Growth in our region is something we all experience, but in different ways. Some feel it in their commute. Others see it in the schools their families depend on or in the way their communities are growing around them.
On November 3, Charleston County voters will have a say in how some of those needs are addressed.
When voters go to the polls, they will see three related questions: the half-cent transportation sales tax, a bond tied to the transportation sales tax that would help approved projects move forward sooner and the Charleston County School District penny sales tax.
Through the YES for CHS campaign, the Chamber is supporting all three measures, including the continuation of two long-standing sales taxes that have funded major school and transportation investments across Charleston County for decades.
For businesses across our region, schools and transportation have a direct connection to the people they rely on every day. Workers need to be able to get where they are going reliably, families need strong schools and employers need a region where people want to build their careers and lives.
When those pieces are working well, businesses are better positioned to recruit, retain and support the people they depend on.
That concern extends beyond Charleston County. In the Chamber’s inaugural Lowcountry Pulse poll, 59% of likely voters across Charleston, Berkeley and Dorchester counties said investing in infrastructure was the better way to manage growth, while more than three-quarters said infrastructure investment is critical to managing it.
Investing in Continued Progress in Our Schools
The schools students attend today are helping prepare the workforce our region will depend on tomorrow.
The Charleston County School District penny helps support the facilities where that learning happens. The current one-cent sales tax program runs through 2028, where the continuation would begin in 2029 and run through 2034, funding new and replacement schools, renovations, major maintenance, technology and safety improvements.
Those priorities were shaped by the needs of schools across the district. Charleston County School District reviewed the condition of its facilities, changes in student population and educational needs, while also gathering input through 17 community sessions and nearly 1,300 survey responses.
The resulting capital plan includes projects that will help schools across the district keep pace with growth and support student success.
Explore the Charleston County School District’s Capital Projects Master Plan.
Investing in How Our Region Moves
For workers across the region, transportation affects more than how long it takes to get to work. It shapes which jobs are within reach, how easily people can move between communities and how reliably they can get where they need to go each day.
That is especially important in Charleston County, where roads carry people from across the Lowcountry to work, school, appointments and other destinations every day. When a major corridor backs up or an intersection can no longer effectively handle the traffic it carries, the impact can quickly extend beyond one community.
The proposed transportation program would continue investments in road improvements, resurfacing, intersection projects, public transit, bicycle and pedestrian connections and conservation.
Of the $4.25 billion program, $2.7 billion would be dedicated to roads and infrastructure, $858 million to public transit and $690 million to the Greenbelt Program. Those investments would continue more than two decades of transportation work supported through the half-cent sales tax.
Explore the proposed projects, ballot questions, answers to frequently asked questions and more.
How the Transportation Bond Fits In
Voters will also see a separate question about a transportation bond.
The bond would allow Charleston County to borrow against future transportation sales-tax revenue so approved projects could begin sooner rather than waiting for that revenue to accumulate over time. It would not create another sales tax.
The transportation tax and the bond work together but serve different purposes. One provides the funding for the program, while the other would give the county the ability to move approved projects forward quicker, mitigating project expenses from rising with time.
What Charleston County Voters Will Decide
On November 3, Charleston County voters will consider three related questions:
- The half-cent transportation sales tax, which would fund $4.25 billion in roads and infrastructure, public transit and the Greenbelt Program.
- The transportation bond, which would allow the county to borrow against transportation sales-tax revenue so approved projects could begin sooner. It is not a separate sales tax.
- The Charleston County School District penny, which would continue the one-cent sales tax for the district’s next capital program.
The Chamber supports a YES vote on all three questions.
The needs behind these measures will not disappear if the proposals do not move forward. Schools will continue to age, roads and intersections will continue to carry growing demand and our region will continue competing for the people and businesses that will shape its future.
What voters decide this November will influence how prepared Charleston County is to meet those needs for years to come.
For those who want to take another step, YES for CHS has created a toolkit with social media and email resources that can be used to share information with coworkers, friends, family and others in your network.
