Brack: S.C. lawmakers need to find real courage to lead for all

Our annual pitch at this time of year for the last 16 years has been for South Carolina lawmakers to start making significant progress to help ordinary residents.

It mostly falls on deaf ears, year after year. Which kind of makes sense since the red South Carolina General Assembly is not progressive. But, as Winston Churchill might say, we never give up.

While the 2026 version of Palmetto Priorities is listed below, let’s focus on just two initiatives to make life safer and fairer for everyday South Carolinians. All it takes in the legislature is for elected officials to muster courage and listen to their hearts, not political nonsense and partisan politics.

First is a two-parter: It’s time to make the state safer from nuts. The legislature has abrogated its moral responsibility since 2015 when a racist gunned down nine worshippers at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, including a Senate colleague, Clementa Pinckney. It’s time for the legislature to pass meaningful reform for a real waiting period to buy a gun by closing the so-called Charleston loophole.

Along these lines, South Carolina is one of only two states without a hate crimes law. It needs to pass a state law to send a clear message that hate is not tolerated.

The second policy area where state lawmakers need to make real progress is in tax reform. Effort after effort to restructure the state’s antiquated tax system has failed. In the years since a blue ribbon commission by former Gov. Mark Sanford, the tax structure has actually gotten worse – with more reliance on regressive sales taxes and fees, a reduction in the use of property taxes and a diminution of income taxes by putting more burden on the middle class and poor.

As we’ve written for years: Overhaul the state’s antiquated tax structure. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if South Carolina modernized its tax structure so sales taxes could go down, use taxes could be broader and the state could recover hundreds of millions of dollars in lost taxes due to special-interest sales tax exemptions? Lawmakers should stop being scared of broadening the base and lowering rates.

Other Palmetto Priorities for 2026

EDUCATION. Spend $1 billion in new money by 2030 to build more schools and offer more college scholarships. It’s hard to succeed in facilities that are not up to snuff, particularly in rural areas where the tax base is stacked against local officials.

CLIMATE. Require state economic development investments to be linked to reducing carbon emissions. If a business wants to move into South Carolina and receive special tax breaks or any government help, it should have a low-carbon footprint. The state needs to develop significant climate strategies, from planting more trees and boosting alternative energy sources to limiting new infrastructure for businesses to concentrated areas.

POLITICS. Innovate away from structures that encourage political gamesmanship. We’ve got to get rid of gerrymandering and one-party rule, both of which are continuing recipes for disaster.

JOBS. Approve a Cabinet-level post to add and retain 10,000 small business jobs per year. Politicians talk about helping small businesses. This would force them to.

HEALTH CARE. Ensure affordable and accessible health care that optimizes preventive care for every South Carolinian by 2030. Expand Medicaid. More people need to be on health insurance, not less.

CORRECTIONS. Cut the prison population by 25% through creative alternative sentencing programs for non-violent offenders.

ROADS. Develop and implement a plan that creatively taps several sources to generate more millions of dollars every year for investment in the state’s crumbling system of roads and bridges, and start pigeon-holing money for significant investments in public transit.

Happy New Year.

Andy Brack is editor and publisher of Statehouse Report and the Charleston City Paper. Have a comment? Send to: feedback@statehousereport.com.