This year was a milestone for our Association and all county governments as we celebrated 50 years of the Home Rule Act.
SCAC was founded to advocate for Home Rule, and a half a century later our collective voices continue making a difference for all 46 counties.
Through advocacy, education and collaboration, we achieved outstanding results this year including the following highlights:
Advocate for County Government
During the 2025 session of the SC General Assembly, SCAC worked with legislative leaders to ensure:
- Full funding to the Local Government Fund with an increase of over $14.5 million.
- Legislation addressing financial challenges counties face regarding waste tire disposal and management. Act 33 increases tipping fees a county may charge for recycling and disposal of undocumented waste tires to $400 per ton (with an ordinance in place). This law represents collective efforts from SCAC, the South Carolina Manufacturers Alliance and other stakeholders over several years.
- A cleanup to the Law Enforcement/Judicial Privacy Protection Act, which restricts personal contact information of active and former law enforcement and judicial officers from being disclosed on a state or local government website if the officer files a formal request. The requestor must specify which documents contain their personal information.
- Passage of Act 67, which updates the number of litter control officers a county may have based on the most recent census data.
Educate and Build Knowledge
Educate and Build Knowledge
- The Institute of Government for County Officials had 533 registrations representing 340 officials from 46 counties including:
32 Level I graduates
42 Level II graduates - 13 counties presented projects at the annual J. Mitchell Graham and Barrett Lawrimore Memorial Awards competition.
- 55 officials attended SCAC’s inaugural Orientation for Newly Elected Countywide Officials in March.
- 19 policy issues researched to inform county and state leaders.
- 13 scholarships worth $5,000 each were awarded to graduating high school seniors.
- SCAC convened County Finance Roundtables resulting in online resources for navigating workforce and financial management challenges.
Collaborate to Assist Counties as Stewards of Public Resources
- The SC Counties Property and Liability Trust added two counties this year—Georgetown and Oconee.
- More than 60 participants took part in the annual SC Counties Insurance Trusts Membership Meeting, where 21 counties received safety awards.
- Our Home Rule Anniversary video received a state communications award.