Economic development set-aside program
South Carolina’s Economic Development Set-Aside Program provides discretionary grant funding to help address infrastructure, site and real property needs associated with qualifying business location and expansion projects.
Funding is awarded to eligible local governments on behalf of economic development projects and can help reduce the cost of improvements needed to move a competitive project forward.
Overview
The Economic Development Set-Aside Program is administered by the South Carolina Coordinating Council for Economic Development (Coordinating Council) and is one of the state’s primary discretionary tools for supporting new and expanding businesses.
Set-Aside funding is primarily used for real property improvements, road improvements, water and sewer infrastructure and site preparation associated with business location and expansion. Assistance may be considered for qualifying projects anywhere in South Carolina, regardless of county development tier.
Companies do not apply directly for Set-Aside grants. For business development projects, the local government serves as the grant applicant and recipient, while SC Commerce works with the company and local partners to identify potential project needs.
Eligibility
Set-Aside funding may support qualifying activities such as:
- Road improvements
- Water and wastewater infrastructure
- Planning and certain engineering costs
- Right-of-way acquisition
- Drainage and related improvements
- Site preparation, including surveying, environmental and geotechnical work, clearing, filling and grading
- Fiber optic infrastructure
- Rail spurs
- Land acquisition
- Acquisition and improvement of real property
- Certain pollution control equipment
- Certain qualifying employee relocation expenses
Eligible activities depend on the project and applicable Coordinating Council requirements.
Set-Aside assistance may be considered for qualifying projects anywhere in South Carolina, regardless of county development tier.
How funding works
Set-Aside funding is discretionary and is evaluated on a project-by-project basis.
For competitive business development projects, the Coordinating Council considers factors such as:
- Number and type of jobs created
- Anticipated wages
- Capital investment
- Industry and project type
- Project competitiveness
- Infrastructure needs
- Project cost and cost-effectiveness
- Other available funding
- Anticipated economic benefits
Business development awards are tied to specific job creation and capital investment commitments.
Performance agreements allow the Coordinating Council to recapture a portion of grant funding if those commitments are not met.
Application process
For business development projects, an SC Commerce project manager works with the company and local government to identify specific funding needs and develop preliminary project information.
If the project meets applicable evaluation criteria, the local government may be invited to submit a formal application to SC Commerce.
The Coordinating Council reviews each funding request and has discretion to approve, deny or negotiate the amount and terms of an award.
If funding is approved:
- The local government enters into a grant agreement with the Coordinating Council
- The company, local government and Coordinating Council enter into a performance agreement establishing applicable job creation and capital investment commitments
- Grant funds reimburse approved project costs in accordance with the project budget and agreement terms
Interested in Set-Aside funding?
Companies considering a new location or expansion should connect with an incentives expert to discuss project needs and determine whether Set-Aside funding may be appropriate.
Frequently asked questions
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