Copper Dome Chronicle: August 2025 Meetings and Activities
Welcome to this week’s edition of the Copper Dome Chronicle, sponsored by Advocatus. We strive for substantive writing with brevity, inspired by the book Smart Brevity.
This post will preview the month of August 2025. Any meetings or relevant activities by the General Assembly will be chronicled on this page, which will be updated as needed.
The 2025 regular session of the 126th South Carolina General Assembly adjourned sine die on Thursday, May 8. Thanks for reading and sharing; we welcome your feedback and commentary!
Resources
2026 Governor’s Race
Candidates wanting to succeed Governor Henry McMaster - South Carolina’s longest-serving elected governor in state history - have begun making their intentions know. Below is a list of those who have officially announced and those who have stated they are considering a run.
Republicans
Attorney General Alan Wilson (officially announced)
State Senator Josh Kimbrell (officially announced)
Lt. Governor Pamela Evette (officially announced)
Congressman Ralph Norman (officially announced)
Congresswoman Nancy Mace
State Senator Sean Bennett
Democrats
State Representative Jermaine Johnson (officially announced)
Mullins McLeod (officially announced)
2026 Constitutional Officers
In addition to the Governor/Lt. Governor ticket, the other six constitutional offices will be on the ballot in 2026. Below is a list of those who have officially announced and those who have stated they are considering a run.
Attorney General
State Senator Stephen Goldfinch (R) (officially announced)
8th Circuit Solicitor David Stumbo (R) (fundraising but not officially a candidate)
1st Circuit Solicitor David Pascoe (R) (not yet a candidate)
Secretary of State
Secretary of State Mark Hammond (R) - Incumbent
State Treasurer
State Treasurer Curtis Loftis (R) (officially announced) - Incumbent
Comptroller General
Mike Burkhold (R) (officially announced)
State Superintendent of Education
State Superintendent of Education Ellen Weaver (R) (officially announced) - Incumbent
Commissioner of Agriculture
Fred West (R) (officially announced)
Committee Schedule
If a livestream link is not provided with a committee meeting that means livestream is not available. Additional meetings may be added during the week and while 24 hours notice is generally given, it is not always possible to provide such notice.
Joint Meetings
Joint Bond Review Committee
August 19; 1pm; Agenda (TBA); Livestream
Summary: JBRC will meet for the fourth time this year. The next JBRC meeting is October 7.
Senate Meetings
None.
House Meetings
House Insurance Rate Review Ad Hoc Committee
August 19, 10am; Agenda; Livestream
Summary: The committee will hear presentations from several insurers and insurance carrier associations.
House Legislative Oversight Subcommittee
August 20, 10:30am; Agenda; Livestream
Summary: The subcommittee will hold its eighth meeting on the study of the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED).
House SCDOT Modernization Ad Hoc Committee
August 20, 1pm; Agenda; Livestream
Summary: The committee will hold its second meeting and receive a presentation from the South Carolina Department of Transportation.
House Economic Development and Utility Modernization Ad Hoc Committee
August 26,10am; Agenda; Livestream
Summary: The ad hoc committee will hold its sixth meeting of the calendar year. The committee will receive presentations regarding personal property tax exemptions and the South Carolina Department of Education.
House Ethics Committee
August 26, 10:30am; Agenda; Livestream
Summary: The committee will consider one complaint and several appeals of ethics fines.
House Legislative Oversight Subcommittee
August 27, 10:30am; Agenda; Livestream
Summary: The subcommittee will discuss studies on the Tuition Grants Commission and hold its first meeting on the study of the South Carolina Department of Education.
2025 Key Dates
July 19-23, 2025: Southern Legislative Conference (Birmingham, Alabama)
July 25-26, 2025: National Governors Association Summer Meeting (Colorado Springs, Colorado)
August 4-6, 2025: NCSL Legislative Summit (Boston, Massachusetts)
September 25, 2025: BEA meeting on FY25 closeout and FY26 first update.
September 26, 2025: Agency budget requests submitted (projected).
November 18, 2025: BEA forecast for FY27 Executive Budget.
2026 Key Dates
January 13, 2026: Session Convenes
January 2026: Judicial Merit Selection Commission final report published (TBD)
January 2026: State of the State
March 9-13, 2026: House floor budget deliberations (projected)
March 16, 2026: Candidate filing opens (All statewide constitutional offices, federal offices, SC House of Representatives)
March 30, 2026: Candidate filing closes
April 20-24, 2026: Senate floor budget deliberations (projected)
May 14, 2026: Session Adjourns
