Council chair urges support for state bill to allow county concurrency in development

Council Chairman C. David Chinis discussed pending state legislation April 21 that would explicitly authorize counties to require concurrency for development and enforce growth boundaries.

Chinis told council members he plans to attend a House subcommittee hearing and described House Bill 4050 and Senate Bill 227 as proposals that would give counties state‑level backing to require concurrency reviews tied to traffic, water and sewer capacity, and other development improvements.

“Whether anyone realizes it or not, if you're paying attention, you would see that a lot of the things that Dorchester County has done over the last 5 or 6 years are in fact concurrency,” Chinis said, adding that the county already uses traffic studies and service requirements to manage development. He described the state effort as an opportunity to codify authority the county has been building incrementally.

Chinis said the bill language may not be perfect but could provide a path to “good” outcomes and urged residents to contact their legislators; he noted a subcommittee hearing scheduled for the next day and predicted the bill could go to the full House shortly thereafter.

Council members did not take any formal vote on county policy at the meeting; the discussion was a briefing and a call for constituent engagement. Chinis said he had asked staff to explore a county concurrency ordinance and to review the county’s urban growth boundary, including potential service connections for Harleyville and St. George.

The remarks were presented as a policy update and background for council and the public rather than a formal council action.