STATEHOUSE REPORT | ISSUE 20.45 | NOV. 5, 2021
BIG STORY: State to have extra billion in cash in coming year
NEWS BRIEFS: Charleston may gain Senate seat from Columbia in remap
LOWCOUNTRY, Ariail They’re not trick-or-treaters
COMMENTARY, Brack: Gun shop’s abusive product represents real threat to democracy
SPOTLIGHT: Riley Institute at Furman University
FEEDBACK: Send us your thoughts
MYSTERY PHOTO? White building
State to have extra billion in cash in coming year
Staff reports | South Carolina economists are expected to announce that state lawmakers will have an extra billion dollars to spend in the 2022-23 budget thanks to federal pandemic relief funds and better-than-forecasted tax revenue collections.
The state Board of Economic Advisers will release projected revenue numbers during a 1 p.m. meeting on Nov. 10, according to two Statehouse insiders who asked not to be named.
“We’re on a sugar-high,” one analyst observed. “Part of it is due to under-forecasted revenues” because economists widely predicted state revenues to take a big hit because of the coronavirus pandemic. But that didn’t happen.
While some businesses across the state continue to struggle with revenue shortfalls, they appear to be the exception, as highlighted by a number of trends:
Booming port. Activity through the S.C. Ports Authority, one of the state’s strongest drivers of economic activity, is at an all-time high thanks to long-term strategic investments that make Charleston’s deep port an attraction to global shippers. “S.C. Ports has the berth availability, cargo capacity and fluidity to handle the record cargo volumes and unprecedented amount of retail imports flowing into the Port of Charleston,” S.C. Ports President and CEO Jim Newsome said last month.
Return of tourism. Walk the streets of any coastal town and you’ll find crowded restaurants, bars and hotels — a sure sign that tourism is back.
Low unemployment. The state’s unemployment rate is 4.2 percent now, three times lower than what it was at the peak of the pandemic. Low rates mean residents are bringing home paychecks and, in turn, boosting local and state tax revenues.
Big surplus. Not only is $1 billion in extra revenue projected over the next year, but the state also had $1.02 billion in unspent cash at the close of the 2021 fiscal year in June. That gives state lawmakers an enormous pool to make investments in education, roads, health care and more.
Part of South Carolina’s positive cash flow comes from $13.7 billion in federal funding received in recent months. According to state officials, federal officials have steered to the Palmetto State:
- $8.9 billion through the American Rescue Plan Act, which includes millions to state and local governments as well as funding to help individuals, families, education, child care and transportation.
- $2.7 billion to coronavirus relief through the CARES Act.
- $1.87 billion in other relief appropriations through the CRRSA Act.
- $193.5 million to the Families First Coronavirus Response Act.
- $120.3 million to businesses through the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act.
- $10.7 million in other supplemental coronavirus appropriations.
- Have a comment? Send to feedback@statehousereport.com
Charleston may gain Senate seat from Columbia in remap
Staff reports | A proposed map of new South Carolina Senate lines based on 2020 U.S. Census data moves one district from Richland County to faster-growing Charleston County.
A proposal for redrawn House districts is expected next week. Also next week, senators will have a public hearing Nov. 12 on their redistricting effort, followed by a meeting of the full Senate in special session in December to consider reapportioned districts as required every 10 years by the U.S. Constitution.
According to the Associated Press, “14 the 16 districts represented by Democrats in 2021 either lost population or failed to gain people as fast as the state average. That meant many inland districts between Columbia and the coast had to cover larger areas, eventually eating up that one district near Columbia.”
The State newspaper reported South Carolina experienced more than 10 percent growth since 2010. The influx of almost 500,000 people pushed the state’s population to more than 5 million with areas along the coast, parts of the Upstate and the area around Charlotte getting big growth. The changes led to the proposal to transfer Senate District 20, currently held by Democratic Sen. Dick Harpootlian, to the Charleston area.
In other recent news:
Pandemic update: 4.9 percent positivity. S.C. health officials reported 727 total cases of COVID-19 Nov. 4, with 420 confirmed. A total of 34 new deaths, 28 confirmed, were also reported. With 16,839 tests reported, 4.9 percent were confirmed positive. Meanwhile, Gov. Henry McMaster issued an executive order Thursday that would keep state cabinet agencies from enforcing federal vaccine mandates. More. AP News.
McMaster wants to use COVID education funds to pay for 2-year degrees. Also this week, the governor said he wants to spend the last $17 million of his COVID-19 education relief money to fully pay for anyone to go to a technical college for two years to train to enter high demand jobs. More: Associated Press.
Labor secretary talks about shipping slowdowns in Charleston. U.S. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh said Wednesday that slowdowns and bottlenecks at the nation’s shipping terminals are the result of an ongoing pandemic, coupled with problems like stagnant wages for some workers along the supply chain. He made the remarks while visiting South Carolina’s Port of Charleston, the nation’s ninth-busiest port, and after a roundtable discussion with truck drivers at a union hall in Charleston. More: The Post and Courier, WCIV.
Palmetto State Armory selling accessory with setting aimed at Biden. West Columbia-based Palmetto State Armory is marketing a gun accessory for AR-15s with three firing settings: “F@CK!” “JOE!” and “BIDEN!” The swear word is the safety mode, the president’s first name will fire, and his last name will go full-automatic. More: The State.
S.C. man pleads guilty to assaulting police during Jan. 6 riot. Nicholas Languerand of Little River has pleaded guilty to attacking police officers before storming the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 as part of a mob that sought to overturn the 2020 presidential election results. He is the second South Carolinian to be convicted in connection with the assault on the Capitol building. He faces sentencing in January. More: The Post and Courier.
Grand jury indicts Murdaugh, Smith in Labor Day weekend shooting. A grand jury has indicted Alex Murdaugh and Curtis Edward Smith in connection with Murdaugh’s shooting over Labor Day weekend. More: The Post and Courier.
- Want more headlines every business day that are like this? Visit our friends at SC Clips.
They’re not trick-or-treaters
Cartoonist Robert Ariail always has an interesting take on what’s going on in South Carolina. His weekly “Lowcountry” strip is originally drawn for our sister publication, the Charleston City Paper. Love the cartoon? Hate it? What do you think: feedback@statehousereport.com.
Gun shop’s abusive product represents real threat 
By Andy Brack, editor and publisher | Imagine if a gun shop started selling an accessory for an AR-15 rifle that offered to change the names of the three settings on the firing mechanism from (safety)-(single shot)-(full-auto) to F@CK-DONALD-TRUMP.
Quite a few people would hit the ceiling. Somewhere, there would be blood in the street. Most likely, the store would face a riot reminiscent of what happened Jan. 6 when right-wing, authoritarian zealots stormed the U.S. Capitol in a fury of treasonous gall now seen as the most serious threat to our democracy in generations.
So now let’s turn to a surprising story this week in The State newspaper. Seems like the Einsteins at gun shops operated by Palmetto State Armory are offering a gun accessory for AR-15s with three settings that slam President Joe Biden, not Trump, just like in the imaginary example above.
Protests? Riots? Nope. Reactions are giggles or intellectual disappointment or cries that a business has far overstepped the bounds of decency. But no violence.
In other words, many South Carolinians just shake their heads and think, “Well, that’s the way it is here.”
Unacceptable. It shouldn’t be this way. We shouldn’t blithely accept such obscene criticism of Biden, much less any president or elected leader. All Americans must take this kind of seditious nonsense more seriously. So shame on Palmetto State Armory for this latest incendiary entry into the marketplace. It’s vile, wrong and highly inappropriate. It further fans the flames splitting our country. It’s harming our system of governance and, if you want to get right down to it, it supports our enemies. If you want to let the Russians and Chinese control the world, just keep it up.
That’s why we suggest all South Carolinians — gun owners and those who don’t own guns — should boycott the business, which is preying on people’s political opinions to do what it really wants to do — sell more guns and make more millions a year by arming South Carolina. Don’t Palmetto State Armory’s customers realize they’re being used by the company’s clever marketers? Are they so blind as not to realize they’re being manipulated?
We support responsible gun ownership. But anyone who crawls out from under a rock just to sell something that says F@CK! JOE! BIDEN! is the lowest of the low. It’s not funny. It’s not something children should be subjected to. It’s certainly not something that would make a grandmama proud.
It’s virtually impossible to talk with any of the leaders at Palmetto State Armory. We reached out to someone who reportedly is a co-owner. Got crickets. We tried to send a message through its lobbying firm, Nelson Mullins, which has received $100,000 in the last year to represent the company on federal gun issues. Again, nothing.
So here’s what the company and those like it should know: If you continue to push anti-American memes and messages like the filth on the gun accessory, you are seeding a downward spiral that debases the principles of freedom offered in the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution. By defiling the public debate with vile language and products, you promote dangerous insurrection..
Our elected officials must cry out against this politically divisive behavior. Unfortunately, some of them are more interested in dividing America than helping Americans. Just look at how U.S. Rep. Jeff Duncan of South Carolina has been wearing a “Let’s Go Brandon” mask. The phrase is a politically abusive meme among right-wingers that is nothing more than more coded ridicule of Biden. (The gun accessory is stamped with this code: “Letsgo-15 multi Brandon 00000”.)
Stop fomenting division. Start making American work by pulling out the partisan earplugs, listening and compromising. That’s the real American way.
- Have a comment? Send to: feedback@statehousereport.com.
Riley Institute at Furman University
The public spiritedness of our underwriters allows us to bring Statehouse Report to you at no cost. This week’s spotlighted underwriter is Furman University’s Riley Institute, which broadens student and community perspectives about issues critical to South Carolina’s progress. It builds and engages present and future leaders, creates and shares data-supported information about the state’s core challenges, and links the leadership body to sustainable solutions.
Launched in 1999, the Institute is named for former South Carolina Governor and former United States Secretary of Education Richard W. (Dick) Riley. It is committed to nonpartisanship in all it does and to a rhetoric-free, facts-based approach to change.
- Learn more about the Riley Institute.
- Also learn more about the Riley Institute’s Center for Education Policy and Leadership.
Send us your thoughts
We receive a few comments a week and look forward to publishing. But often we can’t because we can’t verify the identity of the writer. To be published, you’ve got to provide us with contact information so we can verify your letters. Verified letters to the editor are published weekly. We reserve the right to edit for length and clarity. Comments are limited to 250 words or less. Please include your name and contact information.
- Send your letters or comments to: feedback@statehousereport.com
White building
Here’s a white building with a Civil War statue in front of it. Where is it? Send your guess to feedback@statehousereport.com — and remember to include your name, home city and contact information.
Last week’s mystery, “Is it haunted?” brings a resounding NO from Bill Segars of Hartsville. He shares that the photo shows Salem Black River Presbyterian Church outside of Mayesville in Sumter County. Unfortunately, there’s a lot of misinformation about the building, Segar says.
“I have worked in every area of this building during daylight hours and darkness. I have never seen or heard any indication of it or the adjoining graveyard being haunted. It’s untold the amount of money that the small congregation spends on security and clean up after unscrupulous people have defaced the building and property as paranormal hunters. I am appalled by the actions of some people in the name of their own personal fun, while giving no thought to the consequences of their actions.
“If anyone would like to really experience the beauty and history of Salem, they would be welcome to attend a regular worship service which is held on the second and fourth Sunday of every month (except August) at 4 p.m., after which I’m sure they too will agree that this site is not haunted.
Congratulations to all who identified the church: George Graf of Palmyra, Va.; Jacie Godfrey of Florence; C.D. Rhodes, Elizabeth Jones and Jay Altman, all of Columbia; Allan Peel of San Antonio, Texas; Frank Bouknight of Summerville; Penny Forrester of Tallahassee, Fla.; Kevin Mertens of Greenville; Don Clark of Hartsville; and David Taylor of Darlington.
Graf shared that the church, “built in 1846, is a well-preserved example of Greek Revival architecture. From the time of its organization in the mid-eighteenth century until the present, Salem Church has played an important role in the development of history of the surrounding rural community. The church has been virtually unaltered since its construction. It features massive stucco-over-brick columns, a gable roof and a pedimented portico. Basilican in plan, the interior of Salem Black River Church is simple. A slave gallery extends along three sides and is supported by square paneled wooden pillars. Listed in the National Register Nov. 14, 1978.”
- Send us a mystery. If you have a photo that you believe will stump readers, send it along (but make sure to tell us what it is because it may stump us too!) Send to: feedback@statehousereport.com and mark it as a photo submission. Thanks.
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