South Carolina’s transportation infrastructure is funded with federal dollars and state revenues generated from motor fuel user fees and vehicle-related fees. Federal funds account for nearly 50% of transportation spending in South Carolina, while state revenues make up the other half.

 In South Carolina, the state motor fuel user fee (aka the “gas tax”) is the primary source of state revenue for roads and bridges. 

Beginning July 1, when drivers fill up with gasoline or diesel, they will pay two cents more per gallon. This increase will bring the total state taxes/fees on fuel to 24.75 cents per gallon.

The new revenues are part of the plan passed in 2017 to increase the fuel tax by 12 cents over a period of six years, to help generate desperately needed revenues so the state could begin tackling long-overdue repairs to our roads and bridges.

As South Carolina works to address this monumental task, these revenues serve as the foundation for getting that work done. Learn more about how the new revenues are being spent here. 

Using the interactive maps below, take a look at how South Carolina compares to other states. You will see that despite our increase, we remain significantly lower than our sister states and much lower than the national average.

Unfortunately, South Carolina is having to playing catch-up, and it’s going to take time to address the amount of work that needs to be done. The good news is, progress is being made and the new revenues are being invested to address repairs in every county in South Carolina.

South Carolina is not alone when it comes to investing  in road and bridge repairs. Since 2013, 31 states have increased their fuel taxes to address infrastructure needs.  

Primary elections will be held on Tuesday, June 9, and this year, South Carolina is expecting a record number of absentee ballots due to COVID-19. Learn more about absentee voting here.

If you are voting in person, be sure to plan ahead before going to the polls!

Preview a Sample Ballot 

Find Your Polling Location

Every vote counts! Make your voice heard on Tuesday, June 9, 2020.

Additional information and resources for voters are available through the SC Election Commission. 

The SCDOT Commission met Thursday at the USC Alumni Center to allow for social distancing between Commissioners and SCDOT staff.  The meeting was streamed online for the public to watch. This was the first Commission meeting since February, so in addition to typical business, Commissioners were able to get a thorough update from SCDOT staff on the impacts of COVID-19 on the agency.

Traffic volume is a key indicator of revenue trends, and, like many other states, South Carolina saw a significant drop in April. The chart below indicates the impacts that various closures/orders had on traffic volumes across the state. As you can see, traffic volumes continue to trend upward as the state slowly begins to reopen.

Source: COVID-19 Presentation to SCDOT Commission 5/21/2020

In some cases, some areas are now experiencing normal or above-average traffic volumes.
• Most interstates are now trending 80-85% of normal volumes.
• Non-interstate routes in urban areas (midlands/upstate) are near normal levels.
• Coastal areas are experiencing dramatic increases in traffic.

Decreases and delays in revenues are inevitable, given the reduction in traffic volumes over the past two months and filing extensions granted by state agencies.

Delays will stem from deferrals and grace periods established by the SC Department of Revenue (DOR) and the SC Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) for remittance of certain revenues and fees. These extensions through June and July will interrupt cash flow for 2-3 months and will limit visibility to revenue streams.

Currently, the impacts of the state’s primary revenue sources on the current fiscal year is estimated to be a reduction of $78 Million:
• Fuel taxes – $54 million
• Infrastructure Maintenance Fee (formerly the car sales tax) – $24 million

If the overall economic recovery is drawn out, South Carolina could be looking at a $140 million reduction in FY2020-2021 and $75 million in FY2021-2022.

Source: COVID-19 Presentation to the Commission 5/21/2020

To help “flatten the cash curve” and ensure that core operations and road and bridge projects can continue,  SCDOT has implemented measures to reduce internal operating expenses.

The SCDOT plans to continue work as planned, and May, June, and July lettings will not be affected. Moving forward, projects will be paced with revenue receipts.

COVID-19 has wreaked havoc on every aspect of the economy.  Despite the fact that South Carolina has been able to keep road and bridge projects going over the past two months, infrastructure is not immune to the impacts of this virus. South Carolina joins 49 other states who are all seeing impacts on transportation revenues due to COVID-19.

While the duration and true impacts remain unknown, SCFOR will continue to follow the financial impacts and projections. Roads and bridges keep our economy moving; therefore, they will play a critical role in the state’s economic recovery.

SOUTH CAROLINA HAS NATION’S HIGHEST RATE OF RURAL TRAFFIC FATALITIES AND SIGNIFICANT RURAL ROAD AND BRIDGE DEFICIENCIES; ADDRESSING NATION’S ANTICIPATED $50 BILLION DECREASE IN STATE TRANSPORTATION REVENUES DUE TO COVID-19 SEEN AS VITAL TO FUNDING NEEDED REPAIRS & MODERNIZATION TO IMPROVE RURAL CONDITIONS, SUPPORT ECONOMIC RECOVERY AND BOOST SAFETY

America’s rural transportation system is in need of repairs and modernization to support economic growth and improve traffic safety in the nation’s Heartland, but the US faces a $211 billion backlog in funding for needed repairs and improvements to the rural transportation system. This is according to a new report released today by TRIP, a national transportation research nonprofit. The report, Rural Connections: Challenges and Opportunities in America’s Heartland, evaluates the safety and condition of the nation’s rural roads and bridges and finds that America’s rural transportation system is in need of immediate improvements to address deficient roads and bridges, high crash rates, and inadequate connectivity and capacity.

The importance of the rural transportation system as the backbone of the nation’s energy, food and fiber supply chain has been heightened during the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Addressing the nation’s rural transportation challenges will require a significant increase in investment, but the tremendous decrease in vehicle travel that has occurred due to the COVID-19 pandemic is estimated to reduce state transportation revenues by at least 30 percent – approximately $50 billion – over the next 18 months.

The chart below ranks states based on their rate of rural pavements in poor condition, share of rural bridges that are rated poor/structurally deficient, and fatality rates on non-Interstate, rural roads.

The report finds that the rate of traffic fatalities on South Carolina’s non-Interstate, rural roads is significantly higher than the fatality rate on all other roads in the state – 3.44 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles of travel vs. 1.12 – and is the highest in the nation. Rural roads are more likely to have narrow lanes, limited shoulders, sharp curves, exposed hazards, pavement drop-offs, steep slopes and limited clear zones along roadsides. There were 593 fatalities on South Carolina’s non-Interstate, rural roads in 2018. South Carolina’s rural roads and bridges have significant deficiencies. Fifteen percent of South Carolina’s rural roads are rated in poor condition – the 20th highest rate in the nation- and 23 percent are in mediocre condition. Nine percent of South Carolina’s rural bridges are rated in poor/structurally deficient condition, the 19th highest rate in the nation. Bridges rated poor/structurally deficient have significant deterioration to the major components of the bridge and are often posted for lower weight or closed to traffic, restricting or redirecting large vehicles, including agricultural equipment, commercial trucks, school buses and emergency services vehicles.

“Rural road safety continues to be a priority in South Carolina. Three years into the state’s ten-year plan, safety specific improvements have been addressed on approximately 400 miles of rural roads,” said Jennifer Patterson, executive director of the South Carolina Alliance to Fix Our Roads. “During a time when it seems as if life has come to a halt, road work has not. We are thankful to the men and women who are working to ensure repairs and improvements to our roads and bridges continue moving forward. South Carolinians, our economy, and our ability to move past this crisis are riding on the essential work that they do.”

View the full SC Press release here. 

The filing period for the 2020 elections closed yesterday at noon, and several incumbents saw last-minute filings for the upcoming primaries. Here’s an overview of how the filings look for the 124 House seats and 46 Senate seats that will be on the ballot this year.

SC Senate
• There are three open seats.
• 10 Senators will NOT face opposition in the Primary and General Elections.
• 20 Senators will face opposition in the General Election.
• 13 Senators will face a primary challenge, with 9 of those races facing General Election opposition as well.

SC House of Representatives
• There are 11 open seats.
• 53 Representatives will NOT face opposition in the Primary and General Elections.
• 35 Representatives will face opposition in the General Election.
• 25 Representatives will face a primary challenge, with 13 of those races facing General Election opposition as well.

View SCFOR’s compilation of how the races stacked up in each district here. 

The SC House has passed their version of the state’s $10.2 billion general fund spending plan. The bill now resides in the SC Senate.

https://www.scfor.org/2020/03/16/house_budget_2020/

The SCDOT Commission held its February meeting on Thursday, February 20, and this was the first meeting that newly elected  SCDOT Commission Chairman, Tony Cox (Dist. 7), presided over. Among the items on the agenda was the approval of a public comment period to get the rural freight interstate program moving forward.

Specifically, the Commission approved a public comment period to amend the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) to include Preliminary Engineering (PE) and Right of Way (ROW) phases for two interstate projects included in the Rural Interstate Freight Network Mobility Improvement Program. 

I-26 Corridor Improvement: Widening from Exit 125 Old Sandy Run Rd to Exit 139 Burke Rd (14 miles) in Lexington and Calhoun Counties. Click here to submit public comments. 

I-95 Corridor Improvement: Widening from the Georgia Line to Exit 8 US 278 (8 miles) in Jasper County.  Click here to submit public comments.

Approval of the public comment period is the first step in making these rural interstate widening projects a reality and ensures that these projects are ready to go after the tax credit sunsets in 2022.

In addition to these rural freight projects, the Commission also approved a public comment period for the I-77 Panthers interchange (at mile marker 81) in York County. This interchange is part of the economic development deal and will support the increased traffic volumes associated with the new development. No SCDOT funding will be used for this project, nor will it compete with ranked projects. Click here to submit public comments.

Following the public comment period, if there are no substantive comments received, these projects will be included in the STIP.

The SCDOT Commission held its first meeting of the new year on January 16, and one of the most important items on the agenda was the election of officers for 2020.

Commissioners elected Vice-Chairman Tony Cox (Dist. 7) to serve as Chairman and Commissioner Barnwell Fishburne (Dist. 6) as Vice-Chairman of the SCDOT Commission.

Cox has been serving on the Commission since the summer of 2017 and has been Vice-Chairman since January 2019. He has been in the real estate business for more than 36 years and serves as executive vice president for the real estate division of Burroughs and Chapin Company, Inc. in Myrtle Beach.

Fishburne has represented the 6th Congressional District since 2018.  He is the owner of Fishburne and Company Development Corporation in Walterboro, SC.

Both Cox and Fishburne were elected by acclamation.  The gavel will be formally passed to Commissioner Cox by outgoing Chairman Robby Robbins at the February meeting.

“Mr. Cox and Mr. Fishburne have each contributed greatly to the success of the Commission and I am confident they will continue to lead this Commission forward in their new roles as Chairman and Vice Chairman,” said outgoing Chairman Robby Robbins (Dist. 1) in a press release.