On June 30, 2026, Gov. Henry McMaster (R) signed H 3021, making South Carolina the third state this year to enact a REINS-style law, and the fifth to prohibit judicial deference. The bill included other provisions related to executive agency procedure and oversight.
H 3021 requires legislative approval for all executive agency regulations with estimated costs exceeding $1 million over five years. Ballotpedia defines a REINS-style policy as one that requires legislative review or approval for executive agency regulations with expected costs to exceed a certain monetary threshold.
The bill also prohibits courts and administrative law judges from deferring to the agency's interpretation of a statute or regulation, and instead requires them to interpret them de novo. Read the other provisions of the bill here.
