April 2025: Advocacy Updates

Local Updates

• A special election has been set for May 27 to fill three vacant seats on the North Charleston City Council after federal corruption charges were announced against three council members. - via Charleston City Paper 

• Take the 5-minute King Street Business Improvement District 2025 Survey to help the BID prioritize areas of work that need improvement and measure progress toward established goals. 

• The Town of Mount Pleasant's 2024 Annual Report is now available. This year’s report focuses on the theme of connectivity and how our people, projects, and progress continue to link together to build a stronger, more resilient community. View the report online here. 

• Transportation win: Earlier this week Charleston County leaders broke ground on safety improvement projects along Woodland Shores Road and Maybank Highway. The projects will last around 18 months and aim to enhance safety and connectivity for pedestrians, bicyclists, and drivers. 

• Housing win: Charleston County announced on March 27 that it has set aside more than $8 million of its tourism taxes to create a loan fund to bring more affordable housing to the area. Via Post and Courier 

• Charleston County is considering adding development impact fees to developers to help them offset the cost of increased services. - via Live5News 

• Mike Tinkey recently won a special election for a seat on Town of Mount Pleasant town council. – via Post and Courier 

Statehouse Updates

• Liquor Liability: On March 6, the House unanimously passed H. 3497, also known as the liquor liability bill (unique from the broader proposed bill in the Senate, S.244), as an attempt to address the threat of bars and restaurants closing due to skyrocketing liquor liability insurance costs. This bill has moved to the Senate chamber and resides currently in the judiciary committee. - via SC Public Radio  
  
  S.422 passed in the Senate on Mar 26 with a vote of 35-7 after some amendments and compromise, and now heads on to the House where its future is uncertain. - via SC Lede podcast by SC Public Radio 

• In a recent unanimous 108-0 vote, the House passed H. 3021 — the so-called Small Business Regulatory Act — which, among other things, would require a thorough review of regulations every eight years. It now resides in a Senate committee. 

• Courtney Waters recently won a special election to fill a vacated SC House of Representatives seat for District 113 – via WCIV ABC News 4 

Federal Updates

• Via ILSR: The House Small Business Committee wants to hear directly from small business owners about the impact of the sweeping tariffs recently enacted by President Trump. Your input is critical in helping us understand the challenges you may face and ensuring that small business concerns are represented in policy discussions. Please take a few minutes to complete our brief survey: [https://forms.gle/JEzbvxNZUwRXvPRt6]  
  
  Your responses will remain confidential and will be used to inform policymakers about the real-world effects of these tariffs on small businesses. The survey should take no more than 5-10 minutes, and we greatly appreciate your time.  

• Speaking of tariff impacts – see our take as we start to hear from locals on how they’re already being impacted: “The Squeeze on Local: Tariffs, Stockpiling, and Rising Costs” 

 Questions? Comments? Email jordan@lowcountrylocalfirst.org.