Can a gas tax get past Gov. Henry McMaster or the South Carolina Senate?
COLUMBIA — After hours of debate Wednesday, Rep. Gary Simrill emerged from the S.C. House Chamber with his infrastructure bill intact.
The Rock Hill Republican, a 24-year veteran of the Legislature, along with 96 other lawmakers — a veto-proof number — had passed a long-awaited gas tax increase they hope will finance highway and county road improvements around the state for years to come.
The vote was a big victory for the large bipartisan group of representatives eager to increase funding for the state’s roadways, which transportation officials say is woefully underfunded and increasingly dangerous for drivers.
"We're operating on 1987-level dollars for an agency that is in charge of over 40,000 miles of roads," Simrill said, referencing the last time the Legislature passed a gas tax. "Simply put, it can't be done."
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