South Carolina Policy Council

Tune in to Fox Carolina News with Justin Dougherty and Michael Burris for Election Day coverage!

The SC Policy Council is excited to announce the successful advancement of many important priorities of our legislative agenda.

Tax reform, education accountability, transportation restructuring and more…read how SCPC shaped public policy in 2026.

2026 Session Recap: Major progress on SCPC backed reforms The regular 2026 legislative session came to a close on May 14th and conference committees for outstanding pieces of legislation including the state budget still need to get over the finish line.

South Carolina taxpayers may be underwriting a much bigger incentive package for Ferrara Candy than many realize.

The state approved up to $85 million in bonds for infrastructure and site development tied to the project.

The total taxpayer cost could exceed $120 million.

Ferrara is eligible to redirect a portion of employee withholding taxes back to the company rather than into general state revenues.

Ferrara will also receive:
• Sales tax exemptions
• Workforce training assistance
• Infrastructure improvements
• Reduced property taxes

Using bond costs alone, the taxpayer-backed debt could amount to roughly $120,000 per projected position.

The company may not have to repay the full value of incentives even if it falls short of the announced 1,000-job target.

Transparency is another concern.

The deal was negotiated under a project code name, and key details were not fully public during portions of the approval process.

Will this large corporate incentive package generate enough economic return to justify the public investment?

Read the full report from THE NERVE ⬇️

Ferrara Candy Company incentives: Sweet deal for taxpayers? In announcing last month that the Chicago-based Ferrara Candy Company would locate a $675 million manufacturing complex in Orangeburg County and create 1,000 jobs, Gov. Henry McMaster described the project as a “transformative moment for Orangeburg County and all of South Carolina.”

The S.C. General Assembly has scheduled a conference committee on the state budget for 2pm tomorrow.

Three legislators from each chamber will go through the budget section by section and determine whether to adopt House or Senate versions.

In the recent South Carolina gubernatorial primary debate, candidates were questioned on topics such as judicial reform, data centers, and economic development.

SC Policy Council CEO Michael Burris
weighs in ⬇️ Fox Carolina News

SC policy council on primary elections FOX Carolina's Justin Dougherty speaks with Michael Burris on the state of the SC governor's race as early voting begins.For more Local News from WHNS: https...

There’s bipartisan support for transportation restructuring in South Carolina with 86% of primary voters calling for change.

The General Assembly moved SCDOT reform across the finish line this year, streamlining decision-making and improving accountability.

JUDICIAL REFORM: 72% of South Carolina primary voters believe the state’s judicial selection process needs to be restructured.

This heavy public consensus was across both political parties, with only 14% favoring the current legislator-controlled Judicial Merit Selection Commission.

As represented by SCPC’s recent poll, S.C. primary voters want to change how judges are selected in the state — implying they believe there’s potential impropriety in the current process.

🚨 New poll results indicate that partisanship dictates early voting trends in South Carolina’s primary election.

Republican primary voters strongly prefer voting on Election Day (54.9%) over early in-person voting (40.5%). Democratic primary voters invert this trend, heavily favoring early in-person options (52.4%) over Election Day (37.0%).

Additionally, 7.6% of Democratic primary voters intend to vote by mail while 1.5% of Republican primary voters intend to vote by mail.

🚨 NEW SOUTH CAROLINA DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY FOR GOVERNOR POLL RESULTS — MAY 18-21, 2026

• Jermaine Johnson: 27%
• Billy Webster: 14%
• Mullins McLeod: 6%
• Undecided: 49%

🚨 NEW SOUTH CAROLINA COMMISSIONER OF AGRICULTURE REPUBLICAN PRIMARY POLL RESULTS — MAY 18-21, 2026

• Cody Simpson: 15%
• Danny Ford: 14%
• Jeremy Cannon: 5%
• Fred West: 3%
• Undecided: 62%