South Carolina Senate Democrats Call for Answers About Delayed Small Business and Nonprofit Aid

Today the South Carolina Senate Democratic Caucus released the following statement regarding delays in small business and nonprofit aid from the Department of Administration:

“In the midst of a holiday season when South Carolinians are already struggling to make ends meet, we’ve recently learned that the Department of Administration has delayed sending $65 million in aid to small businesses and nonprofits across our state. These grants may have been the last vital lifeline that saved shops, restaurants, and organizations who have been scraping by through the pandemic, but when they needed the help of Governor McMaster and his Department of Administration most, they didn’t show up.

“Those who oversaw this situation and the distribution process of these grants knew there would be a large volume of applicants— but they never took action to mitigate what would end up being a bureaucratic disaster. The Department of Administration and Governor McMaster dangled hope in front of the faces of business owners and nonprofits only to snatch it away at the last minute and tell them to wait. The reality is that many of those who had requested this help won’t make it long enough to see a grant. The Governor claims that South Carolina’s economy is better positioned than almost any other in the country, but when family businesses lining our main streets will have to permanently close their doors over the holidays, how are we to believe that?

“The lack of urgency displayed by those in power while South Carolinians struggle is disgraceful. We’re calling for a Senate Committee to be formed to investigate what exactly went wrong, and who should be held accountable. Hard working folks across our state have been through far too much this year to have us sit back and ignore when they are wronged. We demand answers on behalf of those who hoped their state government would lend them help, but never got it.“

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