IN SPORTS: Lakewood basketball plays host to Hartsville
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Haley confirmed as UN Ambassador McMaster takes over as governor
Then-S.C. Governor Nikki Haley testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington on Jan. 18 at her hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Haley’s nomination was approved.
COLUMBIA (AP) — Gov. Nikki Haley resigned Tuesday as South Carolina’s CEO to become the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, giving the state’s helm to an early backer of President Donald Trump. Haley turned in her resignation letter minutes after the U.S. Senate confirmed her as Trump’s Cabinet pick. Under the state constitution, Haley’s resig-
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nation letter immediately made Lt. Gov. Henry McMaster the 91st governor of South Carolina. Before McMaster was officially sworn in, Haley addressed a crowd in the Capitol lobby. “There’s lots of work to do, but we have the right person to do it,” she said about McMaster. “It’s an absolute privilege and honor to turn over the reins to you.” The South Carolina-born daughter of Indian
SEE HALEY, PAGE A6
SCHOOL DISTRICT
$22M loan a standard tax anticipation note Money needed earlier this year because of debt crisis BY BRUCE MILLS bruce@theitem.com Given its debt crisis and low general fund balance, Sumter School District will need to issue a larger operations loan than usual and also do it sooner than usual this year, according to outside finance consultant Scott Allan. Allan provided a briefing of his two weeks of work to date with the district to the board of trustees Monday night at the board’s regular work session. The work session was held at the district office with an overflow crowd of about 150 concerned residents on hand. After conducting a detailed analysis in his initial weeks of the district’s current cash and projections through June, Allan told the board Monday it will need to issue a tax anticipation note in the range of $20 million to $22 million and do it by June 30 because of its difficult financial position. School districts commonly issue TANs as a way to borrow money in the early part of the school year for operational expenses and pay it back six to eight months later in the spring once “anticipated” property tax revenue is received. The scenario arises for districts because they have cashflow needs throughout the year. Districts often get revenues from the state regularly each month, but federal reve-
RICK CARPENTER / THE SUMTER ITEM
Scott Allan, an outside school finance consultant, recently hired by the Sumter School Board to get a handle on how the district went $6.2 million over budget last year, answers questions before a packed board room Monday night at the district office. RECENT TAX ANTICIPATION NOTES ISSUED BY DISTRICT Tax anticipation notes for Sumter School District in last five years: 2016: $11.2 million 2015: $20 million 2014: $18 million 2013: $18.7 million 2012: $18 million
nue is often not reimbursed until the spring, according to school board attorney William “Bick” Halligan. Therefore,
districts generally start to run low on cash in the fall and issue TANs. Even school districts on solid financial standing with high fund balances borrow at least some money for operational expenses through TANs, and counties and other entities do so as well, Halligan said. During the last five years, Sumter has issued a TAN each year for varying amounts, ranging from $11.2 million to $20 million, according to the district. “It sounds like a lot of money, but going back and
County approves 2nd reading on temporary asphalt plants BY ADRIENNE SARVIS adrienne@theitem.com During its regular meeting on Tuesday, Sumter County Council approved second reading of a request to permit temporary asphalt or concrete plants in the county, after a discussion about possible revenue for the municipality with taxation. The request would amend the county zoning and development standards ordinance to make the temporary facilities permitted uses in general commercial, light-industrial warehouse and agricul-
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WASHINGTON (AP) — Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid need significant changes to be preserved for future generations, President Donald Trump’s pick to head the White House budget office told Congress Tuesday. Rep. Mick Mulvaney’s comments at his confirmation hearing stand in sharp contrast to Trump’s campaign pledges not to cut the programs. Mulvaney, a South Carolina Republican, said he would not
SEE COUNTY, PAGE A4
DEATHS, B5 Keith T. Gedamke Timothy T. Brooks Billy Marshall McDonald Mary H. Smith
timing: The district will need it before June 30 because that’s when the district will have negative cash flow. Generally, districts issue TANs in August or September because they hit bottom in cash in October or November, Halligan said. School districts in the state issue TANs together as a pool at that time through the South Carolina Association of Governmental Organizations as a means to cut down on associated fees and costs.
SEE LOAN, PAGE A6
Mulvaney says benefit programs must be changed
tural conservation zones. Sumter City-County Planning Department Director George McGregor said the applicant currently has a contract with South Carolina Department of Transportation to mix asphalt or concrete to make repairs along Interstate 95 and other state maintained roads that were damaged during the 1,000-year-flood of October 2015 and Hurricane Matthew. He said the applicant intended to set up its facility in an agricultural conservation
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looking at your prior years, you’ve issued TANs for almost that much, so it’s not an unusual thing,” Allan said. However, Allan did say if Sumter were better positioned with its general fund balance, it could issue a TAN for less money. The 2015-16 audit report released in December showed the district had gone over budget by $6.2 million in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2016, and had a fund balance at the time of $106,449. What is unusual about Sumter’s TAN this year, according to Allan, will be the
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propose cutting Social Security or Medicare benefits for people already receiving them. “I’m not making my parents go back to work,” Mulvaney said. But, he added, younger workers should expect to work longer than their parents. He also said Medicare should be means-tested, which means benefits would be limited for wealthy retirees. They already
SEE MULVANEY, PAGE A6
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INSIDE
WARM WINTER DAY
3 SECTIONS, 20 PAGES VOL. 122, NO. 73
Warm, sunny and nice today; tonight, warm with showers possible. HIGH 73, LOW 55
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