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Cayce will receive $1 million for ongoing drainage upgrades near the river to address flooding. $5 million will flow into a large Congaree Riverfront development project in Columbia. A Lexington intersection on Sunset Boulevard will see $2 million for improvements.
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Those are just a few of the projects in Richland and Lexington counties receiving a total of roughly $40 million in state money, under a bill signed by Gov. Henry McMaster Tuesday.
The governor approved more than $350 million in spending on community investment projects statewide, commonly known as earmarks.
The money benefits local governments, state agencies and nonprofits. The lawmaker projects were left out of the initial budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1, but the General Assembly came back in late August to pass a deal.
Senators initially proposed $130 million in spending, and House members wanted $315 million. Following negotiations, the House dropped their spending down to $220 million.
McMaster did not veto any individual projects.
“Earmarks have long been part of the budget process, and we have worked over the years to make the process for reviewing them more transparent and accountable to the taxpayers of South Carolina,” McMaster said in a news release. “That has been an ongoing process, and we have continued to strengthen the review of proposed earmarks before taxpayer dollars are committed.”
Projects and programs in Richland and Lexington counties received about $40 million, which includes one earmark for zoos in Greenville and Columbia.
The priciest programs for the two counties include more than $3 million for the University of South Carolina for the Congaree Riverfront District Project, another $5 million for Columbia’s Congaree Riverfront District, $2.4 million for Cayce floodwater removal improvements and $2 million for Hope Ferry Road intersection improvements at Sunset Boulevard in Lexington. State Sen. Darrell Jackson also asked for $3.75 million for The Station at Congaree Point, which made it in to the final spending plan.
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What did General Assembly take out of spending bill?
The cost of earmarks requested by House lawmakers was a sticking point in budget discussions, which dragged on throughout July after the beginning of the fiscal year. As part of the compromise, several initially approved House earmarks were reduced or cut out of the spending plan altogether.
Senate proposals were not reduced by the General Assembly.
In Richland County, money for an economic mobility and business growth plan proposed by state Reps. Leon Howard, D-Richland, and Annie McDaniel, D-Fairfield, was scrapped.
Funding for “Flock drone responder” for the Irmo Police Department was also left out of the final spending plan.
The University of South Carolina’s Congaree Riverfront District Project received just more than $3 million, a roughly $2 million reduction from the initial House budget.
A railroad crossing safety pilot was cut in half from $2.5 million to $1.25 million. A Columbia “Bridge to the Greenway,” proposed by state Rep. Todd Rutherford, will receive $1.83 million of the initially passed $3 million.
Here are other Richland and Lexington counties projects receiving less funding than initially approved by the state House:
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- Town of Springdale – Community Center ($1.6 million reduction)
- City of Cayce – Floodwater Removal Improvements ($1.6 million reduction)
- Greenville Zoo and Riverbanks Zoo ($1.3 million reduction)
- Lexington County – Mission Lexington Community Service Facility ($1.17 million reduction)
- City of Columbia – Neighborhood Revitalization ($560,000 reduction)
- Lexington County – Ballpark Road Baseball Complex ($523,600 reduction)
- South Carolina State Firefighters’ Association – Fire Heritage Center and Museum ($500,000 reduction)
- Warfighters Musculoskeletal Strength and Injury Prevention Program ($500,000 reduction)
- City of Columbia – Devine Street Corridor ($487,500 reduction)
- Towns of Batesburg-Leesville – Haynes Auditorium Renovation ($445,756 reduction)
- Pawmetto Lifeline – Spaying and Neutering Programs ($390,000 reduction)
- Lexington County – Calks Ferry Interchange ($390,000 reduction)
- New Morning – Family Planning Initiative ($390,000 reduction)
- Town of Blythewood – Farmers Market Pavilion ($253,500 reduction)
- City of Columbia – Hampton Park Walking Path Restoration ($195,000 reduction)
- City of Columbia – Fairwold and College Place Housing ($195,000 reduction)
- United Way of the Midlands – Young Men United ($145,000 reduction)
- Richland County – Randolph Cemetery ($50,000 reduction)