Voters react to major defeat in Charleston County sales tax referendum

CHARLESTON COUNTY, S.C. (WCSC) – Voters weighed in Tuesday night and said no to a Charleston County sales tax referendum, crushing opposition to a tax that would fund transportation, drainage and greenbelt projects.

The much-discussed half-cent sales tax was intended to fund much of the Mark Clark Extension project, which has been proposed to voters and communities for more than a decade.

The ballot measure proposed extending the half-cent sales tax. The tax meant residents would finance $5.4 billion over 25 years. The plan will begin in 2027 to support 22 large-scale transport, drainage and green space projects.

The regulation is planned for $4.9 billion. for transportation projects, of which $2.3 billion will be focused on the Mark Clark expansion. If the project proceeds, it will affect areas of West Ashley, James Island and Johns Island.

Breaking down Monday night’s votes, 61% of voters said “no” to a transportation sales tax and used a referendum, while only 39% of voters chose “yes.”

“I’ve been here so long and the growth has been exponential and the infrastructure doesn’t support rapid growth. It needs to be done,” said Johns Island resident Chris Hall, who voted yes.

This year’s results are a far cry from the 2016 election for a similar half-cent tax, where Charleston County approved the referendum in a close vote with nearly 52% saying yes and 48% of voters saying no.

But some community members were upset after Charleston County officials removed the Mark Clark expansion project from the ballot in a 2016 referendum but later committed to funding the project without voter approval.

“When this referendum took place, people were very upset that they could not get a clear vote; there was no clear understanding of what would be paid for in this referendum,” said Faith River Coastal Conservation League Executive Director James.

“We were able to put together a coalition of people who were very upset last time, who were wondering where those traffic improvements they approved in 2016 were, and were disappointed that they didn’t happen,” she added. .

Voters throughout Charleston County reacted with mixed emotions Wednesday.

Most people surveyed voted against the referendum and were glad to see it fail, but others are disappointed and say something needs to be done soon to combat traffic throughout the Lowcountry.

“The margin of victory was very encouraging. I think the voters sent a very clear signal to the Charleston County Council that they do not want 526, which was clearly the only priority project in this referendum,” James said.

“If there’s one thing we need, it’s infrastructure. It’s unpleasant to move around here; this is very, very bad and doesn’t work. I’m disappointed,” Hall said.

If it had passed, here’s how the referendum funds would have been distributed:

Moving forward, the Coastal Conservation League continues to support the Green Belt program and said the next steps will be research to find solutions to traffic in problem areas.

“We need to be able to solve problems in a more efficient and cost-effective way,” James said. “We can achieve improved traffic flow without importing new traffic through a new interstate, much less an interstate that is paid for primarily by the residents of Charleston County themselves.”

The question now is how will the county fund transportation projects? And will Mark Clark’s expansion die completely?

There are no specific answers yet from Charleston County government, although some county council members expressed their reaction to the results earlier on Wednesday.

Former North Charleston Mayor Keith Summey released the following statement:

Unfortunately, this result means the county will continue to face challenges when it comes to improving safety and ending gridlock in Charleston. There is currently no guaranteed funding for projects included in the referendum, as well as improvements to major intersections, funding for public transport projects and green space conservation.