(Columbia, SC) – In a press conference held earlier today, Legislative Leaders along with Economic Development Industry Leaders met to unveil an outline for South Carolina’s future economic success and job creation plan.  This Future Economic Development Blueprint was formulated by the collective efforts from Legislative Leaders, the South Carolina Research Authority (SCRA), our state’s Research Universities and private sector leaders. 

To stress the goal of job creation and to highlight our state’s high unemployment rate, participants met at the South Carolina Employment Security Commission – the acting unemployment office for far too many South Carolinians. 

Using less economic development tools than are available today, Governor Campbell’s and Governor Beasley’s administrations were successful in attracting businesses and creating jobs for our state.  Under their leadership, our unemployment rate was one of the best in the nation, climbing as high as third best.  Now, despite having more tools available to improve economic soil conditions, we have fallen to one of the worst unemployment rates in the nation and lag behind our neighboring states when it comes to average income levels. 

Because of these current conditions, leaders felt the need for a unified framework that both the government and the private sector can use to grow our state’s economy and actively combat our high unemployment rate and below average per capita income. 

The plan – detailed in a letter sent to Economic Development Contributors all over our state by House Speaker Bobby Harrell, Senate President Pro Tempore Glenn McConnell, House Ways & Means Chairman Dan Cooper and Senate Finance Chairman Hugh Leatherman – combines past legislative efforts with an outline of future collaborative execution to help us accomplish our overall goal of creating more high-paying jobs in South Carolina. 

Speaker Bobby Harrell – who has been a State and National Co-Chair for the McCain Campaign since February 2008 – echoed Presidential candidate John McCain’s recent statement that “Jobs are the most important thing our economy creates.”

“The number one issue facing our state for the next two decades is our economy.  Our state has held the title of ‘One of the Worst Unemployment Rates in the Nation’ for far too long,” Speaker Harrell said.  “The General Assembly has been doing everything it can to provide the tools necessary to change that and create the jobs our citizens so desperately need.” 

Harrell continued, “However, the past few years of inaction and missed opportunities has shown us that if we truly want those high-paying jobs created, we must not only provide the means but also the execution.  Especially now, given the current state of our national economy and our high unemployment rate, we can no longer wait for that leadership to present itself.”

The plan for South Carolina’s future economic success breaks down our state’s current economic structure and identifies the primary forces driving each sector.  The strategy for economic growth and job creation relies on a mutual effort to expand those current sectors with a focus on growing our budding Knowledge-Based Economy. 

With each independent sector related and dependent on the others for its own success and growth, the expansion of our Knowledge-Based Economy will act as the best catalyst, spurring accelerated growth and job creation across the board.

Senate President Pro Tempore Glenn McConnell said, “In laying out this vision for job creation and future economic success, we are trying to send a message to the private sector that the South Carolina Legislature is fully dedicated to this effort.”

Senator McConnell added, “These initiatives will require an intensely unified working partnership to produce our intended result of creating a large number of high-paying jobs.  With our continued commitment to the private sector and a strong collaborative effort in the execution of this plan, we are confident that our state and our citizens will see huge successes in the future.”

One of the initial steps the plan calls for, is for the SCRA to act as a facilitator and guide in expanding our Knowledge-Based Economy by creating a “Knowledge Sector Council”.  This more structured public/private consortium will help us ensure that our collective efforts are focused, coordinated and maximized.  And most importantly, show us where our successes are and how we can improve. 

By building on the recent – and future – actions of the General Assembly, we will help foster innovations and advancements that will enable all of our economic sectors to grow and produce the targeted jobs we are trying to bring to South Carolina. 

“These plans encompass all aspects of industry and all sectors of our economy,” Speaker Harrell said.  “While some areas of this plan are detailed and will require a huge collaborative undertaking, we must never lose sight of our intended goal – creating more high-paying jobs for South Carolinians.”

Harrell continued, “The ground work for this success has already been laid by the many efforts of the General Assembly and other involved parties.  We only need the leadership and framework to combine those efforts and take that next step forward.”

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