South Carolina lawmakers examine rapid population growth

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 8 Oct, 23:48 · Archive

South Carolina added roughly 80,000 residents between 2024 and 2025, the fifth-largest increase in the nation.

South Carolina added roughly 80,000 residents between 2024 and 2025, making it the fifth-largest population increase in the nation. Members of the Senate Special Committee on Growth heard from analysts with the South Carolina Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office on Thursday, who outlined demographic trends showing the state's population continues to expand through migration from other states. Most of that growth came from people relocating from other states, many of them age 65 and older.

State projections show South Carolina's population reaching approximately 6.6 million by 2040, an increase of about 1.5 million people from the 2020 Census. Officials told the committee the state's next several decades could look very different from its recent past as population trends reshape demand for government services. Lisa Joliff, director of the Fiscal Analysis Division at the South Carolina Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office, said: 'Our next 30 years are not going to look like the last 30 years. Those services that we provided, the focus of the state on where we were growing our economy, all of that is shifting and that is going to present challenges as we go through.' Senator Sean Bennett, chairman of the committee, said: 'I think any data is good data you can make determinations from.'

How it is being reported

• SC lawmakers dig into what is driving economic growthSouth Carolina continues to attract new residents at one of the fastest rates in the country, but lawmakers say they still have questions about what is driving that growth and how the state should prepare for it.WISTV · 8 Oct, 23:34
• SC lawmakers dig into what’s driving record growthSouth Carolina continues to attract new residents at one of the fastest rates in the country, but lawmakers say they still have questions about what is driving that growth and how the state should prepare for it.Live5News · 8 Oct, 23:03

In this story: South Carolina · Senate Special Committee on Growth · South Carolina Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office · Sean Bennett · Lisa Joliff

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