QUICK LINKS Budgeting, taxes Business Education Energy Environment Health care Immigration Jobs Justice, legal reform Restructuring, local government Transportation

This policy engine strives to provide readers with a central hub for various viewpoints on major issues of public policy related to the Palmetto state. The feature is supported through the kind support of underwriters.

We are continuing to add links and information to this new Policy Engine. If you have a suggested link for the policy engine, please let us know.

Among the major issue areas for which we will offer links are:

Budgeting, tax reform

• SC POLICY COUNCIL: SC needs state, local spending caps
• SC POLICY COUNCIL: Excise taxes aren't user fees
  
  
• MY TURN, 7/25: Cigarette tax hike ignores long-term economic realities, by Ashley Landess
• NEWS, 7/18: Leaders push for new tax review group
• MY TURN, 7/18: Comprehensive tax reform benefits everyone, by Howard Duvall
• NEWS, 5/30: Does budget live up to "no earmark" rhetoric?
• BRACK, 5/23: Property tax law causing problems for many schools
• MY TURN, 5/16: Cigarette tax increase in reach, by Frank Knapp Jr.
• MY TURN, 5/9: Payday lending changes must be changed now, by Sen. Joel Lourie and Rep. Chris Hart
• NEWS, 5/9: Fight over rainy-day fund philosophical, entrenched
• NEWS, 5/23: Cigarette tax delivers rare legislative accomplishment
• MY TURN, 5/2: Tax reform should do no harm, by Doug Echols and Wayne Wingate
• NEWS, 4/25: Senate tries to get off funding rollercoaster
• BRACK, 4/11: Tax burden not as bad in SC as elsewhere
• NEWS, 4/11: State budget cuts will have impact
• NEWS, 3/28: Looking at constitutional amendment on capping growth
• NEWS, 3/21: General Assembly may consider other tobacco taxes
• BRACK, 3/21: Getting something for nothing doesn't work
• BRACK, 3/14: Sluggish economy to be around for awhile
• BRACK, 3/7: Time for lawmakers to think big
• NEWS, 3/7: Budget battle will leave slim pickings
• NEWS, 2/8: Flat revenues trim budget optimism
• NEWS, 2/1: House rule to cut spending may actually encourage it
• NEWS, 1/25: Lawmakers getting serious about spending limits
• NEWS, 1/11: Previewing coming battle over state highway funding
• NEWS, 12/7/07: Bill to be prefiled to boost accountability
• NEWS, 11/2/07: Chinks found in GEAR report
• NEWS, 10/19/07: Cigarette tax issues continue to slowly burn
• DOCUMENT: 2007-08 Budget of the State of South Carolina

Business

Education

Energy

Environment

• BRACK, 7/4: Offshore drilling is dumb idea
• BRACK, 6/27: Plug-in hybrids make green, economic, security sense
• BRACK, 5/9: Swimming in sewage? Environmental hyperbole has point
• NEWS, 4/18: Environmental agenda more prominent at Statehouse
• MY TURN, 3/28: Give natural resources a real seat at the table, by Ben Gregg
• BRACK, 2/29: Santee Cooper plays scary media hardball
• NEWS, 12/14/07: "Clean coal" term offers new war of words
• NEWS, 9/7/07: Conservationists want DHEC probe

Health care

Immigration

Jobs

Justice, legal reform

Restructuring, local government

• SC POLICY COUNCIL: Government transparency
  
  
• BRACK, 7/18: Policies lead to erosion of privacy
• MY TURN, 6/20: Making Government Work in Washington, by former US Sen. Fritz Hollings
• MY TURN, 6/13: Making Government Work in South Carolina, by former US Sen. Fritz Hollings
• MY TURN, 3/7: S. 1105 will massacre home rule, by Tim Winslow
• MY TURN, 2/15: Trust local leaders to make sound fiscal decisions, by Randy Randall and Rob Clapper
• MY TURN, 1/4: Cities mean business to state's competitiveness, by Aiken Mayor Fred Cavanaugh
• NEWS, 12/7/07: Bill to be prefiled to boost accountability
• NEWS, 11/2/07: Chinks found in GEAR report

Transportation

• NEWS, 4/4: Highway Patrol under scrutiny by Senate
• BRACK, 4/4: Demand more of Highway Patrol, ourselves
• MY TURN, 4/4: Four-point plan to boost SCDOT transparency, by John M. Hartz
• MY TURN, 3/14: Now is time to address SC's highway funding crisis, by Otis Rawl
• MY TURN, 2/8: I-73 needed now for Grand Strand, SC, by Brad Dean
• MY TURN, 2/1: Freedom to travel: A US policy conundrum, by Jack Maybank Jr.
• NEWS, 1/11: Previewing coming battle over state highway funding
• NEWS, 10/12/07: Highway funding fraught with good intentions, problems

Please let us know if there are other issues that you think we should highlight. Send suggestions to: brack@statehousereport.com. Thank you.