October 2025

2025 FALL ADVOCACY MEETING

Roads, Relationship Building Top Issues Discussed at 2025 Fall Advocacy Meeting

More than 85 county officials got a preview of what’s coming in the 2026 state legislative session during the Oct. 14 Fall Advocacy Meeting in Columbia. 

South Carolina Secretary of Transportation Justin Powell, state legislators at the meeting, and county officials discussed the importance of road modernization and improvements. State representatives are expected to begin discussing a comprehensive roads bill in January.  

County leaders from Florence and Lancaster counties along with state Sen. Mike Reichenbach and Rep. Brandon Newton showcased how they have forged strong relationships for the benefit of their shared constituency.  

Read more.

2025 SCAC Awards Honor Ingenuity and Collaborative Efforts at Fall Meeting

This year’s SCAC Awards entries featured 11 projects from 13 counties, highlighting creative problem-solving and collaborative efforts to improve the lives of residents.  

The winner of this year’s J. Mitchell Graham Award was Spartanburg County’s “CERT as the First Responder” project. Launched in 2024, Spartanburg County’s CERT91 program uses trained volunteers as a dedicated 911 response team for lower-acuity calls like lift assists and welfare checks.

This year’s Barrett Lawrimore Award went to the collaborative effort between Greenville and Pickens counties for the “Table Rock Wildfire Incident: A Multiagency Coordination Effort.” The Table Rock Complex Fire in March was the largest recent wildfire in Upstate South Carolina. It began with the fire at Table Rock State Park and was joined by the Persimmon Ridge Fire near Caesars Head State Park.

Read more.

Hear more about Spartanburg County's CERT91 program.

Hear more about the multiagency response to the Table Rock Complex Fire.

NEWS

2026 SCAC Scholarship Program Now Open

High school seniors in 13 counties can now apply for one-time college scholarships to be awarded in 2026.

Each year, SCAC's Presidential Scholarship Program awards one $5,000 scholarship to a graduating high school senior who is a resident of the same county as the SCAC President. The 2026 Presidential Scholarship will be awarded to a Chesterfield County resident in honor of SCAC President and Chesterfield County Council Chairwoman Mary D. Anderson.  

A graduating senior from each of the following counties will be selected to receive a $5,000 Board of Director's scholarship: Abbeville, Anderson, Cherokee, Colleton, Darlington, Dorchester, Fairfield, Greenville, Greenwood, Jasper, Marlboro, and McCormick counties. 

Learn more about how to apply via our scholarships page.

EDUCATION

NACo Offers Scholarship for Cybersecurity Leadership Academy During October

October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month, and the National Association of Counties (NACo) is hosting a Cybersecurity Leadership Academy to help county officials take the lead in protecting their communities from cyber threats.

The 10-week program includes a curriculum that covers best practices for securing your county networks and organizations, protecting data assets and more.

NACo member counties who enroll during October are eligible to receive a scholarship, reducing the cost of the program to $1,000.

Find more information on the program and how to enroll at naco.org/cyberskills. Funding opportunities for this course can be found at the CISA's cyber grants page.

EVENTS

Registration Now Open for Attorney's Institute

The annual Local Government Attorneys’ Institute is one of the largest seminars for public sector attorneys in the state. It is attended by attorneys from counties, municipalities and state agencies. The event remains a favorite CLE—consistently providing a dynamic faculty and valuable opportunities for discussion and networking. 

This year's event has been approved for 6.0 hours of MCLE, including 2.0 hours of ethics and 1.0 hour of substance abuse and mental health credit.

Register today.

GRANT CENTRAL STATION

DHS Launches More Than $100 Million in Funding to Strengthen Cyber Defenses

The Department of Homeland Security, through the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agents (CISA) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, has announced more than $100 million in cybersecurity grant funding is available to strengthen community cybersecurity.

The funding includes two separate grants: the Fiscal Year 2025 State and Local Cybersecurity Grant Program (SLCGP) and the Tribal Cybersecurity Grant Program (TCGP). The SLCGP makes $91.7 million available to state and local governments for a range of cybersecurity improvements, including plannings and exercises, hiring experts in the community and improving services for their residents. The TCGP provides $12.1 million to tribal governments for similar uses. 

The grants will play a critical role in enhancing cybersecurity resilience by providing resources to strengthen network security and reduce cyber risks. For more information and application resources, visit CISA's cyber grants page..

Grant Management Workshop Set Offered by Central Midlands COG, Grant Writing USA

Central Midlands Council of Governments and Grant Management USA will present a two-day grant management workshop in Columbia on Nov. 3-4, 2025. This in-person training is for grant recipient organizations across all disciplines. Attendees will learn how to administer government grants, stay in compliance with current Office of Management and Budget rules and regulations, and survive an audit.

Beginning and experienced grant managers, grant writers and administrators from city, county and state agencies, healthcare organizations, public safety, colleges and universities, K-12, and nonprofit organizations are encouraged to attend.

Learn more and register on Grant Writing USA's website.

For more information contact Tammy Pitts at 888-435-7281 or tammy@grantwritingusa.com.

SC ORS Reopens Applications for Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant

The South Carolina Office of Regulatory Staff’s Energy Office (SCEO) has received funding from the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (SC EECBG) Program and has reopened the application window with a rolling application window and an expanded list of eligible entities. Applicants in the initial application periods are eligible to submit an application in the third round. The application window will remain open a rolling basis, pending available funding, through Monday, Dec. 1, by 11:59 p.m.

Through SC EECBG, SCEO provides funding opportunities to support projects and programs that cut carbon emissions, improve energy efficiency, and reduce energy use in South Carolina.

The expanded list of eligible South Carolina entities for Round Three includes:

• Counties or municipalities that are ineligible for US DOE EECBG funding
• Local public authorities
• School districts
• Special districts
• Councils of Governments
• Any other regional or intrastate governmental entity or instrumentality of a local government
• New state agencies

For more information regarding which local entities in South Carolina were eligible to receive direct funding, please review the EECBG Local Government Allocations.

COUNTY EMPLOYMENT

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