New report puts dollar figure on impact of infrastructure spending in SC

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) – Billions of dollars in recent years have been spent on improving South Carolina’s roads, bridges, sewers, drinking water and even broadband.

A new report has found the payoff, in terms of dollars, has far exceeded those major infrastructure expenditures.

The study, conducted by economists at the University of South Carolina, determined infrastructure investments across South Carolina are expected to generate a $56.2 billion impact on the state’s economy over a seven-year period.

“Because of the growth that we’re seeing in South Carolina, infrastructure investments now provide a unique opportunity to invest in the future of this state and to ensure that we’re able to remain economically competitive,” Joey Von Nessen, a research economist at USC’s Darla Moore School of Business, who conducted the study, said.

The study weighed how these investments yield both short-term economic impacts, like money spent on construction and design work, and long-term, permanent benefits, like job creation and attracting new businesses.

Von Nessen said if the investment in South Carolina’s infrastructure continues at current levels, employment will permanently go up by as many as 157,000 additional jobs.

With about a quarter of all South Carolinians crossing county lines on their daily commutes, better infrastructure keeps the workforce working.

“For rural communities, infrastructure isn’t just about convenience; it’s about making connections,” South Carolina Rural Infrastructure Authority Executive Director Bonnie Ammons said.

The American Council of Engineering Companies of South Carolina commissioned the report — in part, it said, to show federal and state leaders the value of spending billions of dollars on infrastructure.

The study looks at the period from 2021 to 2027, during which South Carolina received massive influxes of one-time money from the federal government.

Much of that was specifically earmarked for infrastructure, and the General Assembly has added hundreds of millions more dollars to the effort in recent state budgets.

“I think there’s going to be a dialogue in DC about how we can maintain the investment that’s been made in there. I think there’s also a really big opportunity to look at how can we cut red tape, how can we cut the regulatory hurdles so we can deliver projects faster as a result,” South Carolina Secretary of Transportation Justin Powell said.

While money for road and bridge improvement comprises a significant portion of South Carolina’s infrastructure investments, this report also evaluated billions of dollars the state has spent and received in recent years on sewer and stormwater, drinking water and broadband.

This is the first time this study was conducted, and it focused mainly on money from the federal government, along with allocations from the state’s General Assembly for roads.

The group that commissioned it plans to update the report in future years, with more data from other forms of state funding and even local dollars.

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