In his final State of the State address to the General Assembly, South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster on Wednesday urged lawmakers to approve major investments in education, infrastructure and land conservation as part of his executive budget proposal.
McMaster called on legislators to raise the state’s base teacher salary above $50,000, expand access to four-year-old kindergarten, and spend millions to protect additional acres of land across the state.
The governor also emphasized the need for more funding to keep transportation projects on track. He said South Carolina currently has nearly $7 billion in active transportation projects underway, up from $2.7 billion in 2017, but warned rising costs threaten progress.
“Inflationary construction and labor costs threaten to create crippling delays and busted budgets,” McMaster said, calling on lawmakers to invest an additional $1.1 billion in surplus funds to keep projects moving and on schedule.
According to South Carolina Public Radio, McMaster also renewed his push to change how judges are selected, calling for governors to nominate judges with confirmation by the state Senate. He also urged lawmakers to enact magistrate reforms, including requiring magistrates to be attorneys and eliminating county residency requirements.
McMaster has served as governor since 2017. South Carolina law limits governors to two elected terms, making this his final State of the State address.
