Impact

Over ten years ago, Travis Brown wrote How Money Walks: How $2 trillion Moved Between States, and Why it Matters. In the foreword, legendary economist Dr. Art Laffer summarized it as a study of “the migration of working wealth as a direct result of personal income tax rates…” Based on IRS tax return data, Brown

UPDATE: Since this article was published April 16, the “magic amendment” passed the SC Senate and on May 1 passed the SC House. The bill as amended was signed into law by Governor McMaster in early May 2025. Today, April 16, is a momentous day for the school choice movement in South Carolina. After weeks

“Parents want and deserve the best education for their children.  But too many children do not thrive in their assigned, government-run K-12 school…  It is the policy of my Administration to support parents in choosing and directing the upbringing and education of their children.”  – President Donald Trump, January 29, 2025  The Educational Choice for

After four weeks of heated debate, in the late hours of the night on March 26, the South Carolina Senate reached an agreement on S.244, the tort reform legislation that aims to make South Carolina’s civil liability system fairer, particularly in complex cases that involve multiple parties.  Senate passage of the bill was a tremendous

As a CPA and tax professional with over 30 years of experience, I’ve seen firsthand how tax policy impacts people’s lives, businesses, and the broader economy. That’s why I strongly support the proposed income tax cut (H.4216) currently under consideration in South Carolina.  Is it perfect? No. But it’s a strong, responsible step in the

Energy policy has long been a balancing act between market competition and regulatory oversight. Traditionally, South Carolina’s electricity market has been dominated by vertically integrated, monopoly utilities that control all three aspects of the power system—generation, transmission, and distribution. So, the Palmetto State has leaned toward regulation. But a relatively simple and proven reform is

This op-ed by Dr. Oran Smith was originally published in the SC Daily Gazette. It is no secret that South Carolina has become a magnet for business, industry, and people. Since 2007, our population has grown by over one million, and the U-Hauls keep coming. The in-migration boom includes manufacturing and high-tech industries as well. This generational change

Shortly after Palmetto Promise Institute was born, we were approached by former state Secretary of Commerce Joe Taylor about weighing in on tax policy. He had seen the ill effects of our broken-down tax system and wanted aggressive reform.   With Taylor’s generous support, we released comprehensive studies by pre-eminent South Carolina economist Dr. Rebecca Gunnlauggsson

This article by Patrick Gleason was originally published in Forbes and quotes Palmetto Promise Senior Fellow Dr. Oran Smith. COLUMBIA, S.C. — 2025 is a big year for tax reform and the work now being done on Capitol Hill to extend the tax relief enacted in 2017 as part of the Tax Cuts And Jobs

You’ve probably heard the saying: “Winning the battle but losing the war.” That’s exactly what the South Carolina General Assembly risks doing if it narrows its focus to fixing liquor liability problems while leaving the rest of our broken civil liability system untouched.  Let’s be clear: Liquor liability is a massive and urgent issue. Over