GOOD NEWS:  League to host two candidate forums

Staff reports  | The League of Women Voters of the Charleston Area will host candidate forums on Oct. 16 and Oct. 18 to give voters a chance to meet and hear from local candidates.

Oct. 16 forum:  Candidates for S.C. House District 116 and 119 and Charleston County Council District 8 will meet 6 p.m. at the Johns Island Library, 3531 Maybank Hwy., Johns Island, SC 29455. All candidates on the ballot for these offices have been invited to participate. They are: for House District 116, Robert L. Brown (Democrat) and Carroll O’Neal (Republican); for District 119, Paul Sizemore (Republican) and Leon Stavrinakis (Democrat); for County Council District 8, Joe Boykin (Republican), Eric K. Crotts (Libertarian), and Anna B. Johnson (Democrat).  Journalist Warren Peper will moderate. Candidates will answer written questions from the League and the audience. The forum will be video streamed on https://www.facebook.com/LWVCharleston/.

Oct. 18 forum:  Candidates for House District 115, Charleston County Council District 9, Charleston County Register of Deeds, James Island Public Service District and Charleston County Constituent School Board James Island Three have been invited to a 6:30 p.m. forum  at James Island Presbyterian Church Gym, 1632 Fort Johnson Rd., Charleston.  Candidates for probate judge will answer questions submitted by the League and the audience. Attending candidates for S.C. House, County Council and Register of Deeds will be given 5 minutes each to address the audience. All invited candidates will be given the opportunity to meet with voters before and after the forum.  Journalist Warren Peper will moderate. The forum will be video streamed on https://www.facebook.com/LWVCharleston/.

Also in Good News:

Parking study.  The city of Charleston will host a public open house to present preliminary findings of the Charleston Parking Study survey and collect feedback from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. on October 16, 2018 at the Clemson Design Center, located at 701 East Bay Street, Suite 200. The presentation will begin at 6 p.m.  Throughout the duration of the open house, attendees will have the opportunity to offer input on potential parking and mobility strategies, provide written comments and meet with city staff and study team members.  Those unable to attend the open house are invited to submit written comments to charlestonparkingstudy@kimley-horn.com

Absentee voting underway. South Carolina election offices have opened for in-person absentee voters. If a registered voter can’t make it to the polls on Nov. 6, then he or she can cast a ballot between now and then. Not registered? No problem, you have until Oct. 17 to do so. Get your sample ballot here.

Teen pregnancy rates drop, again. According to S.C.  Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, the decades-long decline in teen pregnancy rates in the state continues for another year, bringing it to a 70 percent decrease since its peak 1991. That deserves to be said again: 70 percent fewer teens are giving birth in South Carolina now than in 1991. There were 9 percent fewer teens giving birth in 2017 compared to 2016.

Another Obamacare insurer comes to S.C. Since 2017, BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina has been the only provider of federally subsidized health insurance plans in the state. But now, a second provider has emerged: Absolute Total Care. But the insurer, which offers non-subsidized insurance plans in every county in the state, says it will only sell its Affordable Care Act market plans to Charleston County residents. Read more here.