South Carolina 2025-2026 Regular Session Status: Passed Senate

S 294 — Former Senator Robert Ford

Last action — Introduced and adopted

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. ✓
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed House
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill has passed the Senate. Introduced January 30, 2025. It now moves to the second chamber.

Next likely step: consideration and a floor vote in the House.

Prognosis

Advancing 36% · moderate confidence
  • Passed Senate

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 41 sponsors

    41 primary, 0 co-sponsors signed on.

Based on stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes, and cross-state momentum — a description of the observable signals, not a prediction.

Summary

A SENATE RESOLUTION TO RECOGNIZE AND COMMEND FORMER SENATOR ROBERT FORD FOR DECADES OF SERVICE TO THE CITIZENS OF CHARLESTON COUNTY AND THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA.

Bill Text

What changed in the latest version

44 added · 5 removed

Plain-language change summary

The recent amendment to Bill S 294 adds a resolution that honors former Senator Robert Ford for his extensive contributions to Charleston County and the state of South Carolina. This addition highlights Ford's significant role in civil rights activism and his efforts to have the Confederate flag removed from the State House. Recognizing his service not only pays tribute to his legacy but also emphasizes the importance of acknowledging figures who have fought for equality and community leadership in the state.

→
Previous
Latest
PK ‘F?Z¾ú÷¿ Ï customXml/item2.xml–]£6†ïû+Ð^l®>C’-Ö!Î,;RcZª*rÀùP ™íö××@ ‡$ÛJI,|ž÷õñ ø`~þû˜ ï$/4{)òH YL“C¶{Eh!NGBQâ,Á)ÍÈã(££ÏÖOfúm£ò’”8Á%˜IV<~ؗåÛ'I*â=9â⁾‘ŒE¶4?â’]æ;é Çá‘TY6¤ãY.5nb{ýÁ2/öò ÀõÜ Wžýj…$Ã%1¥á¼9œh |´F¯+`=ÒԔ.ç̅ëß^ëcZþ\}·‡”ÙÉÇ»f_Sêӝ[†¾ÑäX‹81¦¢Ž7DœjúD܎MQTe– M´~r=oý´þb‡!‚î°=ÏZà´`Àí`¯qCÛAWp3; ¾ÚθÞc ¶ùyU 8"EÈ ü[ú;$ïæË¥‹ ¬x+‹!q©ölÞw~$ ú²²P~¨ÎžÙ7Vhæ/Hh/ò*×G0˜G˜_çÃÅxÉ҆/`­n¬Ò….x Ÿ™Å º ðì ‚êÆ½Ew!ž‡ N’ý]+Û¿}C\!¼%ûløzCØÇZÅ­0¬LTY‹²"j2’åOõG”Çì·³ààN¿nJj#Àô .ÜKBö#ðÂ!ÔÊýÊ@ßöιøQuØXJ§½Gô!ë](ªÁ©Úٞ»¿Â=çW`Ãz?[ϵ¿F Díh©64e¦ŠXQ±¨J,Îf2;Ñ6XוX'†Þy ŝé:€î³Ëv\?–®dl$Šhè‰&êz2±Œ§âx6Ñu˪2íMâÖ4\±Ã&€íh%]7ÌÎÙ QD½Jw–`Yœ$3CÙl'[e¬u¦CqkÚõ)þ‡¬Îô?;ÀM
2025-2026 Bill 294 Text of Previous Version (Jan.
30, 2025) - South Carolina Legislature Online South Carolina General Assembly126th Session, 2025-2026Bill 294Indicates Matter StrickenIndicates New Matter(Text matches printed bills.
Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)                 A senate RESOLUTION   to recognize and commend former senator Robert Ford for decades of service to the citizens of Charleston County and the State of South Carolina.
  Whereas, Robert Ford was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, on December 26, 1948, to parents who were leaders in the African American community;
and   Whereas, he attended Wayne State University and Grambling State University.
Deeply involved in the Civil Rights movement, he served on the staff of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference from 1966 to 1972 and worked for Martin Luther King Jr.
as a member of an advance team of the 1968 Poor People's Campaign;
and   Whereas, Senator Ford was elected to serve on the Charleston City Council, where he served from 1974 to 1992.
He was elected to serve in the South Carolina Senate on November 3, 1992, taking office in 1993 and serving until May 2013.
In the Senate, he served on various committees during his tenure:
Banking and Insurance;
Corrections and Penology;
General;
Invitations;
Judiciary;
and Labor, Commerce and Industry.
He was the ranking Democrat on several committees;
and   Whereas, a member of the South Carolina Legislative Black Caucus, Senator Ford led the initiative to have the Confederate flag removed from the South Carolina State House, the last state capitol to display a Confederate battle flag.
Following years of debate, the flag was moved to a nearby monument with the adoption of a compromise bill authored by Ford;
and   Whereas, he was instrumental in securing an African American History Monument on the State House grounds, and he was responsible for the passage of a 1998 act that paired Martin Luther King Jr.
Day with Confederate Memorial Day as paid holidays with the hope that the legislation would improve race relations in South Carolina;
and   Whereas, the members of the South Carolina Senate are grateful for the years of service that Robert Ford provided to the citizens of Charleston County and the State of South Carolina.
Now, therefore,   Be it resolved by the Senate:
  That the members of the South Carolina Senate, by this resolution, recognize and commend former Senator Robert Ford for decades of service to the citizens of Charleston County and the State of South Carolina.
  Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be presented to former Senator Robert Ford.
----XX---- This web page was last updated on January 30, 2025 at 11:23 AM
View plain text versions (2)
  • 01/30/2025 View text Current html
  • Introduced Filed vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document

Action History

  1. Introduced and adopted

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

Export CSV (upgrade) →

41 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 129 not signed on

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does S 294 do?
A SENATE RESOLUTION TO RECOGNIZE AND COMMEND FORMER SENATOR ROBERT FORD FOR DECADES OF SERVICE TO THE CITIZENS OF CHARLESTON COUNTY AND THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA.
Who sponsors S 294?
S 294 is sponsored by Nutt, Roger A., Senator Tom Davis, Senator Jason Elliott, Senator Tom Fernandez, Senator Michael W. Gambrell, Senator Billy Garrett, Senator Stephen L. Goldfinch, Senator Jeffrey R. Graham, Senator Lawrence K. "Larry" Grooms, Senator Greg Hembree, Senator Brad Hutto, Senator Michael Johnson, Senator Carlisle Kennedy, Senator Josh Kimbrell, Senator Matthew W. "Matt" Leber, Senator Shane R. Martin, Senator Russell L. Ott, Senator Luke A. Rankin, Senator Mike Reichenbach, Senator Rex F. Rice, Senator Ronnie A. Sabb, Senator Everett Stubbs, Senator Ed Sutton, Senator Deon T. Tedder, Senator Daniel B. "Danny" Verdin III, Senator Overture Walker, Senator Kent M. Williams, Senator Tom Young, Jr., Senator Jeff Zell, Senator Ronnie W. Cromer, Senator Brian Adams, Senator Karl B. Allen, Senator Allen Blackmon, Senator George E. "Chip" Campsen III, Senator Richard J. Cash, Senator JD Chaplin, Senator Wes Climer, Senator Tameika Isaac Devine, Senator Thomas D. "Tom" Corbin, Senator Darrell Jackson, and Senator Margie Bright Matthews.
What is the current status of S 294?
This bill has passed the Senate. Introduced January 30, 2025. It now moves to the second chamber.
Where can I track S 294?
Track S 294 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

Make your voice heard on S 294

Find the representatives who decide this bill and tell them where you stand — for yourself, or mobilize your whole list in one click with One Click Politics advocacy software.

Stay ahead of S 294

Last checked for changes about 2 months ago · updated continuously

One Click Politics tracks every bill in Congress and all 50 states.

Track this bill →