Tonight is an historic night. Our state capital of Columbia has elected its first African-American mayor in the city's history, a friend of mine and a friend to many of you, Steve Benjamin.

We are all proud of you tonight, Steve. Congratulations to you and DeAndrea and your beautiful girls. You all will make a great first family of Columbia.  Steve, you'll be a visionary mayor, and I'm excited about what the future holds for the city under your leadership.

And congratulations to Columbia on making an outstanding choice for mayor -- a new generation of leadership in our capital city.

Feel free to share your congratulations for Steve and his family in the comment section below.

This week the state senate is moving forward on a bill, S. 1096, that I cosponsored with several other senators to create jobs and cut energy usage in our state. This groundbreaking law would allow our local electric cooperatives to partner with customers to rehabilitate energy-inefficient homes. The electric cooperatives would help customers finance home improvements such as weatherization, insulation, and upgrades to heating and cooling units.

According to an economic study, over 4,500 new jobs would be created by 2020 and over 7,000 jobs by 2030. These jobs will include contractors performing weatherization, HVAC installers, energy auditors, and more. Homeowners will also see increased disposable income as a result of decreased energy bills. The jobs will be dispersed throughout the state, bringing much-needed economic growth to many of our rural areas.

For more than a decade, payday lenders have preyed on some of our state's most vulnerable citizens, enabling them to get trapped in a vicious cycle of debt from which it became nearly impossible for many to escape.

Last year the General Assembly finally passed legislation cracking down on payday lenders and their predatory practices.

Turns out they didn't go down so easily.  They're back.  Some payday lenders created loopholes that have allowed them to skirt the law and avoid compliance with the reform measures passed last year.