SC lawmakers dig into what is driving economic growth

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - South Carolina continues to attract new residents at one of the fastest rates in the country, but lawmakers say they still have questions about what is driving that growth and how the state should prepare for it.

Members of the Senate Special Committee on Growth heard Thursday from analysts with the South Carolina Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office, who outlined demographic trends showing the state’s population continues to expand through migration from other states.

According to the agency, South Carolina added roughly 80,000 residents between 2024 and 2025, the fifth-largest population increase in the nation. Most of that growth came from people relocating from other states, many of them age 65 and older.

“I think any data is good data you can make determinations from,” said Sen. Sean Bennett, chairman of the Senate Special Committee on Growth.

Officials told the committee the state’s next several decades could look very different from its recent past as population trends reshape demand for government services. The majority of those moving here are seniors, that require more services.

“Our next 30 years are not going to look like the last 30 years. Those services that we provided, the focus of the state on where we were growing our economy, all of that is shifting and that is going to present challenges as we go through,” said Lisa Joliff, director of the Fiscal Analysis Division at the South Carolina Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office.

State projections show South Carolina’s population reaching approximately 6.6 million by 2040, an increase of about 1.5 million people from the 2020 Census.

The growth is already showing up on the state’s roadways. According to data presented to lawmakers, vehicle miles traveled are increasing by about 1.6% annually, outpacing the state’s 1.2% annual population growth rate and raising new concerns about future transportation needs.

Analysts also highlighted changes in education trends. While traditional public-school enrollment is expected to decline, homeschooling has grown significantly since the pandemic, roughly 20,000 students to 40,000, and enrollment in charter and private schools continues to increase.

“We have a big shift going on. A lot of growth is going into those charter school districts. The number of students in regular school districts is actually declining and so that also presents a challenge because the state pays a bigger share of the support for charter school districts,” Joliff said.

For lawmakers, one of the biggest unanswered questions is not who is moving to South Carolina or where they are settling, but why they are choosing the state in the first place.

Bennett, said lawmakers still need more data to determine which factors are driving the influx of residents.

“Has our changed tax policy over the last five years attracted people, how much of that was just through our economic growth activities, how much of it is just seniors deciding we want a warmer climate? I mean we don’t know the answers to those,” Bennett said.

Lawmakers say understanding those motivations could help shape future policies as the state works to address growth-related challenges, including transportation, infrastructure and services for an aging population.

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