Category: News

As a kid, do you remember when your dad gave you an allowance and said, 'This is all you are getting, so make it last'? A simple command to follow, and for the most part, you did as you were told. This rationale clearly does not apply to South Carolina’s treatment of its fiscal responsibilities. Enacted in 1979 through Act No. 199, Part II, Section 8 (codified as Section 2-7-65), zero-based budgeting was designed to prevent unchecked spending growth by requiring agencies to justify every dollar from scratch each year. For nearly 30 years, this law served South Carolinians well, promoting efficiency and protecting taxpayer dollars. However, since 2009—amid the Great Recession—elected officials have ignored this mandate, reverting to incremental budgeting that justifies only new spending. This failure has allowed the state budget to balloon exponentially, eroding public trust and burdening future generations with unsustainable debt and taxes. Proof of Exponential Budget Growth Due to Non-Adherence (Since 2008) The unchecked growth in...

Written by Timothy J. Hegarty, A Concerned Citizen of York County: As a concerned citizen, I have tracked the Silfab Solar issue very closely in the last two years since I first became aware of it. I think it is fair to say that I am very well acquainted with the specific details of this issue. While there have been many perplexing opinions, statements, and events that have occurred in this attempt to justify an unlawful development, there are two that are especially conspicuous to me. The first one has to do with comments from elected officials and York County staff that Silfab has somehow been granted a development right, which I will address in the following paragraphs. The second one has to do with the fact that Silfab Solar has been allowed to file a legal appeal (June 28, 2024) in our court system to challenge the May 9, 2024, Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) ruling that they claim “aggrieved” them...

Written by Timothy J. Hegarty, A Concerned Citizen of York County: A very simple dictionary definition of “bias” is “an inclination or preference for or against an individual or group that interferes with impartial judgment “. Remember this statement, as it will relate to the story below. If you’ve read the previously posted “Damn the Citizens, Full Speed Ahead! in York County” article, then you have a thorough understanding of many of the actions and/or inactions that have contributed to the attempt to foist the Silfab Solar chemical manufacturing facility onto the citizens of Fort Mill. What you may not know is that the Fort Mill School Board (FMSB) and District have played a passive role to date in allowing this to happen. The Fort Mill School District (FMSD) is, without a doubt, the most influential adjoining property owner to the Silfab Solar location and may share the largest common property line. In their capacity as an adjoining, thereby aggrieved, property owner, the...

Written by Timothy J. Hegarty, A Concerned Citizen of York County: When Admiral David Farragut shouted, “Damn the Torpedoes, Full Speed Ahead!” at the Battle of Mobile Bay in August 1864, it was viewed as a bold, reckless statement in the face of overwhelming odds. Fast forward to today, and with slight editing, the statement very much applies to the Silfab Solar production facility in Fort Mill, SC, specifically the reckless part. Silfab Solar plans to manufacture solar cells and solar modules, which involve the use of extremely hazardous chemicals. It started out as “bold”. The Biden administration introduced the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which did nothing of the sort. What it did was earmark billions of dollars in incentives and tax credits to boost solar production within the US. It’s been referred to as reshoring solar production because 50 years ago, the US was the leading solar energy producer in the world. Not so today. It was “overwhelming odds” because we’ve been...

Photograph from CAGI History of the Issue Zoning issues have broad implications for the health and safety of nearby citizens. Silfab Solar is constructing a solar panel manufacturing plant in Fort Mill, South Carolina directly off Highway 21 near the I-77 interchange and surrounded by residential housing and adjacent to two public schools. The facility is being built in an area zoned as “Light Industrial” by the York County Zoning Department sparking significant controversy whether such an operation is appropriate for the location. The Rockefeller Group originally purchased the vacant building for $9 million. It now has a real estate deal in place to sell the building for $106 million to Exeter, with Silfab as the tenant. In December 2022, a York County zoning technician, not the Zoning Administrator, issued a letter stating that Silfab’s production may be permitted in the Light Industrial zone. The letter stated, the use described in your request (manufacturing of photovoltaic cells and PV modules) is considered electrical...

Written by: Eamon Flynn, Second Year Student at the University of South Carolina Joseph F. Rice School of Law It is no secret that the American legal system is slow. A harm is suffered, a complaint is filed and responded to, discovery is conducted, and parties file motions, all before a trial is conducted. Then, the trial process itself occurs, which can take a lengthy period, depending on the facts of the case. Once a decision is made, post-trial motions can be filed, and the decision can be appealed, which lengthens the process even further. It can take years for any kind of civil case to be settled, and public interest cases tend to take longer than most other kinds of cases to be decided. SCPIF's Litigation Out of eight pending cases the South Carolina Public Interest Foundation (SCPIF) is involved in, two have been going on for a year, two have been for two years, three have been going on for more...

Written by: Laird Minor, Eamon Flynn The Lawsuit A suit was brought against Clemson University over its “life trustees” serving on their board of trustees. NOLAS Trading Co. and John Sloan, taking over from his father, Ned Sloan, brought suit against Clemson over these trustees. Plaintiffs argued that these trustees violated the South Carolina Constitution of 1895, which states that no public officer, other than officers of the militia or notaries public, can serve for life or for good behavior. Thomas Clemson’s will states, “The university shall be under the management and control of a board of thirteen trustees, composed of the seven members nominated by the will and their successors, and six members to be elected by the General Assembly in joint assembly.” The will was accepted by the State legislature in 1894, a year before it adopted the South Carolina Constitution of 1895, which prohibits the appointment of public officers, such as the life trustees mentioned in the will. Clemson defended the...

A significant constitutional dispute over Clemson University’s Board of Trustees is making its way through South Carolina’s court system. The case, brought by NOLAS Trading Co. and Ned Sloan, later taken over by his son, John Sloan challenges the appointment and service terms of the university’s lifetime trustees. Background and Legal Framework Clemson University was established through the will of Thomas G. Clemson, which provided for seven “Life Trustees” to govern the institution alongside six trustees elected by the State for four-year terms. These life trustees, originally appointed by Clemson’s will, have operated as a self-perpetuating group since the university’s founding, with existing life trustees appointing replacements when vacancies occur through either death or resignation. The constitutional challenge centers on two key restrictions found in South Carolina Constitution of 1895 which established no person may be “elected or appointed” to office in the state for life or during good behavior, and all officers must serve terms “for some specified period” except for notaries...

A South Carolina judge has upheld SLED's usage of Automated License Plate Readers (ALPRs) in South Carolina. ALPRs have been placed throughout the state and indiscriminately capture the license plates of all those who drive through their field of view. After tracking the license plates, that information would be retained in a database for up to a year. As of June 2023, 431 million data entries pinpointing the precise timestamped location of drivers across South Carolina were stored in that database. More than 99.8% of those location observations had no connection to any vehicle of interest to law enforcement at the time that data was captured. Due to the use of ALPRs and the database, SCPIF filed a complaint against the State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) in April 2023 arguing SLED use these systems without legislative permission. On May 12, 2025, Judge Thomas W. McGee III of the Richland County Court of Common Pleas granted SLEDs motion for summary judgment, allowing...

In Oconee County, South Carolina, there’s something in the water–taxation. In the fall of 2023, the county issued $25 million in bonds to fund wastewater and sewer treatment for an area near Interstate I-85, but it only benefits part of the county. When the bond proposal was first discussed during County Council meetings, several citizens took issue with the idea and attempted to engage the council to express their concerns.  With no firm budget being presented on how the bond monies would be spent, the group publicly called for a town hall meeting to discuss the issues and question the legality of the proposal.  That offer was firmly rejected, and the county quickly moved to secure the bond amidst public opposition.  The public learned shortly after that the bond was secured, and the monies were to be spent on sewer expansion.  It was then that the citizens approached SCPIF for legal help. Knowing this was a blatant violation of the clear...