This was good week for conservative reforms. Several pieces of legislation moved through the House this week that will change our state.

First, the House Judiciary Committee passed sweeping lawsuit abuse reform (or Tort Reform) legislation.

Tort reform legislation was a critical piece of the Republican Caucus agenda this year since it will dramatically improve our states legal climate for businesses a crucial thing that businesses look at when locating or expanding in our state.

The legislation approved this week includes five major reforms:

First, it limits punitive damages to three times the amount of compensatory damages or $350,000 whichever is greater. This will limit out-of-control awards that significantly drive up the cost of insurance in this state.

The second major reform is establishing a cap on the bond a business must post to file an appeal in a civil lawsuit. If approved, the cap will be $25 million for large businesses and $1 million for small businesses. The legislation also reforms what is known as the Statute of Repose. The language assures that building code violations do not constitute fraud, gross negligence or recklessness, but such violations may be introduced as evidence.

The fourth reform deals with limiting the attorneys' fees an outside attorney can collect when employed by the Attorney General or a solicitor.

And finally, this legislation will repeal the statute that currently makes it impossible to show someone failed to use a seat belt.

The second piece of conservative reform approved this week is a measure that will give voters the power to make the Secretary of State appointed by the Governor rather than elected. The Secretary of States office primarily deals with paperwork, and it is not an office that needs to be independent to accomplish its work, such as the Attorney General. This is not a change that the Republicans can make on our own, but we believe it is important to give the voters the chance to make this decision. This dove-tails with our previous approval of another constitutional amendment that would have the Governor and Lieutenant Governor run together on the same ticket.

Third, we overwhelmingly approved the creation of a Sunset Commission this week. This commission approved three previous times by the House Republicans this decade will examine government agencies and programs to ensure they are effective.

Finally, we would be remiss if we didn't briefly discuss the budget. The House Ways and Means Committee also finalized its version of the state budget this week and did an outstanding job of balancing the budget in these difficult economic times.

The Federal Government could learn a lot from the SC House Ways and Means Committee, particularly in regard to balancing a budget and not running a deficit. The result is a budget that funds the essential services of government and ensures we are getting our moneys worth from government programs.

It is an honor for us to serve you. Please contact us if we can assist you. Mike Sottile can be reached at Isle of Palms at 886-8759, in Columbia at 803-212-6880, or via e-mail to mikesottile@schouse.org Chip Limehouse can be contacted at 740-5855 or 577-6242 in Charleston or 803-734-2977 in Columbia and via e-mail to ccollum@charlestoncounty.org.