Democratic gubernatorial candidate Vince Sheheen wants says the two major issues facing South Carolina are education and tax reform. And if elected he plans to tackle both issues during his first term in office. Sheheen wants to expand 4-year-old kindergarten statewide and increase taxpayer funding of public colleges in exchange for a cap in tuition costs. As a legislator, Sheheen has backed proposals to reform the way the state raises money for schools and to increase teacher pay. The average salary for teachers in S.C. in 2012-2013 was $47,900 Senator Sheheen want to gradually raise that amount to the national average of $56,400 according to the National Center on Education Statistics
Sheheen also said he wants to reform Act 388, the state’s 2006 tax overhaul that critics say led to funding inequities among school districts. That law, which Sheheen opposed, exempted owner-occupied homes from paying property taxes for school operating costs, placing that burden instead on other properties, including businesses. Sheheen said he would abolish local property taxes for school operating expenses, replacing them with what he said would be a low, statewide property tax on nonresidential properties. That way, poorer rural districts can benefit from other areas experiencing economic growth, he said. Tax reform could determine whether the state has “an equitable school system across the state,” Sheheen said. “South Carolina is either in it together or we’re not. Either the state is going to continue to move forward together or we’re not.”
South Carolina Association of Taxpayers 