BRIEFS: Middle class shrinking; SCDP has new director

Middle class generally shrinks in S.C. metros

Staff reports | A startling new report this week by the Pew Research Center highlighted how the middle class has gotten smaller in about nine out of 10 metropolitan areas in the United States.  The story is much the same in South Carolina.  The story has major policy implications, particularly for tax policy — with a smaller middle class, there tends to be less capacity to generate tax revenue, which could impact government revenues.

Only in the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Beaufort metro area in the report did the middle class grow (51 percent in 2000 to 56 percent in 2014) and the lower class get smaller (27 percent in 2000 to 23 percent in 2014).  Interestingly, the upper class dropped from 22.6 percent in 2014 to 20.9 percent in 2014, the report said.

But in the Augusta-Aiken, Charleston, Charlotte, Greenville and Spartanburg areas, the national trend was similar, as indicated by the chart below.  In general, the middle class in these South Carolina metros dropped from the mid-50 percentages into the lower 50s, with the middle class getting smaller by 6.5 percent in the Charlotte area, 6.9 percent in Greenville-Anderson and 6.8 percent in Spartanburg.

Those in the lower class dropped in the Charleston and Beaufort County areas, but grew in Charlotte (6.7 percent), Greenville (6.9 percent) and Spartanburg (6.5 percent).

State Dems have new executive director

Christale Spain has been named new executive director of the S.C. Democratic Party, chairman Jaime Harrison announced recently.

Spain, who has previously served as the party’s deputy executive director prior to taking a leave to work on Sen. Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign, replaces Jason Perkey, who now heads coordinated campaign efforts for the Wisconsin Democratic Party.

“Christale has gained a wealth of experience and knowledge which makes her the perfect addition to the South Carolina Democratic Party,” Harrison said.  “We are excited to have her lead the team.”

Spain, who holds a bachelor’s degree from USC-Aiken and a master’s degree from Columbia College, is a Columbia native.  More.