SC Chamber of Commerce unveils 2019 Competitiveness Agenda

Tax Reform and Workforce Development Priorities Will Move South Carolina Forward

The South Carolina Chamber of Commerce announced the release of its 2019 Competitiveness Agenda. As the champion for business in the state, the Chamber will push for overhauling the state’s outdated, complex, and uncompetitive tax structure and will intensify its focus on workforce development, including addressing the teacher shortage crisis. The Chamber Board developed the 2019 Competitiveness Agenda through extensive input from the business community as well as the South Carolina Chamber’s partner, the Tax Foundation.

SC Chamber of Commerce President and CEO, Ted Pitts said, “The business community stands ready to roll up its sleeves to work with the General Assembly to achieve these goals this session.”

2019 Competitiveness Agenda

Comprehensive Tax Reform

South Carolina’s business tax climate is ranked 35th least competitive in the nation. Taxpayers need a modernized, simplified, and more competitive system, as proposed in the Chamber’s Road Map for Tax Reform.

• Simplify and lower the 7% personal income tax rate. SC’s top marginal rate is the highest in the Southeast and kicks in at $14,860. In many cases the effective rate is also the highest in the Southeast.
• Update and modernize the sales tax base to lower other taxes. SC and VA have the narrowest sales tax bases in the Southeast.
• Make property taxes on commercial, non-owner occupied, and manufacturing property more equitable while addressing education funding disparities. Rural commercial properties face an average effective rate of 2.8% in SC, compared to 1.8% nationally; urban manufacturing properties in SC face the 5th highest effective rate in the nation.
• Reform the business license tax structure to eliminate double taxation and create a single payment processor to reduce burdensome compliance costs. This tax is one of the most complex, costly, and burdensome taxes for small businesses in SC

Workforce Development

South Carolina’s business community needs a quality and effective workforce system to sustain and enhance business growth and improve the quality of life for South Carolinians.

• Support efforts to effectively address the teacher recruitment and retention crisis in SC.
• Facilitate workforce development by making housing in high growth areas more attainable.
• Expand career-awareness and training initiatives to fill high demand jobs.
• Make it easier for qualified professionals to be credentialed and certified in SC as healthcare providers, educators, and other professions.

Business leaders across all sectors agree:

“South Carolina’s business license tax system is one of the most costly and burdensome taxes for small businesses. As a business owner that operates stores across many counties in the state, I can tell you from first-hand experience that South Carolina needs to reform the business license tax system,” said Steve Spinks, President and CEO of The Spinx Company.

“South Carolina’s current tax structure was built more for the 1950s economy not the economy we live in today. This creates challenges for individual taxpayers and businesses. We have an opportunity to modernize our tax code with a comprehensive and intentional approach using The Road Map for Tax Reform as a guide,” said Chris Barras, Executive Director of Tax Services at Ernst & Young, LLP.

The Chamber’s Competitiveness Agenda consists of initiatives that impact job creators and businesses from all sectors and all regions of the state. Supporting Competitiveness Agenda items will make South Carolina more competitive for job growth and the overall business climate.