Copy
View this email in your browser

House Budget Deliberations Begin Next Week

The House Ways & Means Committee, chaired by Rep. Bruce Bannister (R-Greenville), has crafted its version of the FY23-24 budget (H.4300), and the debate begins on the floor next week. 

The committee met Wednesday to provide House members with a budget briefing outlining key allocations included in the spending plan. View the complete budget briefing here. 

This year’s budget makes historic investments in workforce and emphasizes education, law enforcement, healthcare, and economic development. Road and bridge investments also remain a priority. 

The SCDOT has been allocated non-recurring dollars for bridges ($200 million) and a combination of recurring and non-recurring funds for litter ($8 million). The budget includes a non-recurring allocation ($250 million) to accelerate County Transportation Committee (CTC) projects.

Scout Motors Coming to SC

Scout Motors, a Volkswagen Group-backed automotive company, has announced plans to open a $2 billion electric truck and SUV manufacturing plant in Blythewood. Estimates indicate that the facility will produce 200,000 vehicles annually and create 4,000 or more permanent jobs. The site is adjacent to I-77, and the state plans to invest approximately $1.3 billion in infrastructure improvements and other needs to bring the facility to fruition.

Allocations for site construction ($650 million) include an interchange on I-77 directly to the site, significant improvements to the roads in neighboring communities, a railroad bridge, water/wastewater, and grading of 1100 acres. 

In addition, $400 million will be used to construct hard assets on the site and $16 million to acquire surrounding property. The site will also include a training center ($25 million) owned and operated by Midlands Technical College. The state also plans to loan $200 million to Volkswagen/Scout for soil stabilization, which will be repaid to the state. 

This is the company’s first manufacturing plant, and vehicle production is targeted to begin by 2026.

The House approved the funding resolution (H.4088) on Thursday afternoon and it now moves to the Senate for consideration. 

House Receives Update on the "State of SCDOT"

This week, Secretary of Transportation Christy Hall provided an inaugural “State of SCDOT” for the House Education & Public Works Committee. 

You will recall that this is an annual event for the Senate Transportation Committee; however, Education & Public Works Chairwoman Shannon Erickson (R-Beaufort) found it important to have the agency provide an overview and update on the state’s extensive road and bridge network. 

Secretary Hall noted how state investments and federal dollars are being put to work across the state to improve safety and the overall condition of the state system. Hall emphasized the importance of state dollars to the pavement program and the state’s aggressive interstate program, especially when it comes to widening I-26 and I-95.

Industry and supplier capacity continues to play a role in how the agency is planning and the overall project pipeline. Hall emphasized that the phased-in increase of the gas tax was critical to ensuring industry capacity. Thanks to ongoing investments, the state has seen contractors ramp up to deliver projects and, in some cases, expand operations.  

Secretary Hall told the committee that the budget allocation to bridges was critical to allow the agency to get ahead of a serious problem given the aging bridge infrastructure across the state.

Members of the committee had the opportunity to ask questions, and many were centered around local road concerns and work in their respective areas. 

Rep. Jay Kilmartin (R-Lexington) inquired about the Scout facility and how the infrastructure projects associated with economic development packages can be done quickly compared to others. Hall said that with economic development projects, the permitting process tends to be quicker because permits can be combined with the overall permitting process for the facility, which helps save some time compared to a traditional project.

Rep. Jermaine Johnson (D-Richland) inquired about the agency’s efforts to determine how electric and autonomous vehicles would impact the future of the state’s infrastructure. Hall noted that electric vehicles were certainly a focus. From a big-picture perspective, it was important for the state to have roads in good condition, not just pavements but also reflective markings and visible lines, because these factors are what vehicle technologies increasingly rely upon and respond to. 

Chairwoman Erickson thanked Secretary Hall for her leadership. She praised the agency for its ongoing efforts to improve the state’s infrastructure and continuous planning to utilize resources to the fullest extent. 

View the Secretary’s full presentation here

Senate Oversight Hears from SCDOT

A Senate Legislative Oversight subcommittee, chaired by Senator Tom Young (R-Aiken), continued their review of SCDOT this week. 

Secretary Hall provided the subcommittee with copies of her State of SCDOT presentation. She walked through the key points, including how South Carolina’s gas tax stacks up to other states, and reminded the subcommittee that North Carolina and Georgia remain higher than South Carolina and index their rates.

Senator Brad Hutto (D-Orangeburg) renewed his request to discuss tolling I-95, citing that most traffic was from out of state and that many drivers can pass through without even stopping for fuel. 

Senators inquired about the increased cost of paving projects. Secretary Hall noted increases in material costs and said SCDOT continues to work with industry partners to monitor. 

Senator Chip Campsen (R-Charleston) expressed concerns with the new Scout facility and the impacts on interstate traffic, and the importance of preserving quality of life. 

He said he would like to see the Department of Commerce work with SCDOT to assess impacts on existing infrastructure and traffic, especially on interstates, early on in economic development negotiations, as this would play a role in how he would determine his support for a project. He believes that these factors should be criteria taken into consideration during negotiations of all economic development projects.  

Secretary Hall said that the SCDOT works closely with Commerce on economic development projects and works to determine traffic impacts close to the immediate site. Still, it is rare to know early how traffic elsewhere would be impacted.  

You will recall that several items were outlined for discussion in the first subcommittee meeting held in 2022. Secretary Hall provided an update on some of those issues. 

  • Implementation of Federal Funds: One of the most critical aspects of implementing the federal dollars is working with federal partners to ensure that dollars are spent on projects and initiatives that will benefit South Carolina and are not subject to federal overreach. Secretary Hall reported that South Carolina was among the first states to advocate for state DOTs to have the ability to use federal dollars on state priorities, not priorities set by the federal government. 
  • Work Zone Safety: Other states have added blue lights to work zones, not through the presence of law enforcement, but blue lights on vehicles to prompt drivers to slow down. However, Secretary Hall said that law enforcement in South Carolina was not keen on vehicles having blue lights. 
  • Workforce Development, Recruitment & Retention: Secretary Hall reiterated concerns with the state’s pay bands and how they limit flexibility, especially for entry-level positions. She hopes the state can continue to work to simplify the employment application process. She added that SCDOT was working to increase the current starting pay ($14/hour), but it still made it tough to be competitive. Senator Gerald Malloy (D-Darlington)  echoed this, noting places like Buc-ee’s were paying $20/hour. 

Subcommittee members and staff continue to work with SCDOT to inquire about functions and operations, and the subcommittee plans to meet again to continue their discussions. Stay tuned! 

Contract Extension Bill Headed to Governor’s Desk, Procurement Bill Moves to Senate 

S.361, sponsored by Senator Larry Grooms (R-Berkeley), was passed unanimously by the House this week. The bill allows the Secretary of Transportation to approve extensions to contracts for additional work and have those extensions ratified by the SCDOT Commission at a later date. This will enable SCDOT to treat all extensions the same, regardless of their value. The bill now heads to the Governor’s desk for his signature. 

The House also passed (H.3750), sponsored by Rep. Shannon Erickson (R-Beaufort), which allows SCDOT to exempt planning and improvements to right of way from the state procurement code. The need for this bill stems from plans for a bus rapid transit line in Charleston, which is currently in design, and if federal grants are awarded, construction will begin in 2025. The bill now moves to the Senate for consideration. 

ARPA Fund Allocations

The Senate Finance Committee chaired by Senator Harvey Peeler (R-Cherokee) gave a favorable report to legislation to allocate remaining American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds. The committee amended the house-passed resolution (H.3604) with their allocation plan introduced this week in S.604.

Both the House and Senate allocated $586,633,226 to the Rural Infrastructure Authority ARPA Water and Sewer Infrastructure Account, to be used for existing grant applications. However, the Senate plan requires $100 million to be available for economic development projects designated by the Secretary of Commerce.

Upon approval by the Senate, the resolution will return to the House for approval. 

Freedom Feud

House Minority Leader Todd Rutherford (D-Richland) launched the “Freedom Caucus of South Carolina” this week alongside fellow Representatives Deon Tedder (D-Charleston) and Roger Kirby (D-Florence). 

Rutherford says the goal of the new caucus is to limit government intervention and government expansion and support the constitution. 

“This is about South Carolina. This is about the future of South Carolina. This is about people believing that there’s a group up here that pretends to vote for freedom and encourages freedom, and that’s exactly what they’re not doing,” Rutherford told the press on Tuesday.

Yes, there is another group with a very similar name. The SC Freedom Caucus continues to make headlines and ruffle feathers in the legislature. Last week, the group filed a lawsuit challenging current laws regarding caucuses in hopes of being recognized as an official legislative caucus, giving them the right to fundraise and get involved in elections. 

Website
Twitter
Facebook
LinkedIn
Copyright © 2023 South Carolina Alliance to Fix Our Roads, All rights reserved.


Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.

Email Marketing Powered by Mailchimp