WHAT’S THE PROBLEM: PRIORITIES OR FUNDING? This week, the Senate Finance Special Subcommittee on Transportation Funding kicked off a series of meetings to discuss several bills that could make big…
CLEARLY, LAWMAKERS HAD GOOD REASONS TO KEEP H.3945 SECRET The talk this week has been mainly about the ill-named ethics reform bill being debated in the South Carolina House.…
HOW STATE FAVORITISM HURTS TAXPAYERS AND DRIVES UP ENERGY PRICES An attempt to loosen South Carolina energy regulation and licensing constraints for the benefit of solar energy firms has gained…
HOW ECONOMIC INCENTIVES COMPROMISE AMERICA’S MOST IMPORTANT VALUE Equality and liberty are not always compatible and in some cases directly opposed, but there is one notion of equality that is…
S.22 ISN’T ABOUT SEPARATING POWERS. AND IT NEVER HAS BEEN On government restructuring, it’s déjà vu all over again. As happened last year, the Senate passed a weak restructuring bill, S.22, that…
IF LAWMAKERS WANT TO IMPROVE A BADLY FLAWED “SCHOOL CHOICE” BILL, HERE’S WHERE TO BEGIN We recently released our initial analysis of S.279, the most prominent “school choice” bill currently…
WHY THE RUSH TO PUT FUTURE TAXPAYERS 120,000,000 MORE DOLLARS INTO DEBT? The news broke this week that Boeing plans to expand its existing North Charleston campus to include an…
It’s the beginning of April and lawmakers‘ two-week furlough is almost up, leaving us at roughly the half-way point of the 2013 legislative session. This was supposed to be the…
HOW SOUTH CAROLINA’S GOVERNMENT IS UNDERMINING ITS MOST IMPORTANT FUNCTION Low taxes, minimal regulations, a competent workforce. These are usually considered the most important qualities a state can foster in…
IT’S ALL ABOUT POWER (A LOT OF IT) AND ACCOUNTABILITY (NONE OF IT) Last week, we posted a brief analysis of S.535, legislation that would create a murky new…
A SNAPSHOT OF WHERE WE ARE Obamacare by Another Means While the governor and Speaker of the House are promoting what they call an “alternative” to Obamacare’s expansion of Medicaid,…
WHY KEEP TRYING TO ‘COMPETE’ ON OUR COMPETITORS’ TERMS? For generations, South Carolina lawmakers of both parties have shown an unwavering commitment to the idea that special tax incentives encourage…
JUST BECAUSE STATES CAN’T PRINT THEIR OWN MONEY DOESN’T MEAN THEY CAN’T ACCUMULATE DEBT … LOTS OF DEBT In a recent study by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), South…
THE ANSWER DEPENDS ON WHO YOU ARE Many government officials in South Carolina, particularly elected officials, take pride in frequently announcing that South Carolina is one of the most business…
ANSWER: BECAUSE SOMEBODY SHOULD BE ACCOUNTABLE FOR CORRUPTION There is probably no more boring word in the English language than procurement. And yet, if you pay taxes, it should be…
TAXPAYERS ARE GETTING POORER. GOVERNMENT ISN’T. Lately a number of commentators have tried to make the case that South Carolina is already a lean model of low taxes and limited…
SINCE WHEN DOES ‘RESERVE’ MEAN ‘SLUSH’? As has become a yearly tradition, legislators have voted to raid the Capital Reserve Fund to funnel money to their own pet projects. The…
STEP NO. 1: ELIMINATE THE HALF THAT ALMOST NOBODY CAN READ Each fiscal year, the South Carolina state budget is split into two major pieces: Part 1A and Part 1B.…
. . . AND HOW NOT TO FUND IT State lawmakers have introduced a new plan to increase funding for the Department of Transportation (DOT) without raising revenues or fees.…
. . . A LOT THAT YOU’LL NEVER KNOW ABOUT. HERE’S WHY. Over the last two years, the Policy Council has repeatedly stressed the importance of a law that…
…BECAUSE IT’S ABOUT YOUR MONEY AND WHO’S ACCOUNTABLE FOR SPENDING IT If the General Assembly is going to restructure government, it’s worth remembering the point of restructuring – separation…
THE HOUSE GOP ‘ALTERNATIVE’ TO OBAMACARE AND THE WINNERS & LOSERS OF SOUTH CAROLINA’S HEALTH CARE DEBATE We recently reported that House Republicans introduced an alternative plan to ObamaCare in a…
A BILLION AND A HALF … WAIT – WHAT? The House Ways and Means Committee has just passed its version of the state budget, and it’s been reported as a $22.7…
CURRENT DOA BILL WOULD FURTHER FLOUT CONSTITUTIONAL PRINCIPLES [UPDATE: Late yesterday the full Senate passed S.22 by a vote of 35 to 10. The version passed by the Senate…
INCREASED FEDERAL HANDOUTS AS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT … HAVEN’T WE TRIED THAT BEFORE? Through the heated national and state debates over health care policy and the implementation of the Affordable…
IF YOU GIVE AN AGENCY A COOKIE . . . [Note: Parts one and two of this series were published earlier this week and last week.] If the governor’s executive budget…
IF IT DOESN’T WORK, KEEP DOING IT … ? Part 2 of our series on the governor’s proposed budget of FY 2013-14 shines a light on the following four department…
WHY DO HOSPITALS WANT TO EXPAND MEDICAID? (HINT: IT’S NOT BECAUSE THEY’RE JUST NICE PEOPLE) Hospitals in South Carolina, both individually and under the auspices of the South Carolina Hospital…
LANDESS ASKS GOVERNOR’S COMMISSION ON ETHICS REFORM TO CONSIDER DEPTH OF PROBLEM [Note: the following is testimony by SCPC President Ashley Landess before Gov. Nikki Haley’s Commission on…
Transportation Funding: The Current Options
WHAT’S THE PROBLEM: PRIORITIES OR FUNDING? This week, the Senate Finance Special Subcommittee on Transportation Funding kicked off a series of meetings to discuss several bills that could make big…
The Ethics Reform That Isn’t
CLEARLY, LAWMAKERS HAD GOOD REASONS TO KEEP H.3945 SECRET The talk this week has been mainly about the ill-named ethics reform bill being debated in the South Carolina House.…
Renewable Energy: What’s the State’s Role?
HOW STATE FAVORITISM HURTS TAXPAYERS AND DRIVES UP ENERGY PRICES An attempt to loosen South Carolina energy regulation and licensing constraints for the benefit of solar energy firms has gained…
Liberty, Equality … and Corporate Welfare
HOW ECONOMIC INCENTIVES COMPROMISE AMERICA’S MOST IMPORTANT VALUE Equality and liberty are not always compatible and in some cases directly opposed, but there is one notion of equality that is…
Restructuring Update: déjà vu all over again?
S.22 ISN’T ABOUT SEPARATING POWERS. AND IT NEVER HAS BEEN On government restructuring, it’s déjà vu all over again. As happened last year, the Senate passed a weak restructuring bill, S.22, that…
Making a Flawed School Choice Bill (Slightly) Better
IF LAWMAKERS WANT TO IMPROVE A BADLY FLAWED “SCHOOL CHOICE” BILL, HERE’S WHERE TO BEGIN We recently released our initial analysis of S.279, the most prominent “school choice” bill currently…
Boeing Bond Deal Needs Explanation
WHY THE RUSH TO PUT FUTURE TAXPAYERS 120,000,000 MORE DOLLARS INTO DEBT? The news broke this week that Boeing plans to expand its existing North Charleston campus to include an…
Half Time Ethics Report
It’s the beginning of April and lawmakers‘ two-week furlough is almost up, leaving us at roughly the half-way point of the 2013 legislative session. This was supposed to be the…
Asset Forfeiture & Property Rights in S.C.
HOW SOUTH CAROLINA’S GOVERNMENT IS UNDERMINING ITS MOST IMPORTANT FUNCTION Low taxes, minimal regulations, a competent workforce. These are usually considered the most important qualities a state can foster in…
An “Enterprise Division” for Clemson?
IT’S ALL ABOUT POWER (A LOT OF IT) AND ACCOUNTABILITY (NONE OF IT) Last week, we posted a brief analysis of S.535, legislation that would create a murky new…
The Health Care Debate in South Carolina
A SNAPSHOT OF WHERE WE ARE Obamacare by Another Means While the governor and Speaker of the House are promoting what they call an “alternative” to Obamacare’s expansion of Medicaid,…
Wanted: A New Approach to Economic Development
WHY KEEP TRYING TO ‘COMPETE’ ON OUR COMPETITORS’ TERMS? For generations, South Carolina lawmakers of both parties have shown an unwavering commitment to the idea that special tax incentives encourage…
S.C.’s “Debt Limit” Not So Limited
JUST BECAUSE STATES CAN’T PRINT THEIR OWN MONEY DOESN’T MEAN THEY CAN’T ACCUMULATE DEBT … LOTS OF DEBT In a recent study by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), South…
Is South Carolina “Business Friendly” ?
THE ANSWER DEPENDS ON WHO YOU ARE Many government officials in South Carolina, particularly elected officials, take pride in frequently announcing that South Carolina is one of the most business…
Why Is Procurement Such a Big Deal?
ANSWER: BECAUSE SOMEBODY SHOULD BE ACCOUNTABLE FOR CORRUPTION There is probably no more boring word in the English language than procurement. And yet, if you pay taxes, it should be…
Is State Government Shrinking – or Growing?
TAXPAYERS ARE GETTING POORER. GOVERNMENT ISN’T. Lately a number of commentators have tried to make the case that South Carolina is already a lean model of low taxes and limited…
Capital “Reserve” Fund?
SINCE WHEN DOES ‘RESERVE’ MEAN ‘SLUSH’? As has become a yearly tradition, legislators have voted to raid the Capital Reserve Fund to funnel money to their own pet projects. The…
Budget Transparency: How to Get There
STEP NO. 1: ELIMINATE THE HALF THAT ALMOST NOBODY CAN READ Each fiscal year, the South Carolina state budget is split into two major pieces: Part 1A and Part 1B.…
How to Fund Road Maintenance
. . . AND HOW NOT TO FUND IT State lawmakers have introduced a new plan to increase funding for the Department of Transportation (DOT) without raising revenues or fees.…
What’s in the S.C. State Budget?
. . . A LOT THAT YOU’LL NEVER KNOW ABOUT. HERE’S WHY. Over the last two years, the Policy Council has repeatedly stressed the importance of a law that…
Why Is Bonding Authority a Big Deal?
…BECAUSE IT’S ABOUT YOUR MONEY AND WHO’S ACCOUNTABLE FOR SPENDING IT If the General Assembly is going to restructure government, it’s worth remembering the point of restructuring – separation…
ObamaCare Light?
THE HOUSE GOP ‘ALTERNATIVE’ TO OBAMACARE AND THE WINNERS & LOSERS OF SOUTH CAROLINA’S HEALTH CARE DEBATE We recently reported that House Republicans introduced an alternative plan to ObamaCare in a…
The State Budget is $1.5B Bigger Than You Thought
A BILLION AND A HALF … WAIT – WHAT? The House Ways and Means Committee has just passed its version of the state budget, and it’s been reported as a $22.7…
Dept. of Administration Bill Gets Worse
CURRENT DOA BILL WOULD FURTHER FLOUT CONSTITUTIONAL PRINCIPLES [UPDATE: Late yesterday the full Senate passed S.22 by a vote of 35 to 10. The version passed by the Senate…
Is Medicaid a Job Creator?
INCREASED FEDERAL HANDOUTS AS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT … HAVEN’T WE TRIED THAT BEFORE? Through the heated national and state debates over health care policy and the implementation of the Affordable…
The Governor’s Spending Plan (Part 3)
IF YOU GIVE AN AGENCY A COOKIE . . . [Note: Parts one and two of this series were published earlier this week and last week.] If the governor’s executive budget…
School Choice This Year?
NEW SESSION, NEW SCHOOL CHOICE BILL – SAME BAD IDEA As was the case last year – and just about any year over the last decade – the current…
The Governor’s Spending Plan (Part 2)
IF IT DOESN’T WORK, KEEP DOING IT … ? Part 2 of our series on the governor’s proposed budget of FY 2013-14 shines a light on the following four department…
Medicaid Expansion: Who pays?
WHY DO HOSPITALS WANT TO EXPAND MEDICAID? (HINT: IT’S NOT BECAUSE THEY’RE JUST NICE PEOPLE) Hospitals in South Carolina, both individually and under the auspices of the South Carolina Hospital…
Testimony before Commission on Ethics Reform
LANDESS ASKS GOVERNOR’S COMMISSION ON ETHICS REFORM TO CONSIDER DEPTH OF PROBLEM [Note: the following is testimony by SCPC President Ashley Landess before Gov. Nikki Haley’s Commission on…