx and zero-NOx emission standards that change over time, according to SCAQMD.

The requirements also include a mitigation fee for NOx-emitting units, with an option to pay a higher mitigation fee if manufacturers sell more low-NOx water heating and space units.

Proponents of the proposed rules say the fees are designed to incentivize actions that reduce emissions.

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