Why are So Many South Carolina Restaurants, Venues, and Bars Closing?

Quality of Life
Blog · February 4, 2025

If you’ve read or watched the news in South Carolina in the last few years, you likely have noticed a strange and disconcerting phenomenon: scores of restaurants, bars, and music venues have announced their closures. From the iconic Smiley’s Acoustic Cafe in Greenville to Henry’s of Cayce, long-established businesses in the state have been shutting

SC’s New Chief Justice Shuts Down Magistrate Court Conflicts of Interest

Quality of Life
Blog · December 9, 2024

This morning, South Carolina’s new Chief Justice John Kittredge released a new administrative order that brings long-awaited reform to South Carolina’s magistrate court system and shuts down potential for conflict of interest in magistrates’ rulings on cases involving lawyer-legislators. Palmetto Promise has written extensively over the last few years about the need for reform in

Holding Labor Unions Accountable: Doubling Down on Secret Ballots

Quality of Life
Blog · December 3, 2024

South Carolina is recognized nationwide as a state that emphasizes the importance of free enterprise. Businesses are attracted by our competitive tax incentives, the ability of our technical colleges to provide a skilled workforce, and our strong right-to-work culture. But economic development incentives used to lure businesses into the state—often tax breaks—are not open-ended. It

Unfinished Business: The Case for Magistrate Selection Reform in South Carolina

Quality of Life
Blog · October 9, 2024

On July 2, 2024, Governor McMaster signed S.1046 into law. This legislation reforms the process by which South Carolina selects its state judges. Well, most of them. Our declaration of only partial victory is not meant to take away from the fact that S.1046 was indeed a substantial step in the right direction towards full

COMMENTARY: Kamala Harris’ housing plan is bad for South Carolina as state AG Alan Wilson has shown

Quality of Life
Blog · September 13, 2024

This op-ed by President Wendy Damron was originally published in The State. The old saying goes, “I’d rather have a workhorse than a showhorse.” South Carolina is fortunate to have a workhorse in Attorney General Alan Wilson. Since taking office in 2011, he has worked tirelessly to rein in the federal government’s overreach and reinvigorate

Civil Asset Forfeiture: Explanatory Stories and Essential Sources

Quality of Life
Blog · September 9, 2024

Mikee Albin was a 65-year-old Vietnam veteran. He was living in an RV in the parking lot of the restaurant he ran, hoping to build up the business and achieve the American dream of entrepreneurship and homeownership. But his dream was sidetracked…badly sidetracked. Following an undercover investigation at his restaurant, where it was determined that