SCPC Voter Poll Release (May 31 – Jun 3, 2022)
. . Inflation, gas prices are top concerns for SC voters as lawmakers return to Columbia for special session Inflation and gas prices are among the most pressing concerns for…
Inflation in SC shows need for bold tax cuts
Record breaking prices are making everyday life harder for Americans, especially for some in South Carolina. Indeed, by some measurements, the Palmetto State (and the South generally) is experiencing higher…
Analysis: SC’s competing tax cut proposals, what to know
After years of justified frustration from taxpayers, state lawmakers have finally decided to address South Carolina’s highest-in-the-Southeast top income tax rate. The House on Wednesday passed a bill that would…
Three crucial tax reforms for South Carolina
The S.C. Legislature convened for session this week, renewing calls to fix South Carolina’s dated and uncompetitive tax structure. This focus comes as our northern neighbor passed a significant tax…
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Bills to watch in 2020: Part one
It’s nearly the end of the year and South Carolina’s legislative session is rapidly approaching! The first day of session begins on January 14, 2020. Since 2019 was the first…
What is Tax Conformity, and What Does It Mean for SC Taxpayers?
UPDATE 10/5/18: The Senate’s version of the tax conformity bill passed both houses this week and was signed by the Governor. Lawmakers left one major question unanswered when they left…
Only Three Liquor Stores? A Tale of Regulation
HOW A SIMPLE, WELL-INTENDED REGULATION TURNED INTO A TANGLED MESS Earlier this year, a report at The Nerve detailed an attempt by a few lawmakers to insert a budget proviso…
The Gas Tax, the Infrastructure Bank, and Lawmakers’ Word Games
• Legislature began diverting fees to Infrastructure Bank in 2005 • Diversion of Funds meant to circumvent state constitution • In 2003 lawmakers changed the name of the gas tax…
Roads: What Reform Is – and Isn’t
THREE STEPS TO FIXING SOUTH CAROLINA’S ROADS – AND NONE OF THEM INVOLVES RAISING TAXES ON A POOR AND OVERTAXED POPULATION One thing has become increasingly evident in the debate…
S.C. Is a ‘Low Tax State,’ Right? Wrong.
SOUTH CAROLINA IS A LOW INCOME STATE — SOMETHING VERY DIFFERENT South Carolina politicos sometimes claim that ours is a “low tax state” and that it has the “lowest taxes…
Will Lawmakers Raise the Gas Tax in 2017?
LAST YEAR, THE PROBLEM WAS STRUCTURAL RATHER THAN MONETARY. IT STILL IS. Over the past several weeks there has been considerable public speculation that Gov. Nikki Haley’s successor may support…
Road Funding Bill – Most Confusing Tax Hike Ever?
WEIRD PROCEDURAL MOVES, CONVOLUTED SHUFFLING OF TAXES AND FEES … WELCOME TO THE 2016 ROADS DEBATE The Senate Finance Committee is currently debating legislation that would raise taxes and fees,…
What the Right to Work Really Means
SOUTH CAROLINA IS A RIGHT-TO-WORK STATE. DOES THAT MEAN SOUTH CAROLINIANS ARE FREE TO WORK? NOT ENTIRELY. South Carolina’s status as a right-to-work state is often credited by government officials…
ANALYSIS: Imposing a Statewide Property Tax
SAME BAD ARGUMENT, DIFFERENT TAX It is a long held view among many elected officials that the only thing preventing exemplary achievements for students in state run schools is insufficient…
Why the Gas Tax Is a Tax – Not a “Fee”
THE DISTINCTION IS VITAL, AND STATE LAWMAKERS ARE WRONG TO IGNORE IT A common mentality inside the South Carolina General Assembly holds that all private goods and services belong to…
Gas Tax Plans: More of the Same
S.C. POLITICOS HAVE PRODUCED AT LEAST FOUR MAJOR PLANS TO “FIX OUR ROADS.” NOT ONE OF THEM WILL ACCOMPLISH THAT GOAL. HERE’S WHY. How would a massive tax hike fix…
ANALYSIS: Senate Compromise on Road Funding
A COMPROMISE? SURE. A COMPILATION OF ALL THIS YEAR’S BAD IDEAS? THAT TOO. Last week, a majority of Senate Republicans produced a compromise on the subject of road funding. At…
The Myth of the Tax Swap
STATE HOUSE ECONOMICS, CHAPTER II Following the governor’s lead on tax swaps, more than 20 Senate Republicans unveiled the outline of a compromise amendment to the Senate Finance gas tax…
FAST FACTS: A Tax Hike for Roads?
There has been endless talk about “road plans,” but in truth there is no plan to fix roads – the only debate in Columbia is over raising taxes. The promises…
Bill Would Impose Sales Tax on Web Purchases
LATEST ATTEMPT TO GET STATE HANDS ON NEW REVENUE MAY ENCOUNTER PROBLEMS OF LEGALITY, CONSTITUTIONALITY South Carolina’s sales tax is unfair in its imposition and isn’t producing enough revenue. At…
Fixing Our Roads: Real Answers, in Plain English
THROWING MORE AND MORE MONEY AT A BROKEN SYSTEM IS HOW WE WOUND UP WITH A DECREPIT ROAD SYSTEM IN THE FIRST PLACE. THE WAY FORWARD IS SOMETHING DIFFERENT. Over…
Senate Moving Ahead with Fee, Tax Hikes
● Numerous and complicated tax and fee hikes. ● Constitutional issue addressed – briefly. ● Bill to come up in full Senate next week. The Senate Finance Committee had a…
Senate to Scrap Constitution, Raise Revenue
WHEN IT COMES TO GETTING YOUR MONEY, STATE SENATORS WON’T LET A LITTLE OL’ CONSTITUTION GET IN THE WAY When a special Senate subcommittee met on Tuesday, the purpose was…
On Roads, S.C. House Doing Its Own Thing
THE HOUSE PLAN HAS THIS IN COMMON WITH THE GOVERNOR’S: IT ASSUMES WE HAVE A REVENUE PROBLEM. Nearly a week after the governor released her plan to fix South Carolina…
What to Do about Ride-Sharing
SOUTH CAROLINA’S REGULATORY REGIME DOESN’T PROTECT CONSUMERS, PLACES UNACCOUNTABLE POWER IN THE HANDS OF A FEW POLITICIANS, AND OUGHT TO BE ROLLED BACK – STARTING WITH THE TAXI INDUSTRY. HERE’S…
Why Raising the Fuel Tax Is a Terrible Idea
MONEY’S NOT THE PROBLEM. PRIORITIES ARE. The issue of road funding – or, to put it slightly differently, the question of how South Carolina should fix its broken road system…
Why Another Earned Income Credit Won’t Help
MORE LAYERS OF GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS WON’T ADDRESS THE PROBLEM OF POVERTY. BUT SOMETHING ELSE WILL. South Carolina is among the poorest states in the nation. That’s no secret. But with…
Do South Carolinians Have the Right to Work?
REMEMBER, THE FREEDOM TO WORK MEANS MORE THAN THE ABSENCE OF UNIONS Last year during National Employee Freedom Week, we posed this question: Is South Carolina really a “right-to-work state”?…
The Case for Deregulating the Taxi Cab Industry
WE’RE ALL THE BENEFICIARIES OF CREATIVE DESTRUCTION In recent weeks, taxi services have protested in Washington D.C., Boston, London, and elsewhere over the existence of ride-sharing services like Uber (or…
The Lowest Taxes: How to Get There
WHAT STANDS IN THE WAY ISN’T LOGIC BUT POWER South Carolina will never truly be considered the freest state in the nation until its citizens are able to keep more…