Columbia, SC (WLTX) -- SC House Democratic Leader Todd Rutherford plans to offer up legislation in 2015 to open the door for casinos in South Carolina.
Rutherford's goal is to generate new tax revenue to fix South Carolina's roads and bridges.
His proposed legislation would pave the way for "well-regulated, upscale" casinos to be built in the Myrtle Beach area. Building casinos in Myrtle Beach would create thousands of jobs, offer South Carolina a new multi-billion dollar revenue stream in taxes, and would fund much-needed road repairs around the state.
"Governor [Nikki] Haley doesn't have a plan to fix our roads," Rep. Rutherford said in a statement. "Voters are taxed enough already, and this proposal provides an alternative to a gas tax increase, which has no chance of passing the legislature."
In South Carolina's June 10th Primary, one question posed to Democratic voters statewide that was approved by an 80% majority would change SC Gaming Laws to provide for revenue for the state's transportation infrastructure.
That voting result will be used on down the road by Rutherford in support of his legislative proposal as a demonstration of public agreement to utilize gaming revenue for transportation improvements.
A Haley spokesman said the governor doesn't support casino gambling and will never take action to allow it to be legalized in the state.
