Letter: Now’s time to contact legislators

It’s crunch time in Columbia.

For the past four months, legislators have discussed issues like ethics reform, infrastructure improvement (mainly roads), the crisis with the state employee retirement fund, open carry with firearms, redistricting of voting districts, expansion of Medicaid coverage, etc. (you probably have your own pet issues).

However, the legislative session ends in four weeks and any legislation that is to be implemented this year must be voted up or down by the first week in June, when the state legislators will retire until January. Yes, our legislative session lasts six months and is in session each week during that time for three days: Tuesday noon until Thursday noon (with additional time spent in committee meetings and office work).

As concerned citizens, we must make our voices heard now to our state senators or representatives by calling their offices and/or sending letters, as voters in their district, to tell them how we feel they should vote on these issues and why.

Never forgetting to praise them when they do something that you support, they really need to hear from the electorate before they vote this next month.

One place to find the phone numbers, email addresses and mailing addresses for each of them is the General Assembly’s website: scstatehouse.gov. We are primarily represented by Sens. Tom Davis, Chip Campsen and Margie Bright-Matthews, and Reps. Shannon Erickson, Bill Herbkersman, Weston Newton and Michael Rivers.

This story was originally published April 27, 2017 at 1:42 PM with the headline "Letter: Now’s time to contact legislators."