Richard Eckstrom
Eckstrom in 2022
38th Comptroller General of South Carolina
In office
January 15, 2003 – April 30, 2023
GovernorMark Sanford
Nikki Haley
Henry McMaster
Preceded byJim Lander
Succeeded byBrian J. Gaines
Treasurer of South Carolina
In office
January 11, 1995 – January 13, 1999
GovernorDavid Beasley
Preceded byGrady Patterson
Succeeded byGrady Patterson
Personal details
Born (1948-06-23) June 23, 1948
Duluth, Minnesota, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
EducationUniversity of South Carolina (BA, MBA, MS)

Richard A. Eckstrom (born June 23, 1948) is an American politician from the state of South Carolina. A Republican, he served as the comptroller general of South Carolina from 2003 until his resignation in 2023. From 1995 to 1999, he served one term as the South Carolina Treasurer. When elected as Comptroller General, he was the first Republican to serve in the post since 1876.

Early life

Eckstrom was born in Duluth, Minnesota, on June 23, 1948.[1] His family moved to Columbia, South Carolina, in 1957, when his father, a professor, took a job at the University of South Carolina (USC).[2] He graduated from USC in 1971 with a bachelor's degree.[1] He served in the United States Navy, reaching the rank of captain,[3] and worked in business. Eckstrom returned to school and earned a Master of Business Administration from USC in 1977.[1] He went to work for Peat Marwick Mitchell in Columbia in 1978.[2] He earned a master's degree in accounting from USC in 1978. He is a certified public accountant.[1]

Career

In the 1994 elections, Eckstrom ran as a Republican for Treasurer of South Carolina and defeated Grady Patterson, a Democrat who served in the role for 28 years.[4] Patterson defeated Eckstrom in the 1998 elections.[1][5] In 1999, Eckstrom ran in a special election to the South Carolina House of Representatives to succeed André Bauer, who resigned after being elected to the South Carolina Senate. Eckstrom lost to Chip Huggins.[6]

In 2002, Eckstrom ran for comptroller general of South Carolina. He defeated Jim Lander, the incumbent, in the general election.[7] He was reelected in 2006,[8] 2010,[9] 2014,[10] and 2018.[11] He won reelection to a sixth term without opposition in 2022.[12]

2023 accounting error and resignation

In February 2023, Eckstrom informed the South Carolina Senate that the budget was off by $3.5 billion due to an accounting error. According to Eckstrom, over the period of ten years, money was given to colleges and universities but was not reflected in financial records.[13] Eckstrom blamed an issue in the state's accounting system dating back to 2007.[14] In March, representative Gil Gatch introduced a resolution that could begin an impeachment inquiry.[15] After an investigation from the Senate Finance Constitutional subcommittee, the panel recommended that Eckstrom be removed from office and that the office of comptroller general be abolished.[16] Subcommittee members felt that Eckstrom’s actions did not constitute an impeachable offense as there was no criminal misconduct, but recommended that the General Assembly remove the comptroller from office for willful neglect of duty, as allowed by the state constitution.[17]

On March 14, the South Carolina House of Representatives passed legislation in a 104–7 vote that reduced Eckstrom's salary to $1 annually for the remainder of his term.[18]

Eckstrom announced on March 23 that he sent his resignation to the governor, which took effect April 30, 2023.[19]

Personal life

Eckstrom and his first wife, Peggy, had three children.[1] Eckstrom married Kelly Payne in December 2019.[20]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Eckstrom will serve as Schuetzenfest grand marshal | Features". The Times and Democrat. October 1, 2003. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
  2. 1 2 "Richard Eckstrom, S.C. Comptroller General". Columbia Star. August 21, 2009. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
  3. ↑ "Comptroller general earns jump wings". Columbia Star. June 2, 2006. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
  4. ↑ "9 Nov 1994, Page 8 – The Index-Journal at". Newspapers.com. November 9, 1994. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
  5. ↑ "5 Nov 1998, Page 1 – The Greenville News at". Newspapers.com. November 5, 1998. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
  6. ↑ "6 Aug 1999, Page 45 – The Greenville News at". Newspapers.com. August 6, 1999. Retrieved June 5, 2022.
  7. ↑ "Eckstrom (R) upsets incumbent Lander (D) for Comptroller General". WISTV. November 6, 2002. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
  8. ↑ "SC Votes '06: Rex declares victory in superintendent of education race". November 7, 2006.
  9. ↑ "Eckstrom re-elected SC comptroller general". WPDE. November 3, 2010. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
  10. ↑ "Eckstrom re-elected as comptroller general". Greenvilleonline.com. November 4, 2014. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
  11. ↑ "Republicans roll in SC except for 1 big Democratic upset". Associated Press. November 7, 2018.
  12. ↑ "McMaster, other GOP incumbents win S.C. statewide races". Wrdw.com. November 8, 2022. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  13. ↑ "How SC's $3.5 billion mistake could impact you". WLTX. February 11, 2023. Retrieved March 2, 2023.
  14. ↑ "State's finances had $3.5 billion accounting error, comptroller general says". Youtube. News 19 WLTX.
  15. ↑ Smith, Nevin (March 2, 2023). "Impeachment inquiry resolution filed in $3.5 billion state accounting error". WISTV. Retrieved March 2, 2023.
  16. ↑ Pollard, James (March 15, 2023). "SC lawmakers want to fire comptroller for $3.5 billion error". WLTX. Retrieved March 16, 2023.
  17. ↑ Pollard, James (March 15, 2023). "SC lawmakers want to fire comptroller for $3.5B error". AP. Retrieved March 16, 2023.
  18. ↑ Parrilla-Guerrero, Mayra (March 14, 2023). "S.C. House passes amendment to reduce Comptroller General's salary to $1". WISTV.
  19. ↑ Flowers, Marcus (March 23, 2023). "S.C. Comptroller General resigning after accounting error". WISTV. Retrieved March 23, 2023.
  20. ↑ Marchant, Bristow (January 6, 2019). "SC Comptroller General Eckstrom marries 8 years after intimate emails leaked". The State. Retrieved December 15, 2023.
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