McMaster delivers 2025 South Carolina State of the State address

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - Gov. Henry McMaster laid out his priorities for the year ahead to state lawmakers and to South Carolinians.

The governor delivered his annual address in Columbia on a historic day for South Carolina and him personally.

Wednesday marked the day Governor Henry McMaster became the longest-serving governor in state history.

While the governor himself did not acknowledge the achievement during his speech, he did share his outlook for how to best prepare South Carolina for prosperity many years into the future.

“So we should ask: What will South Carolina look like in 100 years? Which begs the question: What do we want it to look like?” McMaster said.

McMaster said much of it starts with investments.

The governor is asking lawmakers to put hundreds of millions of dollars over the next year ― toward fixing South Carolina’s roads and bridges, paying state law enforcement more, and helping the state recover from Hurricane Helene.

He also wants them to raise teachers’ minimum pay to $50,000 and cut the state’s top income tax rate to 6%, saying it should ultimately be eliminated altogether.

“That’s what the people want and that’s what we’re gonna give them,” McMaster said.

From a policy standpoint, McMaster urged the legislature to get a number of bills to his desk as soon as possible.

They include one that’s under debate in the Senate right now ― to reinstate a plan to give certain families public dollars, to send their children to private schools ― a plan the state Supreme Court struck down last year as unconstitutional.

“Parents, not school attendance lines, should determine the education that best suits their child’s unique needs,” he said.

McMaster also urged lawmakers to fix South Carolina’s tort law – a complicated legal challenge that, in part, has led to skyrocketing liquor liability insurance costs that have made it unaffordable for bars and restaurants around the state to stay open.

“Individuals and businesses, both large and small, are becoming unduly penalized for the actions of others – too often through crippling financial judgments and skyrocketing insurance s,” he said. “I ask the General Assembly to find a commonsense solution.”

Much of the governor’s top policy requests are in alignment with the General Assembly’s including ing an energy reform bill this year.

McMaster also delivered a public show of Wednesday for a potential revival of the failed VC Summer nuclear site with state-owned utility Santee Cooper now seeking *private companies to buy and finish the job.

“I believe that restarting these two reactors will not only help fuel our state’s future power needs, but will also usher in a nuclear power renaissance across the country,” he said.

Sen. Margie Bright Matthews, D-Colleton, delivered the Democrat’s response.

She called attention to an issue McMaster ignored – the state’s ongoing financial troubles centered on a reported $1.8 billion surplus recently found to actually be an ing error.

These problems have landed South Carolina under federal investigation.

“The buck stops with you, Gov. McMaster. Republicans have controlled our state government for over 20 years,” she said. “Your party has a super-majority in the House and Senate. The people of South Carolina would be appalled to learn that this fiscal fiasco in the Treasurer’s Office dates back to 2017.”

But McMaster says South Carolina’s best days are still ahead of it, and called on the General Assembly and the people they represent to work together with civility to get there.

“And let us set our State on a course that will provide the opportunity for prosperity, success, and happiness for generations of South Carolinians. The best is yet to come,” he said.

Wednesday’s speech marked McMaster’s eighth State of the State address and the second-to-last of his time as South Carolina’s governor.

Copyright 2025 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.