South Carolina Finalizes Delayed $15.7 Billion State Budget After McMaster Review

South Carolina's General Assembly ratified H. 5126, the state budget for fiscal year 2026-27, on August 11, 2026, roughly six weeks after the fiscal year began on July 1, during which the state operated under a temporary spending plan. Governor Henry McMaster subsequently completed his review of the budget and issued line-item vetoes to the final spending plan. Reports place the total budget size at approximately $15 billion to $15.7 billion, with sources differing on the precise figure. McMaster stated that 92% of his budget priorities were included in the final version passed by lawmakers, encompassing income tax relief and funding for road and bridge improvements, though he received less transportation funding than he had requested. The budget also raised teachers' minimum salaries and provided raises for state employees and legislators. One report indicated McMaster issued 14 line-item vetoes for this budget, compared to 11 in 2025 and 21 in 2024, though this figure is corroborated by only one source among those reviewed. Negotiators had also debated more than $400 million in lawmaker-sponsored local government and nonprofit earmark funding, which was ultimately excluded from the final budget after weeks of debate between House and Senate negotiators. The budget process concluded with McMaster's completed review more than six weeks into the fiscal year, later than the typical timeline. Earlier in the year, in his ninth and final State of the State address delivered January 29, 2026, McMaster had called for the Legislature to fund an outside analysis of infrastructure needs, citing concerns about water and sewer access, traffic congestion, and school overcrowding as South Carolina continues rapid population growth. The exact total dollar amount of the final budget and the precise count of gubernatorial vetoes remain inconsistently reported across sources and are not fully resolved.