PrintPrintThe two candidates for S.C. governor took shots at the S.C. Department of Commerce before about 250 business leaders Wednesday in Greenville. They discussed economic development, education, workers’ compensation, tort reform and comprehensive tax reform at the Upstate SC Alliance's midyear meeting in Greenville.
By Francis B. Allgood
fallgood@scbiznews.com
Published Aug. 26, 2010
Two things are certain: The next governor will be the first graduate of Clemson University since the election of Strom Thurmond in 1947; and both candidates are distancing themselves from the previous administration.
Democrat Vincent Sheheen and Republican Nikki Haley both took shots at the S.C. Department of Commerce before about 250 business leaders Wednesday in Greenville.
“The Commerce Department under the Haley administration is going to have a very aggressive commerce director who understands it’s not about the quantity of companies that are coming in but the quality of companies that are coming in,” Haley said.
Sheheen said the governor has to be personally engaged in recruitment of business and industry. He cited current governors in other states and past S.C. governors — none of whom have served in the past 15 years — who he said were involved in recruitment.
“We need a Department of Commerce that functions, and functions well,” he added. “I want to rebuild the links between the (regional) associations and the Department of Commerce and rebuild the links between the governor’s office and the Department of Commerce.”
Haley and Sheheen each spoke for 30 minutes at the Upstate SC Alliance’s midyear meeting held at Clemson University’s International Center for Automotive Research. They discussed economic development, education, workers’ compensation, tort reform and comprehensive tax reform.
Both want a simpler tax code, but they differ on how to achieve that goal. One key area of difference is how to handle the corporate income tax.
“We need to eliminate the corporate income tax,” Haley said. “When you give businesses cash flow — when you give them profit margins — the first thing they do is hire people. They invest back into their state.”
She said South Carolina could build upon being a right-to-work state by being a “no corporate income tax” state.
Sheheen said South Carolina has one of the lowest corporate income tax rates in the nation.
“That proposal specifically will help very few businesses in South Carolina because the vast majority of businesses in South Carolina pay no corporate income tax,” he said. “If we are going to keep doing the same things we’ve been doing over the past eight years, we all as citizens of South Carolina better get used to very high unemployment rates.”
Sheheen spoke of a government that doesn’t divide, but unites. South Carolina needs to increase funding to its higher education system, invest in alternative energy initiatives and expand the port system, he said.
“If we are going to brag about our port, we have to be committed to improving our port,” Sheheen said. He supports a designated earmark in the federal budget for dredging at the ports. “That’s how we dredge ports in this country. I’m willing to go to bat for this state to get our port expanded.”
Haley spoke of reforming the property tax system, supporting school choice and enacting term limits for legislators. She also vowed to make government more transparent.
“You’ve got attorneys that turn around and serve on these committees that affect workers’ comp, work the system all the way, but when they get to the floor, they recuse themselves,” Haley said. “It’s not that they recuse themselves on the floor; they shouldn’t be able to serve on those committees. That’s a direct conflict of interest.”
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