The latest on SC Guv and stimulus money.

• WHERE THE STIMULUS STANDS
Gov. Mark Sanford has so far refused to tap $700 million in federal stimulus money unless lawmakers agree to spend an equal amount on debt. The amount is just less than 10 percent of the $8 billion in tax cuts and money for such needs as health care, education, roads and bridges, and energy efficiency headed to South Carolina.

COURT SOLUTION
The S.C. Supreme Court refused to intervene on behalf of a Chapin High student who asked the court to force Sanford to tap the money and use it for public education as intended. The court said the impasse had not yet become a legal standoff, therefore it is too early for the court to weigh in. But the court left the door open for revisiting the issue if lawmakers pass a law compelling Sanford to spend the money.

LEGISLATIVE SOLUTION
Lawmakers could pass a budget that includes the stimulus money and override a gubernatorial veto. That would compel Sanford to tap the money. But the governor has maintained that he has sole discretion over the disputed portion of the federal stimulus. He could challenge his right to decide where the money goes in court.

A NEW DEAL
Lawmakers and the governor could still come to an agreement on the stimulus. Sanford wants lawmakers to spend $700 million on school construction debt, on loans the state assumed to pay unemployment benefits or for future benefits due to retirees. But Sanford has indicated he might be willing to accept a lesser amount of debt payments. That, at least, leaves an opening for compromise.

And this: The contentors for the SC Governor race in 2010.

Race for governor: Contenders would accept aid