Templeton confirmation as DHEC chief advances

COLUMBIA -- The leader of South Carolina's labor agency took a step closer Thursday to taking the helm of the state's public health and environmental control agency, as senators waved away concerns about her lack of experience in those fields.

The Senate Medical Affairs Committee voted 13-0 to advance the confirmation of Catherine Templeton of Mount Pleasant to the Senate floor. Three senators abstained. The vote followed two meetings in which senators grilled Templeton about her background, her refusal to live full time in Columbia, and layoffs at the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation in her year there.

Haley chose Templeton, 41, to lead LLR because of her legal specialty in fighting unions. Haley gave her blessing for the new role. Templeton was chosen from among nearly 300 candidates by a board composed of Haley appointees. "She's an amazing director," Haley said. "We had corruption and problems at LLR. I asked her to go in and clean house. I thought it would take her six months. It took her 60 days. I've never seen a harder, more focused worker. DHEC is blessed to have her."

Sen. Brad Hutto asked about Templeton's credentials, saying her qualifications did not meet the job description put out by the agency's board last fall.

Templeton earned a bachelor of arts from Wofford and a law degree from the University of South Carolina.