FEDERAL JUDGE: SUIT BELONGS IN STATE COURT

Gov. Mark Sanford’s uphill battle to reject $700 million in federal budget stabilization funds got a good bit harder Monday after a judge ruled that two stimulus-related lawsuits belong in state court.

U.S. District Judge Joe Anderson has sent both cases — one filed by a Chapin high school student and a USC law student, the other by the State Association of School Administrators — back to the South Carolina Supreme Court.

The suits essentially seek a judicial ruling that would force Sanford to take the controversial funds.

If the governor loses before the five-member State Supreme Court, he could appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, but it would be highly unlikely that they would hear it before the July 1 deadline to apply for the money.

Sanford argued that because the decision over accepting the money ultimately rests on who has the actual power in the matter, and because the case deals with sensitive inter-state arguments, the lawsuits belong in federal court. But Anderson disagreed.

Anderson announced his ruling after a hearing in Columbia Monday. He is expected to issue a formal written order later this afternoon.