Home Builders Association Builder Ballot

The right to vote is not only a privilege, it is a responsibility that each voter should take seriously.  Elections are how our country chooses the leaders who will represent our interests in the halls of government.

Your Home Builders Association has formed two Political Action Committees that raise money from our members, screens candidates, and makes contributions to the campaigns of the candidates that our Government Affairs Committee members and Board of Directors have determined will be represent the interests of the Home Building, Remodeling, Land Development, and Light Commercial Contracting industries.

Election day is Tuesday, November 4.  The polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 7 p.m.  If you are registered to vote, please plan to go to the polls.  Not registered to vote?  Why not?

Don't think your vote matters?  "A few years ago a few Home Builders in Dorchester County (Summerville) thought their vote did not matter," Michael Dey, Executive Vice President of the Home Builders Association, said.  "The chairman of Dorchester County Council, a member of the Home Builders Association, lost by just four votes," Dey said.  "He was replaced by a politician hostile to the interests of Home Builders, and the next four years were very difficult for that association," he said.  "The association knew of several members, who lived in the county, who did not vote in that election."  Yes, your vote does matter.

Builder Ballot
BuildPAC has contributed to the following candidates:

• U.S. Senator: Senator Lindsay Graham (R)
• U.S. Senator: Senator Tim Scott (R)
• U.S. House District 3: Congressman Jeff Duncan (R)
• U.S. House District 4: Congressman Trey Gowdy (R)

South Carolina Builders PAC has contributed to the following candidates:

• Governor: Nikki Haley (R) 
• Lt. Governor: Henry McMaster (R)
• Attorney General: Alan Wilson (R)
• S.C. House District 4: Rep. David Hiott (R)
• S.C. House District 18: Rep. Tommy Stringer (R)
• S.C. House District 19: Rep. Dwight Loftis (R)
• S.C. House District 20: Rep. Dan Hamilton (R)
• S.C. House District 21: Rep. Phyllis Henderson (R)
• S.C. House District 24: Majority Leader Bruce Bannister (R)
• Greenville County Council District 19: Vice Chairman Willis Meadows

Ballot Questions
There are three questions on the ballot on which S.C. Builders PAC and your Home Builders Association recommend that you vote YES:

• One Cent Sales Tax for Roads in Greenville County: the PAC has contributed to a coalition supporting this effort and the Board of Directors recommends that you vote yes.  The rationale is that inadequate roads are holding back Home Building, limiting the ability of members to get new subdivisions approved.  The current time-line for improving our roads, based on current funding, is 83 years.  This eight-year tax is the best hope for the county to solve this problem.  Click here for more information.
• Amendment 1, legalize raffled conducted by nonprofit organizations for charitable purposes: current law prohibits organizations like the Home Builders Association from using raffles for fundraising purposes.  If approved, the question would legalize raffles for nonprofit organizations.
• Amendement 2, require the Governor to appoint the Adjutant General: the Adjutant General is the head of the state's National Guard, and is currently elected by popular vote, one of nine constitutional officers in our state. Rationale: the Governor should have the authority to appoint the person who runs the department he/she has the power to mobilize.

About the PACs
South Carolina Builders PAC is a partnership between the Home Builders Association of South Carolina, Home Builders Association of Greenville, and other local HBAs in South Carolina.  Its scope is local, statewide, and legislative races.

BuildPAC is a PAC organized under Federal Election Laws.  It's scope is Congressional races.  BuildPAC does not take a position on the Presidency.  BuildPAC is managed by the National Association of Home Builders.

The Government Affairs Committee surveys and interviews candidates and makes recommendations for supporting those candidates to the Home Builders Association of Greenville Board of Directors, which makes the final decision on local and legislative races. The S.C. Builders PAC Trustees determines contributions for statewide races, and the BuildPAC Trustees determines the contributions for Congressional races.