Gil Gatch

Voted to pass Senate Bill 287, which sets rules for selling vapes. Only vapes cleared by the federal Food and Drug Administration may be sold in South Carolina. Products still waiting on an application filed on time, or whose FDA denial is on hold by the agency itself or a federal court, may also be sold. The Attorney General must publish a public list of the products that qualify. Once that list is out, and no sooner than February 2027, stores get 60 days to sell off any vape that is missing from it; after that, an unlisted product can be seized and destroyed at the seller's cost. A maker that offers one faces a $1,000 fine for each day it is on sale. The act also bars packaging and ads that borrow candy, dessert, cartoon or school-supply themes. A store must check identification before every sale. The South Carolina House passed it 66-33, and the act became law.

January 21, 2026Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 3, 2026

Voted to pass Senate Bill 171, a law about waste tires and unsafe used tires. The act makes it illegal to put an unsafe used tire on a car or light truck in South Carolina. A tire counts as unsafe if the tread is worn to two thirty-seconds of an inch or less. It is also unsafe if cords show through damage, if it was repaired the wrong way, or if its federal number has worn off. Anyone hauling 15 or more waste tires must record where the tires came from and where they went. That record goes to the state, and the truck must show a decal. The act charges the $2 tire fee on used tires as well as new ones. A county may charge up to $400 a ton to take tires that came from another state. The South Carolina House passed it 79-23, and the act became law.

May 1, 2025Supports Environment and Public Health

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 3, 2026

Voted to pass H 4767. It would ban noncompete clauses in doctors' employment contracts, treating them as void and against public policy because they get in the way of a patient's choice of doctor. A doctor who leaves a practice could keep treating their existing patients. The South Carolina House passed it 58-53. As of September 2026 the Senate had not voted on it, so it has not become law.

March 26, 2026Supports Labor Rights

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 6, 2026

Voted to pass H 3645. It would increase the number of weeks of paid parental leave that eligible state employees get when a child is born or adopted. The South Carolina House passed it 80-31. As of September 2026 the Senate had not voted on it, so it has not become law.

April 29, 2025Supports Labor Rights

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 6, 2026

Voted to pass H 4764. It would require every law enforcement agency that runs a jail to sign an agreement with federal immigration authorities. Under it, jail officers would help enforce federal immigration law. An agency that could not get an agreement would have to ask again every year. A local governing body could opt out by formally finding that joining would be unaffordable or would impair the agency's core work. The attorney general would decide whether those findings hold up. The state law enforcement division would have to train agencies doing that work. The South Carolina House passed it 84-26. As of September 2026 the Senate had not voted on it, so it has not become law.

April 2, 2026Opposes Immigration

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 6, 2026

Voted to agree to the Senate's changes to House Bill 3276, the South Carolina Hands-Free and Distracted Driving Act. The act bars a driver from holding a phone or other mobile device. It also bars texting and watching video at the wheel. Hands-free calls, maps that need no typing, and drivers who are parked are not covered. A first ticket costs $100. A later one costs $200 and puts two points on the driving record. An officer may not search the phone or the car just for this. The South Carolina House voted 77-37 to accept the Senate's version, and the act became law.

May 7, 2025Supports Public Safety and Crime Control

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 3, 2026

Voted to pass H 3645. It would increase the number of weeks of paid parental leave that eligible state employees get when a child is born or adopted. The South Carolina House passed it 80-31. As of September 2026 the Senate had not voted on it, so it has not become law.

April 29, 2025Supports Social Programs and Welfare

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 6, 2026

Voted to pass H 4760. It would make it a felony to give, sell or send a pregnant woman abortion-inducing drugs such as mifepristone or misoprostol. It would also list both drugs as Schedule IV controlled substances, so possessing them without a valid prescription would be a felony. The pregnant woman herself could not be charged for taking or possessing the drugs. Doctors and pharmacists prescribing or filling them for other medical reasons would be exempt. The South Carolina House passed it 76-28. As of September 2026 the Senate had not voted on it, so it has not become law.

February 5, 2026Opposes Women's Reproductive Rights

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 6, 2026

Voted to agree to the Senate's changes to House Bill 4216, a state income tax cut. The act taxes the first $30,000 of taxable income at 1.99 percent. Income above that is taxed at 5.21 percent. The rate drops further on its own in any year when income tax money is expected to grow by at least 5 percent. The act also ends the state standard and itemized deductions. One deduction takes their place, worth $15,000 for a single filer and $30,000 for a married couple filing together, and it shrinks as income rises. The act caps the state earned income tax credit for low-paid workers at $200. That credit had no cap before. The South Carolina House voted 71-49 to accept the Senate's version, and the act became law.

March 10, 2026Supports Personal Income Tax Reduction

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 3, 2026

Voted to pass Senate Bill 214, which rewrote the state Commission for Minority Affairs. The act renames it the State Commission for Community Advancement and Engagement. It removes the rule that most of the commission's members be African American. Instead, the Governor and the Senate must take all reasonable steps so that members reflect the state's ethnic and racial diversity. The commission's job is rewritten to study and serve communities, and rural and under-resourced areas. The old law had named African American, Native American, Hispanic and Latino, Asian and other minority groups. The act also ends the commission's duty to help the minority community with filings under the federal Voting Rights Act. The South Carolina House passed it 76-31, and the act became law.

May 7, 2025Opposes Civil Rights

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 3, 2026

Voted to pass H 4767. It would ban noncompete clauses in doctors' employment contracts, treating them as void and against public policy because they get in the way of a patient's choice of doctor. A doctor who leaves a practice could keep treating their existing patients. The South Carolina House passed it 58-53. As of September 2026 the Senate had not voted on it, so it has not become law.

March 26, 2026Supports Corporate Accountability

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 6, 2026

Voted to override the Governor's veto of House Bill 3558. House Bill 3558 set the rules for the commissioners South Carolina would send to an Article V convention. That is the process the U.S. Constitution provides for proposing amendments to it. The act defines the terms, and sets who may serve, how they are picked, the oath they take, and what they must do. The House voted 74-27 to override and the Senate followed 20-5, so the act became law as Act 247.

June 25, 2026

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 6, 2026

Voted to pass House Bill 5683, which would have redrawn South Carolina's seven U.S. House districts and repealed the map already in state law. State boards and commissions whose members are chosen by congressional district would have kept using the old lines. Because a new map would have arrived late in the election year, the bill would also have reopened candidate filing for June 1 to 5, 2026, and set a special primary for August 18. The South Carolina House passed it 74-37. The Senate voted to continue the bill, so it has not passed and is not law.

May 20, 2026

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 7, 2026

Voted to adopt the conference report on Senate Bill 508. Senate Bill 508 widened the set of monuments and memorials that may not be moved or disturbed. Only the General Assembly may act on one, and only by joint resolution, with a few stated exceptions. A heritage or monument-preservation nonprofit that is registered with the state and has a record of that work may go to court to stop an action the law forbids. The South Carolina House adopted the report 79-28, and it became law as Act 224.

May 14, 2026

Source: legiscan.com · researched September 6, 2026