President Ashley Landess Subsidiaries The Nerve | Established 1986 Budget $1,011,022 (2014) | |
Motto "To promote freedom, to protect freedom, and to prove that freedom works." | ||
The South Carolina Policy Council (SCPC) is a limited-government think tank located in Columbia, South Carolina. The organization's stated mission is "to promote the principles of limited government, free enterprise, and individual liberty and responsibility in the state of South Carolina." SCPC operates The Nerve, a news and investigative reporting website.
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Government integrity
Since 2011 SCPC has contended that the main obstacle to free market reforms in South Carolina isn't a lack of public support but an unaccountable legislative elite whose goal is to preserve power. In February 2013, SCPC filed a complaint against Bobby Harrell, South Carolina's Republican Speaker of the House. The complaint alleged that Harrell had committed a variety of abuses of office, including using public office for personal gain. In October 2014, Harrell pleaded guilty to misconduct in office and resigned his position.
Roll-call voting
SCPC is known for having originated the idea of mandatory roll-call voting in the South Carolina General Assembly (an idea then Rep. Nikki Haley used as the centerpiece of her campaign for governor) and for its detailed explanations of policies and legislation on government restructuring, school choice, government spending, taxes, regulation, and health care.
Health care
The Policy Council has opposed the Affordable Care Act and argued that, despite claims made by Gov. Haley and others, South Carolina has in fact expanded Medicaid by sharply increasing the number of people enrolled in the federal program. In 2014, SCPC's president, Ashley Landess, was interviewed on The Daily Show regarding the group's opposition to Medicaid expansion.